Sweet potato (Ipomoea batatas) noodles are a traditional Chinese food with a high nutritional value; however, starch adulteration is a big concern. The objective of this study was to develop a reliable method for the rapid detection of cassava (Manihot esculenta) components in sweet potato noodles to protect consumers from commercial adulteration. Five specific Loop-mediated Isothermal Amplification (LAMP) primers targeting the internal transcribed spacer (ITS) of cassava were designed, genomic DNA was extracted, the LAMP reaction system was optimized, and the specificity of the primers was verified with genomic DNA of cassava, Ipomoea batatas, Zea mays, and Solanum tuberosum; the detection limit was determined with a serial dilution of adulterated sweet potato starch with cassava starch, and the real-time LAMP method for the detection of the cassava-derived ingredient in sweet potato noodles was established. The results showed that the real-time LAMP method can accurately and specifically detect the cassava component in sweet potato noodles with a detection limit of 1%. Furthermore, the LAMP assay was validated using commercial sweet potato noodle samples, and results showed that 57.7% of sweet potato noodle products (30/52) from retail markets were adulterated with cassava starch in China. This study provides a promising solution for facilitating the surveillance of the commercial adulteration of sweet potato noodles from retail markets.
ABSTRACT. We used a newly developed electrochemical method, real-time resistance measurement, based on loop-mediated isothermal amplification (LAMP), with real-time resistance monitoring and derivative analysis. DNA extracted from specimens was amplified through LAMP reaction. The 2 products of LAMP, DNA and pyrophosphate, both are negative ions; they combine with positive dye (crystal violet) and positive ions (Mg 2+ ), which leads to an increase in the resistivity of the reaction liquid. The changes of resistivity were measured in real-time with a specially designed resistance electrode, to detect Clostridium difficile DNA. We found that electrochemical detection of C. difficile could be completed in 0.5-1 h, with a detection limit of 10 2 CFU/mL, with high accuracy (95.0%), sensitivity (91.1%), and specificity (97.3%) compared to PCR methods. C. difficile is commonly associated with antibioticinduced diarrhea. Due to the difficulty in performing anaerobic culture and cytotoxicity neutralization assays, a simple, rapid, sensitive, and accurate method is preferred. We conclude that realtime resistance measurement is a rapid, sensitive, and stable method for the diagnosis of C. difficile infection that could be applied to gene chips and pocket instruments.
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