Effect of electrohydraulic shockwave treatment on tenderness, muscle cathepsin and peptidase activities and microstructure of beef loin steaks from Holstein young bulls

Hydrodynamic pressure processing (HDP) or shockwave treatment improved tenderness (18% reduction in Warner-Bratzler shear force (WBSF) of beef loin steaks. Endogenous muscle proteolyic activities (cathepsins and peptidases) and protein fragmentation of sarcoplasmic and myofibrillar proteins detected by sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (SDS-PAGE) were not influenced by HDP. However, microstructure changes were clearly detected using confocal laser scanning microscopy (CLSM) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). Specifically a disruption of the structure at the muscle fiber bundles and an increased endomysium space were observed. The present paper supports the evidence of physical disruption of the muscle fibers as a cause behind the tenderness improvement. The paper discusses the possible mechanisms responsible for the meat tenderisation induced by HDP treatment.The research leading to these results received funding from the European Union's Seventh Framework Programme managed by REA Research Executive Agency http://ec.europa.eu/research/rea (FP7/2007-2013) under grant agreement number 2870340 [Development of Shock Wave Technology for Packed Meat]. Grant PROMETEO/2012/001 from Conselleria d'Educació, Formació i Ocupació of Generalitat Valenciana (Spain) is also acknowledged.Peer Reviewe