SETTING OF SURIMI PASTE IN WHICH TRANSGLUTAMINASE IS INACTIVATED BY N-ETHYLMALEIMIDE

The effects of N-ethylmaleimide (NEM), a powerful SH reagent, and N-et hylsuccinimide (NES), not an SH reagent but an analogue of the former, on the physico-chemical properties of suwari gel from Alaska pollack surimi were investigated in order to clarify the effect of transglutam inase (TGase) on the setting of surimi paste. TGase was completely ina ctivated by the addition of more than 0.075% NEM to the paste, but the suwari gel was formed at 30-degrees-C even from such a paste. By the addition of this amount of NEM, the breaking force and SH content of m uscle proteins decreased to about 65 and 60%, respectively, and the po lymerization of myosin heavy chain (MHC) to crosslinked myosin heavy c hain (CMHC) was suppressed. On the contrary, the addition of the same amount of NES did not influence the breaking force, SH content, or pol ymerization of MHC. These findings suggest that the gelation of the pa ste and the polymerization of MHC occur during setting even in the abs ence of TGase and that the combined contribution of the formation of C MHC and that of the SS bond to the breaking force of the suwari gel is about 35%.