Polymerase chain reaction for detection of male tissue in pork products

Economic and organoleptic concerns are in opposition relative to the use of male swine (boars) in many pork products. Polymerase chain reaction (PCR) was used to detect the presence of male tissue in hot boned pork and fresh and cooked sausage products. Two oligonucleotide primers were generated to amplify a male-specific 158 base pair fragment from the Y chromosome. Control experiments verified the specificity of the primers for tissue from male swine only. Dilution studies show that male tissue can be detected down to at least 1:10 000 parts of sow tissue. There was no effect of the addition of spices to the sample (fresh bratwurst) or cooking (50, 70 and 100 °C for 15 min) on the efficacy of the assay. These results show PCR to be a reliable, specific and sensitive method for detecting male tissue in pork sausage, that may be of great value for monitoring its presence by meat processors or regulatory agencies.