Quantification of major allergens in peach based on shotgun proteomics using liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry

In recent years, reports of peach-related allergies have increased worldwide. Thus, it is necessary to establish an accurate qualitative and quantitative detection method of peach allergen. In this study, a precise qualitative and quantitative method was developed for the detection of peach allergen based on liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry-multiple reaction monitoring (LC-MS/MS-MRM). Eight biomarker peptides of three peach allergen proteins were mined, and one quantitative peptide was screened for each of the three peach allergen proteins, separately. The developed assay provides good linearity (R2 > 0.99) in the concentration range of 0.4–2000 fmol/μL, and the overall coefficient of variation (CV) was under 5% in multiple tests. Limits of detection (LOD) and limits of quantification (LOQ) for the absolute quantification (AQUA) of three peach allergen peptides ranged from 0.4 to 200.0 fmol/μL and 1.6–800 fmol/μL, respectively. The recovery rates were between 90% and 105%. This method achieves accurate qualitative and quantitative detection of three peach allergen proteins in processing food simultaneously, and it may be used to enhance the safety of peach products and reduce the occurrence of allergenic reactions caused by peaches.