Editing Myoglobin (section)

==Role in cuisine==
Myoglobin contains hemes, [[pigment]]s responsible for the color of [[red meat]]. The color that meat takes is partly determined by the degree of oxidation of the myoglobin. In fresh meat the iron atom is in the ferrous (+2) oxidation state [[transition metal dioxygen complex|bound to an oxygen molecule]] (O<sub>2</sub>). Meat cooked [[well done]] is brown because the iron atom is now in the ferric (+3) oxidation state, having lost an electron. If meat has been exposed to [[nitrites]], it will remain pink, because the iron atom is bound to NO, [[nitric oxide]] (true of, e.g., [[corned beef]] or cured [[ham]]s). Grilled meats can also take on a reddish pink "smoke ring" that comes from the heme center binding to [[carbon monoxide]].<ref>{{cite book | vauthors = McGee H | title = On Food and Cooking: The Science and Lore of the Kitchen |publisher=Scribner |location=New York |year=2004 |isbn=0-684-80001-2 |page=148 }}</ref> Raw meat packed in a carbon monoxide atmosphere also shows this same pink "smoke ring" due to the same principles. Notably, the surface of this raw meat also displays the pink color, which is usually associated in consumers' minds with fresh meat. This artificially induced pink color can persist, reportedly up to one year.<ref name="pmid21844276">{{cite journal | vauthors = Fraqueza MJ, Barreto AS | title = Gas mixtures approach to improve turkey meat shelf life under modified atmosphere packaging: the effect of carbon monoxide | journal = Poultry Science | volume = 90 | issue = 9 | pages = 2076–84 | date = Sep 2011 | pmid = 21844276 | doi = 10.3382/ps.2011-01366 | doi-access = free }}</ref> [[Hormel Foods|Hormel]] and [[Cargill]] (meat processing companies in the US) are both reported to use this meat-packing process, and meat treated this way has been in the consumer market since 2003.<ref name="urlMeat companies defend use of carbon monoxide | StarTribune.com">{{cite web | url = http://www.startribune.com/business/11223451.html | title = Meat companies defend use of carbon monoxide | agency = Associated Press | date = 2007-10-30 | work = Business | publisher = Minneapolis Star Tribune | access-date = 2013-02-11 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20131225075127/http://www.startribune.com/business/11223451.html | archive-date = 2013-12-25 | url-status = dead }}</ref>

[[Meat alternative]]s have used various ways to recreate the "meaty" taste associated with myoglobin. [[Impossible Foods]] uses [[leghemoglobin]], a heme-containing globin from soy [[root nodule]], produced as a [[recombinant protein]] in ''[[Komagataella]]'' ("Pichia pastoris") yeast.<ref>{{cite journal | vauthors = Shelton K, Najera K, Ajredini S, Navarro J, Frangias T |title=The Molecular Magic of "Meatless" Meats: Structural and Sequence Similarities between Soy Leghemoglobin and Bovine Globins |journal=The FASEB Journal |date=April 2020 |volume=34 |issue=S1 |pages=1 |doi=10.1096/fasebj.2020.34.s1.04866|doi-access=free }}</ref><ref>{{cite web | vauthors = Bandoim L |date=December 20, 2019 |title=What The FDA's Decision About Soy Leghemoglobin Means For Impossible Burger |website=[[Forbes]] |url=https://www.forbes.com/sites/lanabandoim/2019/12/20/what-the-fdas-decision-about-soy-leghemoglobin-means-for-impossible-burger/#5e0a8c7457f6 |access-date=March 4, 2020}}</ref> Motif FoodWorks produces a recombinant bovine myoglobin using ''Komagataella'' yeast,<ref>{{cite web |title='A gamechanger for flavor in meat alternatives...' Motif FoodWorks to launch heme-binding protein delivering 'flavor and aroma of real meat' |url=https://www.foodnavigator-usa.com/Article/2021/09/17/Motif-FoodWorks-to-launch-myoglobin-a-yeast-derived-heme-binding-protein-delivering-the-flavor-and-aroma-of-real-meat |website=foodnavigator-usa.com |date=17 September 2021}}</ref> considered [[Generally recognized as safe|GRAS]] by the FDA.<ref>{{cite web |title=Re: GRAS Notice No. GRN 001001 |url=https://www.fda.gov/media/155001/download |website=fda.gov |date=2021-12-03}}</ref> Moolec Science has engineered a [[soybean]] that produces porcine myoglobin in its seeds called "Piggy Sooy"; it was approved by the USDA in April 2024.<ref>{{cite web |title=Moolec Becomes First Molecular Farming Company to Achieve USDA Approval for Plant-Grown Animal Proteins |url=https://finance.yahoo.com/news/moolec-becomes-first-molecular-farming-100000041.html |website=Yahoo Finance |date=22 April 2024}}</ref>