Soft texture is the most detrimental factor in the marketing of fish, according to An. As a result, seafood consumption in the United States traditionally has been limited to popular species like tuna, cod, snapper and salmon-all of them with firm texture and bland taste. She is trying to develop a food additive to treat fish like whiting and flounder now considered undesirable. If the fish are treated before freezing and cooking, the additive will inactivate the protease enzyme and avoid the tissue-softening problem. An is also studying histamine, a toxicant produced by the mishandling of fish.
Histamine induces a series of allergic reactions in humans.
Once it is formed in fish by bacteria, histamine cannot be removed or destroyed by cooking, freezing or processing. She studied the problem and discovered the best way to control histamine is to prevent it from forming by keeping fish cold after harvest. She plans to use these results to see if albacore has some sort of anti-microbial substance to prevent bacterial growth. It is just this kind of value-added activity that Morrissey is always looking for. Some research shows results the next month, others are five years down the road.