Abstract:

The effect of high pressure (HP) treatment on gel formation of sea bass skeletal muscle at room temperature
was investigated in this study. The tissue structure was altered after HP treatment. Scanning electron microscopic (SEM)
observations indicated that the muscle of sea bass could form good gel networks at high pressures of 300－400 MPa.
Meanwhile, HP treatment could cause changes in the contents of active sulfhydryl groups, surface hydrophobic groups and
pH. The contents of active sulfhydryl and surface hydrophobic groups in sea bass myofibrillar proteins subjected to 300 MPa
treatment for 10 min increased by 61.7% and 51.1%, respectively; appropriate high pressure resulted in a slight increase in
pH, which favored the formation of three-dimensional networks.

Key words: high pressure treatment, sea bass, gel