Research review paperEffects of food processing on the stability of food allergens
Introduction
Food allergy, for the purposes of this brief review, is an IgE-mediated abnormal response to a normally tolerated food protein. The reasons for an individual to become intolerant towards a specific food protein are unclear. The amount of protein required, i.e., the threshold, to elicit an allergic response in a sensitized person varies considerably from patient to patient and protein to protein. Thresholds for many allergenic proteins remain unknown. Food allergy symptoms vary from mild localized symptoms to severe anaphylaxis that, at times, may be fatal. The spectrum of food allergy symptoms may include flushing, urticaria, angioedema, laryngoedema, diarrhea, nausea/vomiting, bronchospasm, or hypotension.
Since there are no medical treatments currently available for curing food allergies, the best way to prevent unintended exposure to a food allergen is the complete avoidance of the offending food. For various reasons such avoidance may not always be possible, and in certain instances, impossible. Accurate food labeling in conjunction with good manufacturing practices can enhance consumer safety and aid food processors, manufacturers, distributors, packers, transporters, and retailers to utilize foods/food ingredients in an efficient and safe manner. However, despite best intentions and practices, the presence of trace contaminants of offending agents cannot be ruled out at all times unless accurate methods are available to detect their presence. For these reasons, reliable, robust, sensitive, and specific detection methods capable of detecting trace quantities of the targeted food allergens must be developed.
Section snippets
Effects of processing on allergen stability
The portion of a food protein that may cause an allergic reaction may be a simple stretch of a few amino acids along the primary structure or it may be a unique three-dimensional motif of the protein structure, respectively referred to as linear and conformational epitopes. An allergenic protein may contain a single epitope that is repeating or may have several different epitopes. In order to have IgE cross-linking, there must be more than one epitope on the allergen. The relationships between
Conclusions
Food processing may help inactivate certain conformational epitopes on some, but not all allergens and is unlikely to eliminate linear epitopes. Enzymatic hydrolysis may help eliminate certain epitopes. However, from a food product quality and acceptability viewpoint, protein hydrolysis may result in undesirable and or unacceptable changes in food structure and sensory attributes. When food allergens are present in trace quantities (e.g. as “hidden allergens” or as “contaminants”), avoidance of
Acknowledgements
Financial support from Department of Nutrition, Food and Exercise Sciences, College of Human Sciences (Research Initiative Award), Council on Faculty Research, Florida State University; International Nut Council and Almond Board of California, Modesto, CA; and USDA NRICGP (#9901530 #2003-01212 and # 2004-35503-14117) is gratefully acknowledged.
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