1. Institute of Animal Husbandry Quality Standards, Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region Academy of Animal Science, ürümqi 830000, China; 2. Xinjiang Laboratory of Animal Products Quality and Safety, ürümqi 830000, China
Abstract：This study investigated the effect of antifreeze peptides (AFP) derived from enzymatic hydrolysis of sheep bone collagen as a preservative on freshness indices of mutton during superchilled storage. Mutton was treated with AFP or one of the three traditional preservatives: chitosan, tea polyphenols and lysozyme and stored at –4 ℃ for up to 20 d. Changes in six freshness indices were examined during the storage period to develop a model for the evaluation of mutton freshness. The proposed model was applied to examine the effect of AFP and the traditional preservatives on keeping mutton freshness. The results showed that the thermal hysteresis activity of AFP was 5.2 ℃, and superchilled storage reduced the ice crystal content of the samples. Lysozyme significantly improved the tenderness of mutton (P < 0.05), while tea polyphenols significantly improved the color (P < 0.05). Both of them prolonged the shelf-life by five days compared with the untreated group. Chitosan significantly improved the pH and total bacterial count (P < 0.05) and prolonged the shelf life to 15–20 d. AFP improved all tested indicators. Notably, occurrence of the extreme acidity value in the AFP-treated group was delayed to the 15th day, and the total volatile base nitrogen (TVB-N) content was maintained below 10 mg/100 g in the first 15 d. The model results showed that AFP extended the shelf life of mutton to more than 20 d. Overall, AFP function as a cryoprotective agent to improve various mutton freshness indicators during superchilled storage, effectively prolonging the shelf life.
2025, Vol. 39 
