Optical-spectroscopic analysis of colorimetric changes in meat during its storage

The colorimetric and spectral characteristics of meat and their changes during the period of storage were researched. It was shown that spectral methods of analysis can potentially be used to assess the properties of meat during its storage in order to define the degree of autolytic changes which occur in the meat along with its histological-structural and proteomic changes. The work studies the quality characteristics of meat on the base of an array of its parameters and a correlation between them. Considerable attention is paid to the determination of colorimetric and spectral characteristics of autolytic and other changes in meat during its storage. The possibility of using the method of optical spectrometry for assessing the quality of meat is considered. The data obtained by processing the absorption spectra of aqueous extracts from muscle tissue confirm the promising prospects of using this method in a comprehensive study of the raw meat materials properties. The work proves possibility of classifying raw meat according to the degree of its autolysis for further assessment of its colorimetric characteristics, the value of extinction coefficients and the relative area of peaks at the wavelength λ415, λ525, λ542, λ555, and λ582.