An assessment of extracellular space measurements in post-mortem muscle

Extracellular space measurements of early post-mortem muscle were made by incubating muscle strips in inulin [(14)C] carboxylic acid. The extracellular space measurements provide a means to assess the functionality of the muscle membrane. This may lead to an understanding of variations in the water-holding capacity of meat and the effects of stress on the muscle membranes of stress susceptible animals. Secondly, a level of intrafibre water affinity between carcasses may be determined which may relate to the interfilamental spacings between myofibrils in the fibre and thus meat quality.