Monoclonal Antibodies to Porcine Thermal‐Stable Muscle Protein for Detection of Pork in Raw and Cooked Meats

Four hybridoma cell lines secreting monoclonal antibodies (MAbs) specific to porcine thermal‐stable muscle proteins (TSMPs) were developed. The MAbs reacted with three protein bands (20.5, 22 and 24 kD) from raw pork extract; the protein band (24 kD) which was also present in cooked pork was identified as porcine‐specific TSMP. Epitope analysis indicated four MAbs recognized same or closely located antigenic sites on the pork TSMP. The developed MAb‐based indirect enzyme‐linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) enabled the detection of pork in raw and cooked heterogeneous meat mixtures as low as 10 g/kg. The curvilinear relations of second‐degree polynomial (r 2 > 0.995) between pork concentrations and ELISA responses enabled quantifying degree of adulteration of pork in meat products.