Formation and mitigation of heterocyclic aromatic amines in fried pork

Heterocyclic aromatic amines (HAAs) are potent mutagens and carcinogens generated during the heat processing of meat. HAAs, which are abundant in processed meat products, include 2-amino-3,8-dimethylimidazo[4,5-f]quinoxaline (MeIQx), 2-amino-3,4,8-trimethylimidazo[4,5-f]quinoxaline (4,8-DiMeIQx), and 2-amino-1-methyl-6-phenylimidazo [4,5-b] pyridine (PhIP). The content of these three HAAs in fried pork was determined by LC-MS/MS. The effects of frying time and temperature, sample shape, and addition of antioxidants on the generation of HAAs were investigated. The results show that HAAs were produced during frying, and their levels increased with increasing frying time and temperature. Pork patties had the highest concentration of HAAs compared with pork meatballs and pork strips. The addition of antioxidant of bamboo leaves (AOB), liquorice extract, tea polyphenol, phytic acid and sodium iso-ascorbate to pork before frying had an inhibitory effect on HAA generation, with AOB being the most effective antioxidant. Inhibition levels of nearly 69.73% for MeIQx, 53.59% for 4,8-DiMeIQx and 77.07% for PhIP in fried pork were achieved when the concentrations of AOB added were 0.02, 0.01 and 0.10 g kg⁻¹, respectively.