Division of Animal and Dairy Science, Chungnam National University, Daejeon, Korea.
Research Group of Food Processing, Korea Food Research Institute, Wanju, Korea.
Crit Rev Food Sci Nutr. 2024;64(5):1385-1402. doi: 10.1080/10408398.2022.2116557. Epub 2022 Sep 2.
Freezing is commonly used to extend the shelf life of meat and meat products but may impact the overall quality of those products by inducing structural changes in myofibrillar proteins (MPs) through denaturation, chemical modification, and encouraging protein aggregation. This review covers the effect of freezing on the denaturation of MPs in terms of the effects of ice crystallization on solute concentrations, cold denaturation, and protein oxidation. Freezing-induced denaturation of MPs begins with ice crystallization in extracellular spaces and changes in solute concentrations in the unfrozen water fraction. At typical temperatures for freezing meat (lower than -18 °C), cold denaturation of proteins occurs, accompanied by an alteration in their secondary and tertiary structure. Moreover, the disruption of muscle cells triggers the release of cellular enzymes, accelerating protein degradation and oxidation. To minimize severe deterioration during the freezing and frozen storage of meat, there is a vital need to use an appropriate freezing temperature below the glass transition temperature and to avoid temperature fluctuations during storage to prevent recrystallization. Such an understanding of MP denaturation can be applied to determine the optimum freezing conditions for meat products with highly retained sensory, nutritional, and functional qualities.
冷冻通常用于延长肉类和肉类产品的保质期，但通过变性、化学修饰和促进蛋白质聚集，会对肌原纤维蛋白 (MPs) 产生结构影响，从而对这些产品的整体质量产生影响。本综述讨论了冷冻对 MPs 变性的影响，包括冰晶形成对溶质浓度、冷变性和蛋白质氧化的影响。MPs 的冷冻诱导变性始于细胞外空间的冰晶形成以及未冻结水部分的溶质浓度变化。在典型的肉类冷冻温度（低于-18°C）下，蛋白质发生冷变性，同时其二级和三级结构发生改变。此外，肌肉细胞的破坏会触发细胞酶的释放，加速蛋白质的降解和氧化。为了最大限度地减少肉类在冷冻和冷冻储存过程中的严重劣化，迫切需要在玻璃化转变温度以下使用适当的冷冻温度，并在储存过程中避免温度波动，以防止再结晶。这种对 MP 变性的理解可以应用于确定具有高度保留感官、营养和功能品质的肉类产品的最佳冷冻条件。
