The formation of non-volatile amines in relation to concentrations of free basic amino acids during postmortem storage of the muscle of scallop (Pecten maximus), herring (Clupea harengus) and mackerel (Scomber scombrus)

The concentrations of the non-volatile biogenic amines that form during storage of the adductor muscle of scallop (Pecten maximus) and the skeletal muscles of mackerel (Scomber scombrus) and herring (Clupea harengus) were determined by high-performance liquid chromatography, using postcolumn derivatisation with o-phthalaldehyde. Initially, concentrations of amines were low in all muscles but, as time of storage progressed, the concentration of agmatine increased steadily in scallop muscle reaching a level of 100 mg per 100 g wet weight after 10 days of storage in ice or 3 days at 10 degrees C. In mackerel and herring only slight increases were observed, with levels of less than 1.0 mg after 10 days in ice or 2 days at 10 degrees C. In scallop, arginine, the precursor of agmatine, decreased steadily in concentration. In herring muscle, histidine, the precursor of histamine, decreased considerably in concentration, whereas in mackerel it changed only slightly. (C) 1997 Published by Elsevier Science Ltd.