Authentication of Halal and Kosher meat and meat products: Analytical approaches, current progresses and future prospects

Comparison of competitive and sandwich immunochromatographic analysis in the authentication of chicken in meat products

Cheap chicken meat is often used as an undeclared substitute in meat products. In this study, two formats of the immunochromatographic assay (ICA) of immunoglobulins of class Y (IgY) as a biomarker for chicken authentication were developed. In both competitive ICA (cICA) and sandwich ICA (sICA), gold nanoparticles (GNP) were conjugated with anti-species antibodies. A simple procedure of sample preparation, which took only 30 min, was proposed. Test systems demonstrated high sensitivity and rapidity: visual limits of detection of IgY and assay durations were 12/14 ng/mL and 10/15 min for cICA and sICA, respectively. The absence of cross-reactivity with the mammalian species confirmed the high specificity of the test systems. Good applicability of the assays was confirmed for the detection of chicken in raw meat mixtures: as low as 3% and 0.2% (w/w) of chicken could be revealed in beef and pork by cICA and sICA, respectively. The influence of heat processing of meat-based products on immune recognition and, consequently, the analytical performance of the test systems was revealed. It was shown that sICA is preferable for the detection of IgY even in thermally processed meat. The proposed ICAs can be recommended for rapid on-site control of meat products' composition.

Double lateral flow immunosensing of undeclared pork and chicken components of meat products

Adulteration of meat products is a serious problem in the modern society. Consumption of falsified meat products can be hazardous to health and/or lead to violating religious dietary principles. To identify such products, rapid and simple test systems for point-of-need detection are in demand along with complex laboratory methods. This study presents the first double lateral flow (immunochromatographic) test system, which allows simultaneous revealing two prevalent types of falsifications-undeclared addition of pork and chicken components to meat products. In the proposed test system, porcine myoglobin (MG) and chicken immunoglobulin Y (IgY) were used as specific biomarkers recognizable by antibodies. Within the optimization of the analysis, the concentrations of the immune reagents and regimes of their application on the working membrane were selected, which provided minimal limits of detection (LODs) for both analytes. The developed test system enables the detection of MG and IgY with the LODs of 10 and 12 ng/mL, respectively, which accords to addition of 0.1% of the undeclared meat compounds. The applicability of the test system to control the composition of raw meat mixtures and cooked food products was confirmed. The developed approach can be considered as a promising tool for monitoring composition of meat products.

Supplementary Information

The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s13197-024-05944-y.

National trends in nine key minerals intake (quantity and source) among U.S. adults, 1999 to march 2020

BACKGROUND

Changes in economy and dietary guidelines brought a great shock to diet quality and meal behaviors, but if these transformations have extended to minerals intake and their sources was still poorly understood. It is essential to evaluate time trends in minerals intake and their sources to inform policy makers.

OBJECTIVE

To investigate trends in minerals intake and their sources among U.S. adults.

METHODS

This analysis used dietary data collected by 24-h recalls from U.S. adults (≥ 20 years) in NHANES (1999-March 2020). Minerals intake, age-adjusted percentage of participants meeting recommendations, and minerals sources were calculated among all participants and by population subgroups in each NHANES survey cycle. Weighted linear or logistic regression models were used to examine the statistical significance of time trends.

RESULTS

A total of 48223 U.S. adults were included in this analysis. From 1999 to March 2020, intake of calcium (from 0.94 to 1.02 g/day), magnesium (from 308.07 to 321.85 mg/day), phosphorus (from 1.24 to 1.30 g/day), and sodium (from 3.24 to 3.26 mg/day) from food and beverages (FB) and dietary supplements (DSs) significantly increased, and intake of iron (from 19.17 to 16.38 mg/day), zinc (from 16.45 to 14.19 mg/day), copper (from 1.79 to 1.38 mg/day), and potassium (from 2.65 to 2.50 g/day) from FB + DSs decreased (all FDR < 0.05). Additionally, age-adjusted percentage of participants meeting recommendations for calcium, phosphorus, sodium, and selenium significantly increased, that for iron, potassium, zinc, and copper decreased (all FDR < 0.05). Minerals intake and time trends in minerals intake were highly variable depending on age, gender, race/ethnicity, education, and income. For example, white, higher socioeconomic status participants had a higher minerals intake (e.g. iron, zinc, and copper), but had a greater decrease in minerals intake. Furthermore, the percentage of minerals from milks and DSs decreased, and that from beverages increased.

