POSTMORTEM BIOCHEMICAL CHANGES AND MUCSLE PROPERTIES IN SURF CLAM (Spisula solidissima)

Abstract

Postmortem biochemical changes and their relationship to the eating quality of surf clam muscle were studied. Shear value and cook loss continuously increased with the length of storage time up to 9 days postmortem and the rate of increase was much greater after 4 days of storage. A rapid breakdown of high energy phosphate compounds and muscle glycogen with a concomitant fall in pH after 4 days postmortem suggested that rigor onset occurred at 4 days and was completed between 6 and 9 days postmortem. The biochemical changes in surf clam muscles were much slower than those reported for the muscle systems from other species and were in a close coincidence with the change of shear values and cook loss. Another significant finding was that pyruvate instead of lactate was accumulated as glycolysis proceeded.

Nucleotide Catabolism and Changes in Texture Indices During Ice Storage of Cultured Sturgeon, Acipenser Transmontanus

“…Brain spiking live specimens of fish and holding at temperatures higher than OC can marginally delay the time of rigor onset, e.g., from 3 to 12 h (Iwamoto et al 1987). Mollusk muscles, such as surf clams (Lee et al 1978) and scallop adductor (Nakamura et uf. 1976) differ from finfish in that rigor may not start until 4 days after death and fully develop until 9 days after death.…”