Effect of chitosan on the waterless preservation of Urechis unicinctus

Abstract

Objective: The aim of the study was to decrease the transportation cost while reducing the nutrition loss of Urechis unicinctus. Methods: Chitosan was used for pretreatment of Urechis unicinctus, and the changes of the main nutritional and physiological indexes of the three groups i.e., control group, after waterless preservation group and recovered group, were measured. Results: The optimal concentration of chitosan was 3 g/L. After being pretreated by chitosan, the survival rate of Urechis unicinctus could reach 67% after 64 h of waterless preservation. The survival rate, muscle glycogen, water holding capacity of the experimental group were all significantly higher than those of the control group （P＜0.05）. Compared with those groups without recovered, the content of crude protein, lactic acid, crude fat, and water were all dramatically decreased after recovered no matter in control group or in experimental group （P＜0.01）. Conclusion: Chitosan can improve the survival rate and quality of Urechis unicinctus after waterless preservation. This research provides reference for the study on waterless preservation method of Urechis unicinctus, and has certain application research value.

Keywords

• urechis uniconctus
• chitosan
• waterless preservation
• biochemical indicators