title: Magnetic resonance imaging and relaxation analysis to predict noninvasively and nondestructively salt-to-moisture ratios in dry-cured meat.
abstract: The current systems are unable to control and predict the cured meat composition nondestructively and in a reasonable time for production needs. In this work, T1 and T2 maps were obtained, with a monoexponential model, on internal sections of Longissimus dorsi muscle at increasing salting times. The maps allow one to visualize the salting process nondestructively and noninvasively. The method goes beyond the simple qualitative visualization, because, for each section of the sample and in any region of the section, it is possible to obtain quantitative information on the progress of salting and to predict salt-to-moisture ratios. In addition, detailed relaxation measurements were performed on samples cored after imaging in order to define better the relaxation properties of the dry-cured meat.
authors.affiliation: Department of Physics, University of Bologna, 40127 Bologna, Italy. paola.fantazzini@unibo.it
authors.forename: Paola
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Fantazzini
authors.forename: Villiam
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Bortolotti
authors.forename: Carla
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Garavaglia
authors.forename: Mirko
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Gombia
authors.forename: Silvana
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Riccardi
authors.forename: Paolo
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Schembri
authors.forename: Roberta
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Virgili
authors.forename: Chiara
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Soresi Bordini
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D008279:Magnetic Resonance Imaging; D008460:Meat / Q000032:analysis*; D012965:Sodium Chloride; D013552:Swine
chemical_list: D012965:Sodium Chloride