Determination of vitamin B12 in milk products and selected foods by optical biosensor protein-binding assay: method comparison

Biomolecular interaction analysis was evaluated for the automated determination of vitamin B12 in a range of foods. The analytical technique was configured as a biosensor-based, nonlabeled inhibition protein-binding assay using nonintrinsic R-protein. Sample extraction conditions were optimized, and both ligand specificity and nonspecific binding considerations were evaluated. Performance parameters included a quantitation range of 0.08-2.40 ng/mL, recoveries of 89-106%, agreement against assigned reference values for 3 independent certified food reference materials, and a mean between-laboratory reproducibility relative standard deviation of 4.9%. The proposed method was compared with reference microbiological and radioisotope protein-binding methods for a range of food samples. A wide selection of milks, infant formulas, meats, and liver were evaluated for their vitamin B12 content. The influence of season was studied in herd milk, early lactation was followed for a single animal, and the cobalamin content of bovine, caprine, and ovine milks was compared.