Effects of High-Pressure Treatments on the Redox State of Porcine Myoglobin and Color Stability of Pork During Cold Storage

This study investigated the effects of high-pressure treatment on the redox states of myoglobin (Mb) species and the associated color stability of porcine during cold storage. Mb was denatured with increasing pressure and temperature. Ferric Mb exhibited more denaturation at the given pressure and temperature conditions as compared to its ferrous analog, part of ferric Mb was reduced back into ferrous form by high-pressure treatment, and the maximum reduction was shown at the pressure level of 150 MPa at 50 °C. Based on the model study, metMb reduction was favorable when the pressure was below 170 MPa, while Mb denaturation was dominant at higher pressures. Pressure treatment of pork resulted in irreversible Mb denaturation, which prevented the restoration of meat color during cold storage, despite the fact that pressure treatment also improved the metMb-reducing activity of pork. Thus, the results of this study demonstrated that pressure-treated pork color was affected by a balance of the redox systems and by the degree of Mb denaturation. In addition, pressurization at around 150–200 MPa was determined to be ideal in terms of improving the color stability of pressurized pork during storage.