How the freshness and the storage conditions influence the polyamines formation in fishes

Food quality has been linked to biogenic amines in fermented or fresh foodstuffs. Biogenic amines such as putrescine, cadaverine, histamine,spermidine, spermine, tyramine and tryptamine are widely distributed in proteinaceous foods. The amines are formed mainly as a result of metabolic processes in microorganisms. In stored meat, the amines are generated by the action of bacterial spoilage decarboxylases. The high content of proteins in fish meat results in an increased probability of fast decomposition processes. This study put in evidence how polyamine levels can be influenced by the storage conditions, in fact the levels of all polyamines were greater in samples kept at room temperature than the stored ones at 4 °C, whereas the spermidine content increased during the spoilage, but decreased in samples irradiated by UV lamp.