Development a monoclonal antibody-based enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay for screening carotenoids in eggs

In this study, a monoclonal antibody (mAb) with broad-specificity against several carotenoid analogs with equal or similar efficacy was prepared. The obtained mAb C11, with the IgG1 isotype, showed cross-reactivity (CR) with canthaxanthin (100%), β-ionone acid (140.4%), β-carotene (92.9%), capsanthin (90.1%), β-apo-8′-carotenal (92.7%), and xanthophyll (95.8%). Using the mAb C11, a highly sensitive and inexpensive indirect competitive enzyme linked immunosorbent assay (ic-ELISA) was developed with a simple sample preparation procedure for the simultaneous detection of these carotenoid compounds in eggs. The limit of detection of the various carotenoids ranged from 1.31 mg kg−1 to 1.48 mg kg−1. Recoveries from egg yolks spiked with the above carotenoids ranged from 91.8% to 113.3%, with coefficients of variation (CVs) of less than 14.8%. These results suggest that the developed ic-ELISA is a sensitive, specific, accurate, and inexpensive method that is suitable for the screening of carotenoid residues in routine monitoring.