Maillard Reaction Induced Changes in Allergenicity of Food

Abstract

Food allergy is increasing in prevalence, posing aheavier social and financial burden. At present, there is still no widely accepted treatment for it. Methods to reduce or eliminate the allergenicity of trigger foods are urgently needed. Technological processing contributes to producing some hypoallergenic foods. Among the processing methods, the Maillard reaction (MR) is popular because neither special chemical materials nor sophisticated equipment is needed. MR may affect the allergenicity of proteins by disrupting the conformational epitope, disclosing the hidden epitope, masking the linear epitope, and/or forming a new epitope.Changes in the allergenicity of foods after processing are affected by various factors, such as the characteristics of the allergen, the processing parameters, and the processing matrix, and they are therefore variable and difficult to predict. This paper reviews the effects of MR on the allergenicity of each allergen group from common allergenic foods.

Update on Nutrition and Food Allergy

“…However, reports on the allergenicity change in wheat proteins after glycation are rare. This was also concluded by Gou et al in a recent review [ 17 ]. An important allergen of wheat is gluten, especially in the form of glutenin.…”

INFOGEST Digestion Assay of Raw and Roasted Hazelnuts and Its Impact on Allergens and Their IgE Binding Activity

“…This may point to a potential protective role for roasting, leading to the preservation of proteins’ IgE-binding capabilities. Namely, the roasting of food can cause a Maillard reaction that may affect the allergenicity of proteins by disrupting the conformational epitope, disclosing the hidden epitope, masking the linear epitope, and/or forming a new epitope [ 32 ]. Maleki et al (2000) showed in the case of peanuts that the formation of novel epitopes occurred after roasting, even when performing experiments on pure proteins [ 33 ].…”

Optimization of Concentration-Time, Agar, and Sugar Concentration for Sweet Gelatinized Adzuki-Bean Jelly Cake (Yokan) by Response Surface Methodology

“…Furthermore, the Maillard reaction caused by sugar content will influence the color, flavor, sweetness, and texture of the products [ 25 ]. This reaction is known as glycation, a nonenzymatic browning reaction occurring from the amino acid residues of proteins and reducing sugars [ 26 ]. Depending on the amount of added sugar, the Maillard reaction and caramelization occur through heating, resulting in a darker color and decreased hardness, adherence, and chewiness.…”