Inter-laboratory Validation of an HPLC–MS/MS Method for the Detection of Microbial Transglutaminase in Meat and Meat Products

Abstract

Microbial transglutaminase (TG) is an enzyme isolated on an industrial scale from Streptomyces mobaraensis. Technical TG, a formulated powder, is primarily used to restructure meat in the meat-processing industry, typically at a 1% concentration and is often referred to as “meat glue.” In the European Union, meat restructured with TG requires the indication “formed meat” on the label according to Regulation (EU) No 1169/2011. In order to detect food fraud like the undeclared TG usage in meat and meat products, a qualitative mass spectrometric method using specific tryptic marker peptides has been published in 2017. Here the successful inter-laboratory validation and first-time standardization of a proteomics method for food control is described, which was subsequently included into the Official Collection of Analysis Methods according to the German Food and Feed Code (§ 64 LFGB). Thirteen laboratories from governmental, academic, and private institutions participated in the study, whereas four laboratories did not meet the minimal quality criteria and therefore their results had to be excluded. Three different test materials containing between 0.2 and 2% technical TG as well as blank samples were produced and tested. The laboratories used triple-quadrupole mass spectrometers from several vendors as well as quadrupole time-of-flight instruments. The detection of TG was considered to be positive, if three mass transitions for the marker peptides VTPPAEPLDR (TG-1) and SPFYSALR (TG-2), each, showed a signal-to-noise ratio of at least 3. The level of detection LOD95% for the median laboratory with intermediate performance was 0.31%, the false-positive rate was 0% and the false-negative rate was 2.1%.