Abstract
Predicting the allergenicity of novel proteins is challenging due to the absence of validated predictive methods and a well-defined reference set of proteins. The prevalence of sensitization could be a parameter to select reference proteins to characterize allergenic proteins. This study investigated whether the prevalence of sensitization of legume extracts and proteins can indeed be used for this purpose. A random sample of suspected food-allergic patients (n=106) was therefore selected. 10 extracts (processed and non-processed) and 18 individual proteins (2S albumins, 7S and 11S globulins) from black lentil, blue and white lupine, chickpea, faba bean, green lentil, pea, peanut, soybean, and white bean were isolated and the prevalence of sensitization and the intensity of IgE binding were evaluated. The prevalence of sensitization ranged from 5.7 % (faba bean and green lentil) to 14.2 % (peanut). The prevalence of sensitization for individual legume proteins ranged from 0.0 % for albumin 1 (pea) to 15.1 %-17.9 % for Ara h 1, 2, 3, and 6 (peanut). The prevalence of sensitization correlated strongly with the intensity of IgE binding for individual proteins (p < 0.05, ρ = 0.894), for extracts no correlation was found. The discovered ranking can be used to select reference proteins for the development and validation of predictive in vitro or in vivo assays for the assessment of the sensitizing potential.
Highlights
Proteins constitute one of the four macronutrient groups in the human diet
The highest prevalence of sensitization was seen for peanut (14.2 %), white lupine (13.2 %), and green pea (9.4 %), followed by blue lupine (8.5 %), soy bean (8.5 %), chickpea (8.5 %), and white bean (7.5 %), and the prev alence was lowest for black lentil (6.6 %), faba bean (5.7 %), and green lentil (5.7 %)
The intensity of immunoglobulin E (IgE) binding could be a potential addi tional parameter to rank upon, though it did not correlate with the primary parameter, i.e. the prevalence of sensitization
Summary
Proteins constitute one of the four macronutrient groups in the human diet. A strong need of increasing the sustainability of the food protein supply is evident in view of climate change and population growth [1,2,3,4]. Introduction of novel protein sources onto the food market can pose a risk for allergic consumers due to their potential allergenicity [5,6]. Exposure to food proteins leads to tolerance induction but when this immune response fails, food allergy can develop [8]. Specific immunoglobulin E (IgE) against a food protein is produced by B-cells [9]. Produced IgE binds to the high affinity IgE receptor on mast cells and basophils, which are acti vated upon re-exposure with the food protein. This results in clinical complaints in the skin, gut, respiratory, and cardiovascular systems, with the severest form being anaphylaxis.
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