Molecular approaches for the detection of truffle species in processed food products

Abstract

Molecular identification techniques were applied in order to analyse food products containing fragments of some Tuber species. Samples of fungal DNA were processed by analyses of the internal transcribed spacer (ITS) region. The polymerase chain reaction (PCR) using truffle species-specific primers, multiplex PCR, restriction fragment length polymorphism (RFLP) analysis, sequencing of the ITS region and specific oligonucleotide probe hybridisation were used. The results obtained demonstrate the applicability of these molecular strategies to the identification of truffles, even when their morphological characteristics are difficult to interpret owing to the drastic treatments utilised in food preparation or the use of unripe fruit bodies (lacking spores). Furthermore, testing was also possible starting from very small amounts of sample and degraded DNA. The methods described have important applications in both the production and sale of such food products, in order to avoid fraud and reveal the possible presence of other fungal species. © 2002 Society of Chemical Industry.