Raman analysis of fish: a potential method for rapid quality screening

Summary

This is an exploratory study in order to elucidate the potential of using Raman spectroscopy (785 nm excitation) for quantitative measurements of carotenoid, collagen and fat in fish muscle. Raman spectra were collected from fish fillets of species known to be either high or low in carotenoids, collagen or fat. A pre-treatment routine was used to remove unwanted fluorescence signals from the spectra. Chemical origin of the spectral peaks were identified by literature references as well as reference measurements on pure components. Semi-quantitative analyses were performed by principal component analysis (PCA) of the spectra. The results show that fish muscle exhibits little fluorescence for 785 nm excitation, enabling efficient Raman analysis. The Raman spectra contained detailed spectral information and relative concentration information about all the studied constituents. Raman spectroscopy might be a useful tool for rapid and nondestructive analysis of fish quality. (C) 2003 Swiss Society of Food Science and Technology. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.