Proteomics: present and future in food quality evaluation

Initially aimed at the identification of proteins expressed by a genome, proteomics now involves a study of their structure, localization, modification, interactions and functions, that is largely taking advantage by progress in mass spectrometry (i.e. Q-TOF mass spectrometer for MS/MS based protein identification) and in robotics-based technology. A new challenge for proteomics has recently been recognized pointing out differences in food proteomes relevant for nutrition. Present knowledge and future potential application of proteomics in food quality assessment will be focused in this report. (C) 2003 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.