CHANGES IN ANTIOXIDANT CONTENTS, QUALITY ATTRIBUTES AND MYOFIBRILLAR PROTEINS OF CHEVON DURING POSTMORTEM AGEING

Résumé

This study examined the effect of postmortem ageing on the changes in antioxidant contents, physicochemical properties and myofibrillar proteins in Psoas major (PM) muscle in goats. The PM samples were excised from carcasses of ten Boer bucks on 0, 1, 4 and 8 d postmortem. Muscle glycogen and pH was greater on d 0 postmortem compared with those observed on other storage days. Ageing had no effect on antioxidant enzyme activities in PM muscle in goats. The relative density of myosin heavy chain and troponin T were stable until d 1 postmortem but declined (P< 0.05) afterwards. The drip loss, carbonyl, metmyoglobin and TBARS increased (P< 0.05) while the redness, shear force, free thiol, tocopherol, carotenoid, myoglobin and metmyoglobin reducing activity decreased (P<0.05) over postmortem ageing. Postmortem ageing improved tenderness but reduced the oxidative stability of PM muscle in goats.