Abstract: | Post-mortem changes in myofibril fragmentation index and degradation of myofibrillar proteins of duck breast muscles at 5°C was investigated. Muscle samples were collected immediately after killing and from the stored carcasses at 5°C for 1, 3, 7, and 14 days post mortem . The results showed that the MFI of the breast muscles increased with time post mortem . SDS-PAGE of myofibrils indicated that the disappearance of troponin-T accompanied concurrently with the appearance of 32–30 kDa components. After 7 days of storage, α-actinin was degraded, and a 98 kDa component appeared. Titin 1 and nebulin also disappeared after post-mortem storage for 3 days. |