Induction of Mutagenicity in Dry Cured Pork by Heat Treatment

Abstract

The potential for mutagen formation in dry cured pork by heat treatment was examined via a Salmonella mutagenicity assay using a streptomycin-dependent mutant SD 510 of Salmonella typhimurium TA 98. Minced fresh pork containing 10% fat was dry-cured with either formula-A or formula-B at 4°C for 3 days. While formula-A contained spices such as nutmeg, ginger, mace, cinnamon and white pepper, formula-B contained no spices. The dry-cured pork was heated at a temperature of between 50°C and 175°C for 15, 30, 45, 60, 75 and 90 min, respectively. When the pork was cured with formula-A, all the ethanol extracts of the heat-treated pork samples gave highly positive mutagenic responses. In particular, higher mutagenicities were observed when heating longer than 60 min at any given temperature. The mutagenicity levels were reduced by decreasing temperature and/or time. Addition of a -tocopherol (2%per 100g of pork) to formula-A was found to be effective in reducing the mutagenicity. On the other hand, a sharp reduction of the mutagenicity was observed when the pork cured with formula-B was heated under the same conditions.