CONCLUSION

From 1999 to March 2020, both minerals intake and their sources experienced a significant alteration among U.S. adults. Many differences in minerals intake and their food sources across sociodemographic characteristics appeared to narrow over time. Although some improvements were observed, important challenges, such as overconsumption of sodium and underconsumption of potassium, calcium, and magnesium, still remained among U.S. adults.

Untargeted metabolomics using liquid chromatography-high resolution mass spectrometry and chemometrics for analysis of non-halal meats adulteration in beef meat

OBJECTIVE

The adulteration of raw beef (BMr) with dog meat (DMr) and pork (PMr) becomes a serious problem because it is associated with halal status, quality, and safety of meats. This research aimed to develop an effective authentication method to detect non-halal meats (dog meat and pork) in beef using metabolomics approach.

METHODS

Liquid chromatography-high resolution mass spectrometry (LC-HRMS) using untargeted approach combined with chemometrics was applied for analysis non-halal meats in BMr.

RESULTS

The untargeted metabolomics approach successfully identified various metabolites in BMr DMr, PMr, and their mixtures. The discrimination and classification between authentic BMr and those adulterated with DMr and PMr were successfully determined using partial least square-discriminant analysis (PLS-DA) with high accuracy. All BMr samples containing non-halal meats could be differentiated from authentic BMr. A number of discriminating metabolites with potential as biomarkers to discriminate BMr in the mixtures with DMr and PMr could be identified from the analysis of variable importance for projection value. Partial least square (PLS) and orthogonal PLS (OPLS) regression using discriminating metabolites showed high accuracy (R2>0.990) and high precision (both RMSEC and RMSEE <5%) in predicting the concentration of DMr and PMr present in beef indicating that the discriminating metabolites were good predictors. The developed untargeted LC-HRMS metabolomics and chemometrics successfully identified non-halal meats adulteration (DMr and PMr) in beef with high sensitivity up to 0.1% (w/w).

CONCLUSION

A combination of LC-HRMS untargeted metabolomic and chemometrics promises to be an effective analytical technique for halal authenticity testing of meats. This method could be further standardized and proposed as a method for halal authentication of meats.

Raman spectroscopy coupled with chemometrics for identification of adulteration and fraud in muscle foods: a review

Muscle foods, valued for their significant nutrient content such as high-quality protein, vitamins, and minerals, are vulnerable to adulteration and fraud, stemming from dishonest vendor practices and insufficient market oversight. Traditional analytical methods, often limited to laboratory-scale., may not effectively detect adulteration and fraud in complex applications. Raman spectroscopy (RS), encompassing techniques like Surface-enhanced RS (SERS), Dispersive RS (DRS), Fourier transform RS (FTRS), Resonance Raman spectroscopy (RRS), and Spatially offset RS (SORS) combined with chemometrics, presents a potent approach for both qualitative and quantitative analysis of muscle food adulteration. This technology is characterized by its efficiency, rapidity, and noninvasive nature. This paper systematically summarizes and comparatively analyzes RS technology principles, emphasizing its practicality and efficacy in detecting muscle food adulteration and fraud when combined with chemometrics. The paper also discusses the existing challenges and future prospects in this field, providing essential insights for reviews and scientific research in related fields.

A review of CRISPR-Cas and PCR-based methods for the detection of animal species in the food chain-current challenges and future prospects

Regular testing and systematic investigation play a vital role to ensure product safety. Until now, the existing food authentication techniques have been based on proteins, lipids, and nucleic acid-based assays. Among various deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA)-based methods, the recently developed Clustered Regularly Interspaced Short Palindromic Repeats (CRISPR) based bio-sensing is an innovative and fast-expanding technology. The CRISPR/Cas-9 is known as Clustered Regularly Interspaced Short Palindromic Repeats due to the flexibility and simplicity of the CRISPR/Cas9 site-specific editing tool has been applied in many biological research areas such as Gene therapy, cell line development, discovering mechanisms of disease, and drug discovery. Nowadays, the CRISPR-Cas system has also been introduced into food authentication via detecting DNA barcodes of poultry and livestock both in processed and unprocessed food samples. This review documents various DNA based approaches, in an accessible format. Future CRISPR technologies are forecast while challenges are outlined.

