Pig species identification in meatballs using polymerase chain reaction- restriction fragment length polymorphism for Halal authentication

The detailed information on the chemical and nutritional content is essential for consumers in choosing meat-derived food products. For moslem communities, it is prohibited to consume pork-contained or other pig derivatives foods. Unfortunately, meat adulteration by means of mixing beef and chicken with pork or other pig derivatives frequently occurs in the market. This habits cause difficult identification of beef and chicken that are free from pork and other derivatives products. Genomic DNA of pig, bovine, and chicken were isolated and subjected to PCR amplification targeting the mitochondrial cytochrome b gene. Pig species differentiation was determined by digestion of 359 bp amplified product obtained with BseDI restriction enzymes, which generated pig species electrophoresis pattern. PCR-Restriction Fragment Length Polymorphism (RFLP) revealed the presence of pork in meatball product which can be distinguished among bovine, chicken, and pig samples. Pig mitochondrial cytochrome DNA gene was cleaved into 228 bp and 131 bp fragments but the bovine, and chicken cytochrome b gene were not digested by BseDI enzyme. PCR-RFLP technique using BseDI restriction enzymes is reliable for the detection of pork in meatball for the Halal authentication.