Collagen in the muscles and skins of marine animals

Abstract

Collagen is the major protein of the connective tissues. These tissues are composed of a highly hydrated, amorphous ground substance in which several types of cells, as well as the fibrous proteins collagen and elastin, are embedded. The cells fulfill many metabolic functions, including the synthesis of collagen and elastin. The ground substance is composed mainly of water, of proteoglycans which are composed of a protein core with covalently bound glycosamin glycans with sulphate and carboxylate groups, and of glycoproteins. The components of the ground substance interact with collagen and affect the collagen structures. The fibrous proteins form fibrous, filamentous, or network structures, depending on the kind of tissue. The mechanical properties of the connective tissues depend on the size, orientation, and cross-linking of the collagen fibrils and of elastic fibers, as well as on the proportion of all components of the tissue, including the mineral deposits. The biosynthesis and chemistry of collagen has been reviewed by Bailey and Etherington (1980), and its role as a food component has been thoroughly treated by Bailey and Light (1989) and Bremner (1992), as well as in the book edited by Pearson et al. (1985).