Effects of raw meat and process procedure on Nε-carboxymethyllysine and Nε-carboxyethyl-lysine formation in meat products

This work aimed to investigate the effects of stored raw meat and process procedures on Nε-carboxymethyl-lysine (CML) and Nε-carboxyethyl-lysine (CEL) generation in meat products. Meat products of raw pork were sterilized and pasteurized at different storage times (0-4 months) and the CML/CEL contents were determined. The results showed that the extent of lipid and protein oxidation of raw pork increased with increasing storage time. A linear correlation was found between thiobarbituric acid-reactive substances value/carbonyl content and CML/CEL in sterilized meat products, indicating that stored raw pork could promote CML/CEL formation under high temperature processing. Furthermore, mild heating temperatures seemed to favor CML formation, while high temperature could accelerate CEL generation. Therefore, formation kinetics of CML and CEL might be different for different process procedures. These results suggested that stored raw meat and processing temperature could significantly affect CML and CEL generation in meat products.