Simultaneous screening of 5 allergens in food by using liquid chromatography triple quadrupole mass spectrometry

Abstract

The liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry with electrospray ionization (ESI) source in multiple reactions monitoring (MRM) mode has been used to detect five allergen including milk, egg, peanut, soyabean, and walnut in milk, dairy products, and confectionery. The allergenic proteins from food matrices were extracted with an extraction buffer (50 mM of TRIS- saline, 2 M of urea, and 25 mM of DTT) and then enzymatically digested with trypsin to form peptides. The peptides were eventually detected on a LC-MS/MS Triple Quad 5500 system from AB SCIEX. As a result, each allergen was characterized by a corresponding specific peptide. The limit of detection was of 3 µg/g for milk, 5 µg/g for peanut, 10 µg/g for soyabean and walnut and 20 µg/g for egg.