Influence of pork liver drying on ferrochelatase activity for zinc protoporphyrin formation

Abstract

[EN] Pork liver contains an endogenous enzyme, ferrochelatase (FeCH), which catalyses the formation of zinc protoporphyrin (ZnPP), a natural pigment of great interest for the meat industry. The aim of this study was to analyse the effect of pork liver drying (from 10 to 70 degrees C), as a stabilisation method, on the FeCH activity (EA) and the apparent concentration (ECapp). Drying temperatures close to room conditions (from 10 to 20 degrees C) allowed to preserve well the ECapp, while the EA was slightly lower ( 15.2%) than in raw liver. However, when drying was conducted at extreme conditions ( 10 and 70 degrees C), the lowest values of ECapp and EA were manifested. Therefore, the drying process at moderate temperatures close to room conditions (10 - 20 degrees C) was considered to be an effective method for FeCH preservation since it was possible to stabilise the liver and the loss of FeCH activity was minimised.