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Fruit allergies have become more common in recent years, and are now a serious health problem. In this study, a multiplex PCR assay was used to detect potential fruit allergens causing food allergy labeling in Korea. For the detection of these allergens, specific primer pairs were designed to amplify the allergen-coding genes Cyclophilin (tomato), Mdtl 1 (apple), Pru p 2.01A (peach) and Pectin methylesterase inhibitor (kiwi), and primer pair targeting the 18S ribosomal RNA gene was additionally used as an endogenous control. Primer specificity was assessed with 23 plant species. A mixture of DNA from the four fruits was serially diluted and used to determine the sensitivity of the multiplex PCR assay, which was approximately 0.08 ng. Eleven commercial fruit products were evaluated to verify the applicability of the multiplex PCR assay. This assay is expected to be a specific and efficient method for detecting fruit allergens in foods.

A screening method using the 35S promoter and nos terminator for genetically modified organisms (GMOs) is not sufficient to cover all GM soybean events. In this study, a real-time polymerase chain reaction (also known as quantitative polymerase chain reaction, qPCR) array targeting eight screening assays combined with a prediction system was developed for the rapid tracking of GM soybeans. Each assay’s specificity was tested and confirmed using 17 GM soybean events that have been approved in Korea. The sensitivity of each assay was determined to range from 0.01% to 0.05% using DNA mixtures with different GM ratios, and it was validated by the results of three experimenters. The applicability of this study was tested by monitoring 23 processed foods containing soybeans. It was figured out that 13 of the 23 samples included GM soybeans. The prediction system combined with screening results will be helpful to trace the absence/presence of GM soybean events. This new qPCR array and prediction system for GM soybean detection provides rapid, convenient and reliable results to users.

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