Aldehyde reactivity with 2-thiobarbituric acid and TBARS in freeze-dried beef during accelerated storage

When lipid oxidation is evaluated in freeze-dried beef, a yellow 450-nm-absorbing pigment develops during the 2-thiobarbituric acid (TBA) assay. TBA analysis and high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) were applied to measure oxidative changes in salted freeze-dried beef patties (15% fat) initially during storage at 49°C. The TBA pink pigment (λmax=532 nm) was most pronounced in unstored salted freeze-dried beef, and yellow pigment (λmax=450 nm) predominated in stored samples. An in vitro study of TBA reactivity of different aldehydes, known to be secondary lipid oxidation products, showed that alkanals and alk-2-enals favored TBARS450 formation, while alka-2,4-dienals favored TBARS532. Values of TBARS450 from 95°C TBA incubation were lower than those from 25°C incubation (P<0.05), indicating that the yellow chromophore from the aldehyde–TBA complex was less thermally stable than the pink pigment. 5-Hydroxymethyl-2-furfural, an aldehyde produced from Maillard reaction, also produced strong TBARS450. Propional, butanal and 5-hydroxymethyl-2-furfural (HMF), were tentatively identified in freeze-dried beef during accelerated storage at 49°C, and have the potential to yield TBARS @450.