Studies on protein denaturation in frozen fish. II.—Preliminary freezing experiments

Abstract

Measurements have been made of the percentage of total myotome protein soluble in 5% sodium chloride (‘soluble protein’) of frozen cod fillets. It was found that the soluble protein content decreased at a steady rate when the fillets were stored at − 14°, in contrast to the findings of some other workers. When the limiting value had been reached, after about 15 weeks, no further decrease was observed even in fillets stored for over 4 years at this temperature. Freezing increased the variation in soluble proteins of individual fish in a given batch considerably over that found in an unfrozen batch. The speed at which the fish were frozen was found to have no effect on the soluble protein value provided that the fish were not stored in the frozen state.