Detection of pork in heated meat products by the polymerase chain reaction.
A new method for the specific, sensitive, and semiquantitative detection of pork (Sus scrofa) in heat-treated meat products has been developed. DNA was isolated from meat samples by using a DNA-binding resin and subjected to polymerase chain reaction (PCR) analysis. First, oligonucleotides yielding a specific 137-base-pair (bp) fragment from eucaryotic DNA amplified from a highly conserved region of the 18-S ribosomal gene was used to assess DNA quality. Second, the presence of pork DNA was determined with specific oligonucleotides yielding a 108-bp fragment amplified from the porcine growth hormone gene. The test detected pork in fresh or heated meat mixtures of pork in beef at levels below 2%. This approach was superior to commercially available immunological tests that were not able to detect levels of pork less than 20% in cooked meat or less than 10% in fresh meat.
University of Berne, Department of Food Chemistry, Switzerland.
R
R
Meyer
U
U
Candrian
J
J
Lüthy
D000818:Animals; D001483:Base Sequence; D004247:DNA / Q000032:analysis* / Q000302:isolation & purification; D017931:DNA Primers; D004587:Electrophoresis, Agar Gel; D004797:Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay; D006358:Hot Temperature; D008460:Meat; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D016133:Polymerase Chain Reaction; D013552:Swine / Q000235:genetics*
D017931:DNA Primers; D004247:DNA