Biogenic amine content of some Turkish cheeses

Biogenic amines in ten samples of Kasar (aged), five samples of Kasar (fresh), four samples of Mihalic, nine samples of Van Otlu (herbed), nine samples of Orgu, nine samples of Urfa and six samples of Civil cheeses were obtained from local supermarkets of Ankara. Tryptamine (TRY), phenylethylamine (PHA), putrescine (PUT), cadaverine (CAD), histamine (HIT), tyramine (TYA), spermine (SPM) and spermidine (SPD) contents of Turkish cheese samples were screened by high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC). PUT, CAD, HIT, TYA and SPD were the predominant biogenic amines in maturated Kasar (aged), vacuum-packed Kasar (fresh), Mihali, Otlu (herbed) and Orgu cheeses. PHA, CAD, TYA and SPD were the predominant biogenic amines in Urfa cheese samples. Civil cheeses were found to contain the highest HIT and TYA content with an average of 94.76 mg/100 g and 138.16 mg/100 g, respectively, much higher than the toxic dose. HIT level of Mihalic cheeses were also higher than the accepted limit. The concentration of amines in all other cheeses was much lower than the toxic dose limits.