INFLUENCE OF COMPOSITION OF MUSCLE FIBER TYPE ON MEAT QUALITY CHARACTERISTICS OF HANWOO CATTLE

摘要

Background and ObjectiveThe beef quality of fresh meat is an important characteristic influencing the consumer's purchase decision. The three sensory properties affecting the preferences of consumers for meat quality are appearance, texture, and flavor. Ashmore(1974) suggested that meat quality are influenced by skeletal muscle fiber characteristics. The variation in muscle oxidative, glycolytic and contractile properties can be assessed using biochemical techniques, since the concentration, activities and ratios of different enzymes used for contraction and energy metabolism differ in the various types of muscle (Pette and Staron, 1990). Isolation of different heavy and light chain myosin isoforms by electrophoretic techniques is one of the ways of muscle typing. Three different single myosin heavy chain (MHC) isoforms have been identified in ATPase based on fiber types: MHC I in type I, MHC Ha in type IIa and MHC IIb in type IIb (Picard et al., 1995). Picard et al., (1999) reported that the classification of bovine muscle fibers is of particular interest for the food industry because meat quality depends in part on the proportion of the different types of fibers. Muscle comprises a heterogeneous population of fibers differing in their speed of contraction and their metabolism. Therefore, the objective of the study was to investigate influence of muscle fiber type on meat quality characteristics of Hanwoo (Korean native cattle) major muscles.