Determination of papain in raw meat by immunoassay

J G Sargeant; H M Bowie; M J Billington

doi:10.1016/0309-1740(93)90017-C

Determination of papain in raw meat by immunoassay

Meat Sci. 1993;34(1):39-47. doi: 10.1016/0309-1740(93)90017-C.

Authors

J G Sargeant¹, H M Bowie, M J Billington

Affiliation

¹ Beeches Biotech, 5 Mountfields Road, Taunton, Somerset TA1 3BL, UK.

PMID: 22060266
DOI: 10.1016/0309-1740(93)90017-C

Abstract

An antibody raised to papain, a meat tenderising proteolytic enzyme obtained from papaya (Carica papaya), has been used in the development of an enzyme-linked immunoabsorbent assay (ELISA) for the determination of papain in raw meat. Quantitative determinations of papain up to 4 mg/kg of raw meat have been obtained using standard extracts prepared by the exogeneous addition of papain to raw beef. A sample of commercially treated 'tenderised beef' was shown to contain papain at the level of 0·40 mg/kg. In collaboration with a Public Analyst, a papain immunoassay kit has been used to assay 50 samples of beef bought from retail outlets, with a view to monitoring the use of this tenderiser by the meat industry.