Bighead carp meat adulterated in commercial milkfish ball products.

Attempts were made to identify the species of raw materials of milkfish ball products. A 466-bp fragment could be amplified by polymerase chain reaction (PCR) using a pair of primer (L14735/H15149ad). Sequences of cytochrome b gene (cyt b) were determined in 3 fish species including milkfish (Chanos chanos), bighead carp (Hypophthalmichthys nobilis) and grass carp (Ctenopharyngodon idella). These three fish species contained distinguishable sequences. In addition, RFLP analysis of the PCR products with endonuclease HpaII showed unique restriction maps for these 3 fish species. Based on gene sequencing and PCR-RFLP analyses, we have identified one commercial milkfish ball be intentionally adulterated with bighead carp.