Advances and challenges in conventional and modern techniques for halal food authentication: A review

Food is one of the most necessary needs since human civilization. For Muslims, it is mandatory to consume halal food. From a halal authentication perspective, adulteration of food products is an emerging challenge worldwide. The demand for halal food consumption has resulted in an ever-increasing need for halal product validity. In the market, there are several food products in which actual ingredients and their source are not mentioned on the label and cannot be observed by the naked eye. Commonly nonhalal items include pig derivatives like lard, pork, and gelatin derivatives, dead meats, alcohol, blood, and prohibited animals. Purposely, various conventional and modern methods offer precise approaches to ensure the halalness and wholesomeness of food products. Conventional methods are physiochemical (dielectric) and electrophoresis. At the same time, modern techniques include high-pressure liquid chromatography (HPLC), gas chromatography (GC), electronic nose (E-Nose), polymerase chain reaction (PCR), enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA), differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR), near-infrared (NIR) spectroscopy, and Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy. This review intends to give an extensive and updated overview of conventional and modern analytical methods for ensuring food halal authenticity.

Highly Sensitive Immunochromatographic Detection of Porcine Myoglobin as Biomarker for Meat Authentication Using Prussian Blue Nanozyme

This study was aimed at the sensitive immunodetection of porcine myoglobin (MG) as a species-specific biomarker in meat products. The enhanced lateral flow immunoassay (LFIA) was created in the sandwich format using monoclonal antibodies (Mab) with specificity to porcine MG and labeled by Prussian blue nanoparticles (PBNPs) as peroxidase-mimicking nanozymes. Signal amplification was provided by the colored product of oxidation catalyzed by the PBNPs. Several Mab-PBNP conjugates with different antibody loads were synthesized; the one that provided the best analytical characteristics of the LFIA was selected. Advanced optimization of the test system was carried out. As a result, the visual limit of detection (LOD) of MG was 1.5 ng/mL. Involvement of the catalytic nanozyme properties allowed the LOD to be decreased by ~9 times in comparison to the LFIA based on gold nanomarkers, and by ~27 times compared to the LFIA based on PBNP coloration. The assay time was 30 min, including catalytic enhancement. A simple technique of meat sample pre-treatment aimed at effective MG extraction and matrix disposal was proposed. The specificity of the LFIA towards the pork meat was demonstrated. The applicability of the created test system was shown by testing extracts obtained from finished meat products.

Analysis of Pork in Beef Sausages Using LC-Orbitrap HRMS Untargeted Metabolomics Combined with Chemometrics for Halal Authentication Study

Beef sausage (BS) is one of the most favored meat products due to its nutrition and good taste. However, for economic purposes, BS is often adulterated with pork by unethical players. Pork consumption is strictly prohibited for religions including Islam and Judaism. Therefore, advanced detection methods are highly required to warrant the halal authenticity of BS. This research aimed to develop a liquid chromatography-high-resolution mass spectrometry (LC-HRMS) method to determine the halal authenticity of BS using an untargeted metabolomics approach. LC-HRMS was capable of detecting various metabolites in BS and BS containing pork. The presence of pork in BS could be differentiated using principal component analysis (PCA) and partial least squares-discriminant analysis (PLS-DA) with high accuracy. PLS-DA perfectly classified authentic BS and BS containing pork in all concentration levels of pork with R2X = (0.821), R2Y(= 0.984), and Q2 = (0.795). The level of pork in BS was successfully predicted through partial least squares (PLS) and orthogonal PLS (OPLS) chemometrics. Both models gave high R2 (>0.99) actual and predicted values as well as few errors, indicating good accuracy and precision. Identification of discriminating metabolites' potential as biomarker candidates through variable importance for projections (VIP) value revealed metabolites of 2-arachidonyl-sn-glycero-3-phosphoethanolamine, 3-hydroxyoctanoylcarnitine, 8Z,11Z,14Z-eicosatrienoic acid, D-(+)-galactose, oleamide, 3-hydroxyhexadecanoylcarnitine, arachidonic acid, and α-eleostearic acid as good indicators to detect pork. It can be concluded that LC-HRMS metabolomics combined with PCA, PLS-DA, PLS, and OPLS was successfully used to detect pork adulteration in beef sausages. The results imply that LC-HRMS untargeted metabolomics in combination with chemometrics is a promising alternative as an analytical technique to detect pork in sausage products. Further analysis of larger samples is required to warrant the reproducibility.

