Bioo Scientific has expanded its portfolio of food safety testing solutions with a kit that improves the detection of melamine in food.
Melamine contamination has recently been identified in infant formula and other milk-based products from China.
Melamine is a dangerous, nitrogen-rich organic compound that is illegally added to food and feed to increase the apparent protein content values of food products.
Consumption of melamine causes highly insoluble melamine cyanurate crystals to form in the kidney, which damage renal cells and can result in renal failure or death.
The recent establishment of a 1ug/g (I ppm) safety threshold for melamine in infant foods has led to an immediate need for sensitive melamine detection methods.
Bioo Scientific's Maxsignal Melamine Enzymatic Assay Kit has been developed to meet the industry's need for increased sensitivity.
The Maxsignal Melamine Enzymatic Assay Kit is a rapid, inexpensive aqueous extraction method that is able to detect down to 0.2ppm of melamine.
Dr Joe Krebs, director of protein chemistry and engineering at Bioo Scientific, said: 'The Maxsignal Melamine Enzymatic Assay Kit does not require the expensive and time-consuming mass spectrometry and immunoassay techniques characteristic of currently available methods.
'Our novel enzyme-based method offers food safety analysts a new choice for sensitive and cost-effective melamine detection in food samples,' he added.
