New High-Performance Liquid Chromatography Coupled Mass Spectrometry Method for the Detection of Lobster and Shrimp Allergens in Food Samples via Multiple Reaction Monitoring and Multiple Reaction Monitoring Cubed.

Crustacean shellfish allergy ranks among the most frequent and severe food allergies for adults, demanding rugged and sensitive analytical routine methods. The objective of this study was therefore to develop a mass spectrometric approach for the detection of contamination with shrimp and lobster, two economically important types of crustaceans, in complex food matrices. Following a biomarker approach, we identified proteotypic peptides and developed a multiple reaction monitoring (MRM) method allowing for the identification and differentiation of shrimp and lobster in the food matrix at concentrations down to 0.1%. To further enhance sensitivity, we employed the MRM-cubed (MRM(3)) mode, which allowed us to detect crustaceans down to concentrations of 25 μg/g (crustacean/food, 0.0025%). We hereby present the first mass spectrometric method for the detection of shrimp and lobster in food matrices.