Food for Thought: Protein Content Variation in Commercial Agaricus Bisporus Mushrooms

Abstract

Edible mushrooms have many nutritional benefits because they contain essential proteins and vitamins. However, various factors can influence their protein content including growth environment, packaging, and processing conditions. We collected nine samples of Agaricus bisporus mushroom species from three stores across metro Vancouver and conducted ninhydrin testing to compare their protein contents. Ninhydrin is a chemical compound that produces varying shades of violet when in contact with primary amino acids. We compared the shades of violet obtained from our mushroom samples to determine their protein amounts. Statistical testing revealed that the three differently sourced and stored mushrooms used in this experiment had no significant difference in protein concentration. This discovery was confirmed by a one-factor ANOVA test that produced a p-value of 0.3847. This result is unexpected as previous literature suggests that there should be a statistical difference in protein content between the mushrooms. Further research into the protein content of mushrooms should be conducted and the investigation of different factors like packaging and storage should be prioritized.