New applications of advanced instrumental techniques for the characterization of food allergenic proteins

Current approaches based on electrophoretic, chromatographic or immunochemical principles have allowed characterizing multiple allergens, mapping their epitopes, studying their mechanisms of action, developing detection and diagnostic methods and therapeutic strategies for the food and pharmaceutical industry. However, some of the common structural features related to the allergenic potential of food proteins remain unknown, or the pathological mechanism of food allergy is not yet fully understood. In addition, it is also necessary to evaluate new allergens from novel protein sources that may pose a new risk for consumers. Technological development has allowed the expansion of advanced technologies for which their whole potential has not been entirely exploited and could provide novel contributions to still unexplored molecular traits underlying both the structure of food allergens and the mechanisms through which they sensitize or elicit adverse responses in human subjects, as well as improving analytical techniques for their detection. This review presents cutting-edge instrumental techniques recently applied when studying structural and functional aspects of proteins, mechanism of action and interaction between biomolecules. We also exemplify their role in the food allergy research and discuss their new possible applications in several areas of the food allergy field.

Development of a β-Lactoglobulin Sensor Based on SPR for Milk Allergens Detection

A sensitive and label-free surface plasmon resonance (SPR) based sensor was developed in this work for the detection of milk allergens. β-lactoglobulin (BLG) protein was used as the biomarker for cow milk detection. This is to be used directly in final rinse samples of cleaning in-place (CIP) systems of food manufacturers. The affinity assay was optimised and characterised before a standard curve was performed in pure buffer conditions, giving a detection limit of 0.164 µg mL^-1 as a direct binding assay. The detection limit can be further enhanced through the use of a sandwich assay and amplification with nanomaterials. However, this was not required here, as the detection limit achieved exceeded the required allergen detection levels of 2 µg mL^-1 for β-lactoglobulin. The binding affinities of the polyclonal antibody for BLG, expressed by the dissociation constant (K_D), were equal to 2.59 × 10^-9 M. The developed SPR-based sensor offers several advantages in terms of label-free detection, real-time measurements, potential on-line system and superior sensitivity when compared to ELISA-based techniques. The method is novel for this application and could be applied to wider food allergen risk management decision(s) in food manufacturing.

Sensitive and Simultaneous Electrochemical Sensing for Three Dihydroxybenzene Isomers Based on Poly(L-arginine) Modified Glassy Carbon Electrode

The simultaneous and sensitive electrochemical detection of dihydroxybenzene isomers (hydroquinone, HQ; catechol, CC; resorcinol, RS) is of great significance because such isomers can be awfully harmful to the environment and human health. In this paper, by preparing poly(L-arginine) modified glassy carbon electrode (P-L-Arg/GCE) with a simple method, a highly sensitive electrochemical sensor for simultaneously detecting HQ, CC and RS was constructed successfully due to the large surface area, good electronic properties and catalytic ability of P-L-Arg/GCE and the electrostatic action between P-L-Arg (positive) and targets (negative). Under the optimized conditions, the results show that the P-L-Arg/GCE has a wide linear range from 0.1 to 110.0 μM for HQ ,CC and RS. The detection limits for HQ, CC and RS are 0.01, 0.03 and 0.1 μM, respectively. Finally, the proposed sensor was successfully applied in real sample analysis.