Determination of geographic origin of Chinese mitten crab (Eriocheir sinensis) using integrated stable isotope and multi-element analyses

Geographical traceability is critical to the commercial viability of the highly valued Chinese mitten crab (Eriocheir sinensis). This study examined the possibility of utilizing a combination of multi-element and stable isotope analysis, together with multivariate statistical authenticity analysis, to identify the origins of 164 commodity crabs (using the third pereiopod as the sample material) from eight sites around China. The delta C-13, delta N-15 values and the Na, Mg, Al, K, Ca, Mn, Cu, Zn, Sr, Ba contents differed significantly depending on the crabs' origin. The linear discriminant analysis showed that 99.4% of the samples were correctly classified and the cross-validated accuracy rate was 98.2%. Meanwhile, the support vector machine exhibited high discrimination ability with 99.4% accuracy. This study provides a non-conventional, integrated approach for determining the traceability of E. sinensis. This method offers the potential of being able to identify an even more diverse geographical range of E. sinensis origins.