Nutritional pork meat compounds as affected by ham dry-curing.
This work is focused on the determination of compounds of nutritional interest that are naturally present in pork meat and how they are affected during the processing of dry-cured ham. Such compounds are creatine, creatinine, coenzyme Q(10), glutathione, carnosine, anserine, carnitine, taurine, cystine, cysteine and the essential amino acids. Their antioxidant and antyhipertensive functions were evaluated. Of all the assayed substances, only glutathione decreased totally during processing. Carnosine, creatinine, anserine and glutathione showed antioxidant, while cysteine, glutathione and carnosine showed antyhipertensive activity. So, dry-cured ham constitutes an excellent source of essential amino acids (all essential amino acids exhibited a large increase during processing) and other nutritionally interesting compounds such as cystine, cysteine, carnosine, anserine, taurine, carnitine and coenzyme Q(10).
Instituto de Agroquímica y Tecnología de Alimentos (CSIC), Av. Agustín Escardino 7, 46980 Paterna (Valencia), Spain.
Nives
N
Marušić
M-Concepción
MC
Aristoy
Fidel
F
Toldrá
D000596:Amino Acids / Q000032:analysis*; D000818:Animals; D000959:Antihypertensive Agents / Q000032:analysis* / Q000378:metabolism; D000975:Antioxidants / Q000032:analysis* / Q000378:metabolism; D001713:Biphenyl Compounds / Q000378:metabolism; D002331:Carnitine / Q000032:analysis; D003404:Creatinine / Q000032:analysis; D004032:Diet; D005511:Food Handling; D006801:Humans; D008460:Meat / Q000032:analysis*; D010455:Peptides / Q000032:analysis*; D007703:Peptidyl-Dipeptidase A / Q000378:metabolism; D010851:Picrates / Q000378:metabolism; D013552:Swine; D014451:Ubiquinone / Q000031:analogs & derivatives / Q000032:analysis
D000596:Amino Acids; D000959:Antihypertensive Agents; D000975:Antioxidants; D001713:Biphenyl Compounds; D010455:Peptides; D010851:Picrates; D014451:Ubiquinone; D003404:Creatinine; C004931:1,1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl; D007703:Peptidyl-Dipeptidase A; C024989:coenzyme Q10; D002331:Carnitine