Exudate Protein Composition and Meat Tenderness of Broiler Breast Fillets

Area of Science:

• Food Science
• Meat Science
• Poultry Science

Background:

• Meat tenderness is a critical quality attribute influencing consumer acceptance.
• Postmortem handling, including deboning time, can significantly impact meat quality.
• Muscle exudates may contain proteins related to meat tenderization processes.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the relationship between broiler breast meat tenderness and muscle exudate protein composition.
• To determine the effect of early versus delayed deboning on meat tenderness and exudate characteristics.
• To analyze protein profiles of muscle exudates using SDS-PAGE.

Main Methods:

• Broiler breast fillets were deboned at 2 hours (early-deboned, EB) or 24 hours (control) postmortem.
• Meat tenderness was measured using Warner-Bratzler shear force (WBSF).
• Muscle exudate protein content and composition were analyzed via biuret assay and SDS-PAGE.

Main Results:

• Early-deboned fillets showed significantly higher WBSF (tougher meat) at both 1 and 6 days postmortem compared to controls.
• Deboning time did not affect fillet pH or color (L*a*b*).
• Control fillets had lower drip loss and cook loss; exudate protein concentration was similar between groups, and SDS-PAGE profiles were generally alike, except for a more abundant 225 kDa band in controls.

Conclusions:

• Early deboning of broiler breast meat leads to reduced tenderness.
• Muscle exudate protein composition, as analyzed by SDS-PAGE, showed limited association with the observed differences in meat tenderness.
• Further research may be needed to identify specific exudate components influencing broiler meat tenderness.