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A lab-on-a-chip-based multiplex polymerase chain reaction (PCR) assay for the authentication of five non-halal meat species in foods is described. Using species-specific primers, 172, 163, 141, 129 and 108-bp sites of mitochondrial ND5, ATPase 6 andcytochrome b genes were amplified to detect cat, dog, pig, monkey and rat species under complex matrices. Species-specificity was authenticated against 20 different species with the potential to be used in food. The assay was optimised under the backgrounds of various commercial meat products and validated for the analysis of meatballs, burgers and frankfurters, which are popular fast food items across the globe. The assay was tested to detect 0.1% suspected meats under commercial backgrounds of marketed foods.

Read more in Food Additives and Contaminants at: http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/19440049.2015.1087060

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