Method of measurement for heat-induced gel forming ability in myosin B prepared from shark muscle

The gel forming ability of heating myosin B (MB) prepared from shark muscle was investigated by a slightly modified apparatus of Saunders and Ward's method for measuring rigidity (R). The MB-gels, so-called heat-induced gels of MB, were obtained by heating MB-sol (protein concentration: 20-60 mg/g of pH 5.0-7.5 at 80 degree C for 20 min in a water-bath and then cooled at 0-3 degree C for 20 min in an ice-bath. The maximal R of MB-gel was equivalent to the R of that after heating MB-sol of pH 6.0. The heating temperature required to obtain the maximal R of MB-gel was 70 degree C among degrees from 40 degree C to 90 degree C at pH 6.0 and 6.8 in MB-sol. Further, the R of MB-gel mostly corresponded to jelly strength of Kamaboko. It is concluded that the gel forming ability of shark muscle can be estimated from R of pure MB for a molecular model instead of making Kamaboko practically.