Histological and Histochemical Analysis of Dry Fermented Sausage Kulen Composition

Abstract

The application of histological methods in meat composition analysis and identification of prohibited tissues and organs added to meat and meat products is still in the research phase, although there have been some promising results. The aim of this work was to assess the possibility of using histological and histochemical methods for analysis of kulen composition. In this research, six samples of kulen were examined, one of which was produced in domestic conditions, while the rest were commercial products sampled from local markets. The samples were carried through classical histological preparation. The obtained slides were stained with haematoxylin/eosin, Masson-Goldner, toluidine blue and periodic acid-Schiff/alcian blue. The content of muscle, fat and connective tissue was evaluated using histomorphometric analysis. Histological analysis of kulen composition determined the presence of the following structures: muscle, adipose and connective tissues, blood vessels, glandular epithelium, peripheral nerve, cartilage and plant tissue. The histomorphometric analysis showed that the kulen products contained on average 56±2.52% muscle tissue, 7.27±1.38% connective tissue and 19.82±3.24% adipose tissue. The results show that by applying histological methods it is possible to identify different permitted and prohibited animal tissues in kulen, and hence, it is possible to analyse the composition of kulen. It is also possible to confirm the presence of various plant tissues, but for their precise identification, additional histological methods are needed.