Reddish Colour in Cooked Ham Is Developed by a Mixture of Protoporphyrins Including Zn-Protoporphyrin and Protoporphyrin IX
Claudia Giménez-Campillo,
Juan de Dios Hernández,
Isidro Guillén,
Natalia Campillo,
Natalia Arroyo-Manzanares,
Carlos de Torre-Minguela,
Pilar Viñas
Affiliations
Claudia Giménez-Campillo
Department of Analytical Chemistry, Faculty of Chemistry, Regional Campus of International Excellence “Campus Mare Nostrum”, University of Murcia, 30100 Murcia, Spain
Juan de Dios Hernández
Department of Research and Development, PROSUR S.A.U., Av. Francisco Salzillo, P/27-2, San Ginés, 30169 Murcia, Spain
Isidro Guillén
Department of Research and Development, PROSUR S.A.U., Av. Francisco Salzillo, P/27-2, San Ginés, 30169 Murcia, Spain
Natalia Campillo
Department of Analytical Chemistry, Faculty of Chemistry, Regional Campus of International Excellence “Campus Mare Nostrum”, University of Murcia, 30100 Murcia, Spain
Natalia Arroyo-Manzanares
Department of Analytical Chemistry, Faculty of Chemistry, Regional Campus of International Excellence “Campus Mare Nostrum”, University of Murcia, 30100 Murcia, Spain
Carlos de Torre-Minguela
Department of Research and Development, PROSUR S.A.U., Av. Francisco Salzillo, P/27-2, San Ginés, 30169 Murcia, Spain
Pilar Viñas
Department of Analytical Chemistry, Faculty of Chemistry, Regional Campus of International Excellence “Campus Mare Nostrum”, University of Murcia, 30100 Murcia, Spain
The nitrosyl–heme complex is considered the pigment responsible for the development of reddish colour in cooked hams. However, the same reddish colour was observed in a nitrite-free product elaborated with polyphenols, suggesting the presence of other red pigments that can contribute to generate this colour. In this study, the protoporphyrins composition of the pigment solution obtained from nitrite and nitrite-free cooked hams was analysed using 80% (v/v) acetone/water solution for extraction. Chromatographic analysis using a combination of diode array and fluorescence detectors revealed the presence of protoporphyrin IX and Zn-protoporphyrin IX in this solution, and these protoporphyrins were subsequently identified with complete certainty by mass spectrometry. These results show how the colour of cooked hams can be developed by a mixture of different protoporphyrins and also demonstrate the absence of selectivity of acetone/water extraction for measuring the content of nitrosyl–heme in cooked hams.
