Multisyringe Flow Injection Analysis of Tropomyosin Allergens in Shellfish Samples

Area of Science:

• Analytical Chemistry
• Food Science
• Allergen Detection

Background:

• Shrimp tropomyosin (rPen a 1) is a major heat-stable allergen in crustaceans.
• Accurate quantification of allergens is crucial for food safety and consumer health.
• Existing methods for tropomyosin detection may require improvement in speed and sensitivity.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop and apply a multisyringe flow injection analysis (MSFIA) system for the fluorimetric determination of shrimp tropomyosin.
• To establish a rapid and sensitive analytical method for quantifying tropomyosin in food samples.

Main Methods:

• Development of an MSFIA system for allergen analysis.
• Hydrolysis of tropomyosin to glutamic acid using microwave-assisted acid digestion.
• Quantification of glutamic acid via thermal conversion to pyroglutamic acid.
• Chemical derivatization of pyroglutamic acid using an OPA-NAC reagent for fluorimetric detection.

Main Results:

• The developed method allows for the quantification of pyroglutamic acid between 1 and 100 µM.
• The detection limit for pyroglutamic acid was determined to be 1.3 µM.
• The analytical protocol is completed in less than 15 minutes.
• Validation on real samples showed a positive correlation between the analytical response and tropomyosin content/shrimp sample mass.

Conclusions:

• The MSFIA system provides a rapid and sensitive method for determining shrimp tropomyosin (rPen a 1).
• The developed assay is suitable for analyzing tropomyosin in actual food samples.
• This method contributes to improved food safety by enabling accurate allergen quantification.