Effect of γ-irradiation on the physicochemical properties and structure of fish myofibrillar proteins

The influence of γ-irradiation on physicochemical properties and structures of myofibrillar protein from grass crap exposed to dose up to 10 kGy was investigated. Irradiated samples exhibited decreased emulsifying property and increased surface hydrophobicity. Increasing dose resulted in decreasing free and total sulphydryl groups, decreasing myosin heavy chains in the sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (SDS-PAGE) patterns. This study demonstrated that γ-irradiation decreased the myofibrillar protein ordered structure and generated the crosslinking and provided a possible reference for the identification of irradiated fish products.