Research Article

**Protein Characterization of the Aqueous Soluble Phase of Acidified and Autolyzed Bolti Fish (Tilapia nilotica) Viscera**

Every year thousands of tones of Bolti fish (Tilapia nilotica) viscera are either discarded leading to environmental pollution and wastage of bioresources. This biomass has however a potential to generate considerable revenue and can be turned into a commercially viable business. The objective of this study was to evaluate the proximate protein characterization of the aqueous soluble phase of acidified and autolyzed Bolti fish viscera. Solubilization of fish viscera at natural pH (6.2); slight acidified pH (5.2) as well as acidified pH (4.2 and 3.2) was determined. Autohydrolysis reactions were conducted on freshly thawed viscera utilizing gradient temperatures and terminated at various time points (0, 8, 18, 32 and 47 h) by heat inactivation of the endogenous enzymes. Viscera were then characterized with respect to total nitrogen content, soluble protein, ammonia content, amino acid compositions and protein molecular weight distribution. Interestingly, endogenous enzyme activities were sufficient for obtaining a solubilization yield protein of up to 30 g L^-1. SDS-PAGE profile showed that no characteristic band can be individualized for each hydrolysate and at the same time, greater variation was found only in the hydrolysate digested under initial pH 4.2 for 47 h. Amino acid analysis revealed that several amino acids were present in considerable amounts in the obtained hydrolysates, among them alanine, glutamic acid and proline. In addition, many hydrolysates contained useful quantities of the essential amino acids such as leucine, isoleucine, phenylalanine, histidine and valine and that may represent an interesting approach to upgrade these byproducts for food or feed purposes. In fact the results of our research would provide the incentive for commercial developments leading to large-scale and cost-effective production of fish peptone hydrolysates rich with essential amino acids from Bolti fish viscera.

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Ashraf A. Khalil, 2012. Protein Characterization of the Aqueous Soluble Phase of Acidified and Autolyzed Bolti Fish (Tilapia nilotica) Viscera. Asian Journal of Biotechnology, 4: 108-119.

DOI: 10.3923/ajbkr.2012.108.119

URL: https://scialert.net/abstract/?doi=ajbkr.2012.108.119

Asian Journal of Biotechnology

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Ashraf A. Khalil

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Research Article

**Protein Characterization of the Aqueous Soluble Phase of Acidified and Autolyzed Bolti Fish (Tilapia nilotica) Viscera**

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