Rapid detection of duck ingredient in adulterated foods by isothermal recombinase polymerase amplification assays

Duck is often used in meat fraud as a substitute for more expensive meats. Rapid detection of duck ingredient in meat products is of great significance for combating meat fraud and safeguarding the interests of consumers. Therefore, we aim to develop duck-specific recombinase polymerase amplification (RPA)-based assays for the rapid detection of duck ingredient in animal-derived foods. Using Cytb gene as target, the real-time RPA and RPA combined with lateral flow strips (LFS RPA) were developed successfully for the rapid detection of ducks in 20 min at 39 °C and 40 °C, respectively. The assays did not show cross-reactions with 6 other livestock and poultry. The developed RPA assays could detect 10 pg duck genomic DNA per reaction and 0.1 % (w/w) duck ingredient in duck and mutton mixed powder within 30 min, including a rapid nucleic acid extraction. Furthermore, duck ingredient could be detected in 30 different actual foods including heat-processed meats and blood products. Therefore, duck-specific real-time RPA and LFS RPA assays were successfully developed with good specificity and sensitivity, which could enable rapid detection of duck ingredient in the field and provide technical support for combating the meat fraud.

Lateral Flow Test System to Control Total Content of Muscle Tissues in Raw Meat Products

Assessment of the composition of meat-containing products is the task in demand due to their frequent deviations from declared recipes. The paper presents the developed test system for immunochromatographic determination of total meat content. The assay is based on the simultaneous use of monoclonal antibodies, which specifically interacts with mammalian skeletal troponin I, and polyclonal antibodies, which specifically detect bird immunoglobulin Y. To integrate the detection of both types of meat by the same test strip, the antibodies are mixed in the analytical zone of the test strip and in complex with a gold nanoparticle label. The chosen ratios of the antibodies for both mixtures provide the same contribution of different types of mammalian and bird raw materials of muscle tissues to the label binding. The test system demonstrates suitability for products containing beef, pork, rabbit, lamb, chicken, and turkey meat. The minimal detectable content of meat in samples is 0.1%. The samples for the testing are diluted 100 times, thus eliminating matrix effects, and providing high reproducibility of the color intensity for extracts of different compositions. The obtained results allow the recommendation of the developed test system for rapid on-site control of meat products.

Rapid and sensitive detection of box turtles using an electrochemical DNA biosensor based on a gold/graphene nanocomposite

The Southeast Asian box turtle, Cuora amboinensis, is an ecologically important endangered species which needs an onsite monitoring device to protect it from extinction. An electrochemical DNA biosensor was developed to detect the C. amboinensis mitochondrial cytochrome b gene based on an in silico designed probe using bioinformatics tools, and it was also validated in wet-lab experiments. As a detection platform, a screen-printed carbon electrode (SPCE) enhanced with a nanocomposite containing gold nanoparticles and graphene was used. The morphology of the nanoparticles was analysed by field-emission scanning electron microscopy and structural characteristics were analysed by using energy-dispersive X-ray, UV-vis, and Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy. The electrochemical characteristics of the modified electrodes were studied by cyclic voltammetry, differential pulse voltammetry (DPV), and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy. The thiol-modified synthetic DNA probe was immobilised on modified SPCEs to facilitate hybridisation with the reverse complementary DNA. The turtle DNA was distinguished based on hybridisation-induced electrochemical change in the presence of methylene blue compared to their mismatches, noncomplementary, and nontarget species DNA measured by DPV. The developed biosensor exhibited a selective response towards reverse complementary DNAs and was able to discriminate turtles from other species. The modified electrode displayed good linearity for reverse complementary DNAs in the range of 1 × 10-11-5 × 10-6 M with a limit of detection of 0.85 × 10-12 M. This indicates that the proposed biosensor has the potential to be applied for the detection of real turtle species.

