Identification of goose, mule duck, chicken, turkey, and swine in foie gras by species-specific polymerase chain reaction

A specific Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) has been developed for the identification of goose (Anser anse), mule duck (Anas platyrhynchos x Cairina moschata), chicken (Gallus gallus), turkey (Meleagris gallopavo), and swine (Sus scrofa domesticus) in foie gras. A forward common primer was designed on a conserved DNA sequence in the mitochondrial 12S ribosomal RNA gene (rRNA), and reverse primers were designed to hybridize on species-specific DNA sequences of each species considered. The different sizes of the species-specific amplicons, separated by agarose gel electrophoresis, allowed clear identification of goose, mule duck, chicken, turkey, and swine in foie gras. Analysis of experimental mixtures demonstrated that the detection limit of the assay was similar to1% for each species analyzed. This genetic marker can be very useful for the accurate identification of these species, avoiding mislabeling or fraudulent species substitution in foie gras.