Abstract:The cryoprotective effects of trehalose and alginate oligosaccharide on mussel (Mytilus edulis) during frozen storage were evaluated by monitoring the quality characteristics in this study. The results indicated that the trehalose and alginate oligosaccharide soaking treatments significantly（p<0.05）reduced the thawing loss of mussel muscle. The thawing loss rate of alginate oligosaccharide group was as low as 14.28%, and maintained good elasticity and chewiness properties, compared with the water soaking group and the control group during the 6-week frozen storage. Furthermore, the rapid increase of the total number of colonies in mussels was effectively inhibited by the trehalose and alginate oligosaccharide. In addition, the soaking treatments of the two saccharides maintained a good myofibrillar protein Ca2+-ATPase activity, and the myofibrillar protein Ca2+-ATPase activity ranged from 0.019 to 0.021 U/mg protein. There was no significant difference among the three treatment groups (p>0.05). The microscopic observations showed that the structure of mussel tissues from trehalose- and alginate- oligosaccharide-treated groups were arranged in a tighter manner. The extracellular space was smaller than in control and Na4P2O7 soaked samples after 6 weeks of storage. Thus, trehalose and alginate oligosaccharides could be used as a highly effective cryoprotectant to maintain the quality of the mussels and also have widespread applications to extend the shelf life of frozen mussel products.
