the flavor and odor of fishery products, and 

 determination of the chemical and physical 

 composition of fish harvested from specific 

 areas during certain time of the year. 



Protein Research 



Investigations are being conducted on the 

 molecular structure of fish proteins and 

 on the relation of changes in protein 

 structure to changes in the texture of 

 frozen fish. Knowledge of the physical and 

 chemical characteristics of fish protein 

 will form the basis for developing methods 

 of minimizing changes in quality that now 

 occur during the freezing and extended 

 frozen storage of many species of fish. 



Our findings indicate that the stability 

 of fish muscle actomyosin (the major protein 



component of the flesh) is greatly influenced 

 by the type of fat in the flesh. Experimental 

 evidence indicates that low concentrations 

 of linoleic and linolenic acids precipitate 

 some actomyosin from solution immediately 

 when fatty acids are added and continue to 

 insolubilize the remaining actomyosin dur- 

 ing storage at 39° F. (4° C.). It has also 

 been found that cod flesh soaked in glycerol 

 and stored at 14° F. (-10° C.) for 4 months 

 contains four times as much soluble protein 

 and one fourth as much free fatty acids as 

 does cod flesh treated in the same way 

 but without glycerol. 



Flavor and Odor Research 



Gas chromatographic and mass spectro- 

 metric techniques are being used to isolate 

 and identify those compounds that are 



Using the gas chromatograph for the separation of volatile compounds that contribute to the odor and flavor of fresh haddock. 



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