Research progress on detection techniques for point-of-care testing of foodborne pathogens

The global burden of foodborne disease is enormous and foodborne pathogens are the leading cause of human illnesses. The detection of foodborne pathogenic bacteria has become a research hotspot in recent years. Rapid detection methods based on immunoassay, molecular biology, microfluidic chip, metabolism, biosensor, and mass spectrometry have developed rapidly and become the main methods for the detection of foodborne pathogens. This study reviewed a variety of rapid detection methods in recent years. The research advances are introduced based on the above technical methods for the rapid detection of foodborne pathogenic bacteria. The study also discusses the limitations of existing methods and their advantages and future development direction, to form an overall understanding of the detection methods, and for point-of-care testing (POCT) applications to accurately and rapidly diagnose and control diseases.

Proteomics as a promising biomarker in food authentication, quality and safety: A review

Adulteration and mislabeling have become a very common global malpractice in food industry. Especially foods of animal origin are prepared from plant sources and intentionally mislabeled. This type of mislabeling is an important concern in food safety as the replaced ingredients may cause a food allergy or toxicity to vulnerable consumers. Moreover, foodborne pathogens also pose a major threat to food safety. There is a dire need to develop strong analytical tools to deal with related issues. In this context, proteomics stands out as a promising tool used to report the aforementioned issues. The development in the field of omics has inimitable advantages in enabling the understanding of various biological fields especially in the discipline of food science. In this review, current applications and the role of proteomics in food authenticity, safety, and quality and food traceability are highlighted comprehensively. Additionally, the other components of proteomics have also been comprehensively described. Furthermore, this review will be helpful in the provision of new intuition into the use of proteomics in food analysis. Moreover, the pathogens in food can also be identified based on differences in their protein profiling. Conclusively, proteomics, an indicator of food properties, its origin, the processes applied to food, and its composition are also the limelight of this article.

Rapid Full-Cycle Technique to Control Adulteration of Meat Products: Integration of Accelerated Sample Preparation, Recombinase Polymerase Amplification, and Test-Strip Detection

Verifying the authenticity of food products is essential due to the recent increase in counterfeit meat-containing food products. The existing methods of detection have a number of disadvantages. Therefore, simple, cheap, and sensitive methods for detecting various types of meat are required. In this study, we propose a rapid full-cycle technique to control the chicken or pig adulteration of meat products, including 3 min of crude DNA extraction, 20 min of recombinase polymerase amplification (RPA) at 39 °C, and 10 min of lateral flow assay (LFA) detection. The cytochrome B gene was used in the developed RPA-based test for chicken and pig identification. The selected primers provided specific RPA without DNA nuclease and an additional oligonucleotide probe. As a result, RPA-LFA, based on designed fluorescein- and biotin-labeled primers, detected up to 0.2 pg total DNA per μL, which provided up to 0.001% w/w identification of the target meat component in the composite meat. The RPA-LFA of the chicken and pig meat identification was successfully applied to processed meat products and to meat after heating. The results were confirmed by real-time PCR. Ultimately, the developed analysis is specific and enables the detection of pork and chicken impurities with high accuracy in raw and processed meat mixtures. The proposed rapid full-cycle technique could be adopted for the authentication of other meat products.

Sensitive lateral flow immunoassay for the detection of pork additives in raw and cooked meat products

In this study, we developed a lateral flow immunoassay (LFIA) for the detection of pork additives in meat products. LFIA of porcine immunoglobulins (IgG) as a molecular biomarker was carried out in a sandwich format for species identification. Gold nanoparticles as a nano-dispersed label were conjugated to secondary antibodies specific to anti-porcine IgG. The test system was characterized by high specificity, which was confirmed by the absence of cross-reactivity with any other species tested. A short technique of sample preparation was proposed aimed at the effective extraction of IgG from meat samples. The developed LFIA enabled the detection of a pork ingredient at a level as low as 0.063% (w/w) in raw meat within 35 min including sample preparation. A large panel of real meat samples was analyzed by the LFIA. The results showed that porcine IgG can be reliably recognized both in raw meat products and processed meat foodstuffs.