# Influence of LAB Fermentation on the Color Stability and Oxidative Changes in Dry-Cured Meat
## 3 Results
\begin{table}
\begin{tabular}{c c c c c} \hline \multirow{2}{*}{**Parameter**} & \multirow{2}{*}{**Time [Month]**} & \multicolumn{4}{c}{**Variants**} \\ \cline{3-5}  & & **C** & **LOCK** & **BB** & **BAUER** \\ \hline \multirow{3}{*}{TBARS [mg MDA kg\({}^{-1}\)]} & 6 & 2.446 \(\pm\) 0.17 Ba  & 2.476 \(\pm\) 0.12 Ba  \\ \cline{2-5}  & 9 & 1.471 \(\pm\) 0.31 Ab  & 1.811 \(\pm\) 0.24 Ab  & 1.382 \(\pm\) 0.32 Ab  & 1.385 \(\pm\) 0.26 Ab  & 1.191 \(\pm\) 0.08 Ac  & 1.166 \(\pm\) 0.20 Ac  & 1.193 \(\pm\) 0.18 Ac  & 1.555 \(\pm\) 0.08 Ac  \\ \cline{2-5}  & 6 & 400.85 \(\pm\) 4.03 Aa  & 389.90 \(\pm\) 4.24 Aa  & 366.85 \(\pm\) 2.47 Ba  & 404.85 \(\pm\) 0.78 Aa  \\ ORP [mV] & 9 & 330.35 \(\pm\) 2.19 Bb  & 307.55 \(\pm\) 5.21 Bb  & 337.50 \(\pm\) 5.94 Ab  & 122.15 \(\pm\) 3.18 Bb  & 303.05 \(\pm\) 0.49 Cb  & 323.50 \(\pm\) 7.78 AB  & 338.50 \(\pm\) 3.54 Ac  & 307.50 \(\pm\) 5.94 Ab [FOOTNOTE:a]Footnote a: C-control sample; LOCK-samples inoculated with Lacticaseibacillus rhamnous LOCK900; BAUER-samples inoculated with Lacticaseibacillus rabbomus subsp. lactis BB12. (\(\sim\)0) Within the same treatment (column), means followed by HCA was used to assess the direction of oxidative changes based on research methods (TBARS, ORP, OXi, and HS) and to determine the degree of oxidation of food ingredients. This method grouped the oxidation indices into relatively homogeneous effects, and the results of the analysis are shown in Figure 3. The results showed that the effects observed in the TBARS, OXi, and SH analysis showed similar trends, i.e., a separate group was created on the dendrogram. The BAUER test is an exception, in which the interaction of these parameters was different, i.e., SH showed effects more similar to ORP and HS than other oxidation indicators. For more representative results, interactions of the analyzed parameters with oxidation were shown in the 3D diagram. A strong correlation between the lower values of the surface hydrophobicity and the lower content of oxidized myoglobin was observed (illustrated by the higher value of OXi, which explains the strong negative correlation presented in Table 4) in C and LOCK samples, whereas in BAUER samples, these factors were positively correlated. Surprisingly, the higher the OXi, the higher the indices of parameters determining the degree of protein oxidation in BAUER samples (HS and SH), for which a strong positive correlation was observed (Table 4). However, it seems that protein oxidation was accompanied by a decrease in the TBARS content in BAUER tests, which may indicate a different intensity of oxidative processes in meat products conditioned by the presence of the LAB strain. Figure 2: Free sulfhydryl group (SH) content in the fermented meat products during storage [C-control sample; LOCK-samples inoculated with Lactaseibacillus rhamnos LOCK900; BAUER-samples inoculated with Lactobacillus acidophilus Bauer L0938; BB12-samples inoculated with Bifidobacteriumium animals subsp. lactis BB12. (a–c) Within the same treatment, means followed by the same letter do not differ significantly (_p_ < 0.05). (a–B) Within the same aging time, means followed by the same letter do not differ significantly (_p_ < 0.05)]. Figure 3: Graphical representation of dependencies for oxidative indicators as a dendrogram (**left**) and 3D chart showing the interaction between TBARS (x), Oxi (y), and SH (z) (**right**).