Trimethylamine Formation in Relation to the Viable Bacterial Population of Spoiling Fish Muscle

Suwa1 and Poller and Linneweh2 found that the trimethylamine oxide occurring in the muscle of certain sea fishes is reduced to the corresponding volatile amine during its spoilage by bacteria. Recently, Beatty3 has shown that it is fairly certain that at least 94 per cent of the trimethylamine found in decomposing cod fish muscle arises from the trimethylamine oxide present in this tissue, and not from the other possible precursors. Sterile fish muscle4 and muscle press juice5 do not reduce the oxide.