PROTEOLYTIC HYDROLYSIS OF MUSCLE PROTEINS OF HARP SEAL (PHOCA-GROENLANDICA)

Protein hydrolysates were prepared from mechanically separated seal meat (MSSM) using commercially available microbial enzymes Alcalase and Neutrase. The enzyme in each case was inactivated by acidification with 4 N HCl to pH 4.0. Heme groups were removed, and the hydrolyzed proteins were bleached with charcoal, neutralized to pH 7.0, and dehydrated. The yield of hydrolysate (YH) and the degree of hydrolysis (DH) using Alcalase, under optimum conditions, were 92.75% and 19.5%, respectively. The YH for Neutrase-assisted hydrolysis of MSSM was 72.85%. The dehydrated seal protein hydrolysate (SPH) contained 77.3% crude proteins, 0.74% lipid, and 20.67% minerals, mainly sodium chloride. The amino acid composition of SPH was similar to that of the original MSSM. The product so obtained was bland in taste and off-white in appearance (Hunter L value of 84.6) and had a solubility of greater than or equal to 93.5% over the pH range 2.5-10.4.