Analysis tenderized meat

As an example, consider papain, a protease from papaya juice that is used to treat meat to make it more tender and easier to chew. The pH optimum of the enzyme is 6.2, and analysis of the pH dependence indicates that two groups, with pKg s of 4.2 and 8.2, are required for catalysis. One group must be protonated cmd the other deprotonated for catalysis to occur. The active site of papain contains a cysteine thiol and a histidine imidazole group. There are two possible ways to write the protonation state of the active site ... 

Fresh or unprocessed meat is characterized normally by microbial tests, by measurement of physical attributes such as tenderness and color, and by proximate analysis that is, the proportions of the major constituents of moisture, protein, fat, and ash... 

When consuming whole meat, like steak, roasted beef, and stews, sensory tenderness, toughness, and juiciness are often considered the most important quality attributes. Traditional sensory analysis is both time consuming and sample destructive. Other rheological methods to determine tenderness and toughness are also destructive analysis methods. A noninvasive, nondestructive measurement method is desired by the industry. 

T. Ntes, K.I. Hildrum. Comparison of multivariate calibration and discriminant analysis in evaluating NIR spectroscopy for determination meat tenderness. Appl Spectrosc 51 350-357, 1997. 

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