Commercial Assay

ASSAY FOR COLLAGEN DAMAGE IN THE FOOD INDUSTRY

Although thematically distant from the other applications, this one uses the same state-of-the-art technological solutions developed to address the analytical challenges associated with ancient protein analysis to deliver an accurate, convenient and effective assay of protein damage characterisation in industrial production. DEVRO is a world-leader in artificial sausage casing production. Artificial sausage casing is made of collagen usually derived from cattle and pig skin. During the sausage casing production process, collagen is subject to a series of harsh acidic and alkaline steps inducing permanent and irreversible biochemical damage in the collagen. DEVRO is interested in accurately characterising the amount and the type of damage in the collagen it processes, because this affects the final mechanical properties of its end product. Currently, DEVRO measures its collagen damage using a rudimentary ammonia assay, quantifying the amount of ammonia released as the product of deamidation of asparagine and glutamine in controlled acidic conditions. This assay has no resolution concerning the extent of each deamidation site and it is completely blind to other types of biochemical damage the production treatments can induce in collagen. PROJECT 9, will adapt the EvoSEP and Thermo Orbitrap technology for fast DIA tandem MS screening, 200 samples/day, of the damage products in the collagen DEVRO processes. A method for blind search of ancient protein damage was recently described by EC and JVO. The information generated during this phase will be integrated with the EvoSEP DIA tandem MS screening technology to deliver an accurate quality control assay DEVRO will routinely use to control the quality of its production.