A novel IgE epitope-specific antibodies-based sandwich ELISA for sensitive measurement of immunoreactivity changes of peanut allergen Ara h 2 in processed foods.

Background: Peanut is an important source of dietary protein for human beings, but it is also recognized as one of the eight major food allergens. Binding of IgE antibodies to specific epitopes in peanut allergens plays important roles in initiating peanut-allergic reactions, and Ara h 2 is widely considered as the most potent peanut allergen and the best predictor of peanut allergy. Therefore, Ara h 2 IgE epitopes can serve as useful biomarkers for prediction of IgE-binding variations of Ara h 2 and peanut in foods. This study aimed to develop and validate an IgE epitope-specific antibodies (IgE-EsAbs)-based sandwich ELISA (sELISA) for detection of Ara h 2 and measurement of Ara h 2 IgE-immunoreactivity changes in foods. Methods: DEAE-Sepharose Fast Flow anion-exchange chromatography combining with SDS-PAGE gel extraction were applied to purify Ara h 2 from raw peanut. Hybridoma and epitope vaccine techniques were employed to generate a monoclonal antibody against a major IgE epitope of Ara h 2 and a polyclonal antibody against 12 IgE epitopes of Ara h 2, respectively. ELISA was carried out to evaluate the target binding and specificity of the generated IgE-EsAbs. Subsequently, IgE-EsAbs-based sELISA was developed to detect Ara h 2 and its allergenic residues in food samples. The IgE-binding capacity of Ara h 2 and peanut in foods was determined by competitive ELISA. The dose-effect relationship between the Ara h 2 IgE epitope content and Ara h 2 (or peanut) IgE-binding ability was further established to validate the reliability of the developed sELISA in measuring IgE-binding variations of Ara h 2 and peanut in foods. Results: The obtained Ara h 2 had a purity of 94.44%. Antibody characterization revealed that the IgE-EsAbs recognized the target IgE epitope(s) of Ara h 2 and exhibited high specificity. Accordingly, an IgE-EsAbs-based sELISA using these antibodies was able to detect Ara h 2 and its allergenic residues in food samples, with high sensitivity (a limit of detection of 0.98 ng/mL), accuracy (a mean bias of 0.88%), precision (relative standard deviation < 16.50%), specificity, and recovery (an average recovery of 98.28%). Moreover, the developed sELISA could predict IgE-binding variations of Ara h 2 and peanut in foods, as verified by using sera IgE derived from peanut-allergic individuals. Conclusion: This novel immunoassay could be a user-friendly method to monitor low level of Ara h 2 and to preliminary predict in vitro potential allergenicity of Ara h 2 and peanut in processed foods.

A rapid immunomagnetic beads-based sELISA method for the detection of bovine αs1-casein based on specific epitopes.

Although αs1-casein poses significant health risks to individuals with milk allergies, the availability of quantification methods for this allergen remains limited. In this study, we developed an immunomagnetic beads-based immunoassay (IMBs-ELISA) for the precise quantitative detection of bovine αs1-CN, specifically targeting epitope AA173-194. No cross-reactivity was observed with the other 7 food allergens including milk allergen. The linear detection range of the established IMBs-ELISA method was 0.125 µg/mL-2.000 µg/mL, with a limit of detection of 0.099 µg/mL. The accuracy of this method was 1.048 %, and the intra-plate and inter-plate precision achieved 4.100 % and 6.777 %, respectively. Notably, the entire IMBs-ELISA process could be completed within 75 min, representing a substantial time-saving advantage over traditional ELISA methods. These results proved the reliability and rapidity of the IMBs-ELISA method for detecting αs1-CN in real food.

One-Step Purification of IgE Epitope-Specific Antibody Using Immunomagnetic Beads and Highly Sensitive Detection of Bovine ß-Lactoglobulin for the Prediction of Milk Allergenicity in Foods.

Bovine ß-lactoglobulin (BLG) is a common allergen found in milk, and the immunoglobulin E (IgE) epitope plays a crucial role in cow milk allergy. Therefore, targeting the IgE epitope could be useful in accurately detecting BLG and assessing its allergenicity. However, producing an IgE epitope-specific antibody (IgE-EsAb) through traditional methods requires complex and time-consuming procedures. Here, IgE-EsAb was purified from rabbit anti-BLG sera by immunomagnetic beads in one step. Then, a sandwich ELISA (sELISA) based on the IgE-EsAb was developed to detect BLG and predict the potential milk allergenicity in foods. The obtained IgE-EsAb could specifically recognize the target IgE epitope of BLG and exhibited high affinity and specificity. The developed IgE-EsAb-based sELISA demonstrated an ultra-wide linear range of 3.9-1.28 × 105 ng/mL, with a limit of detection of 0.49 ng/mL for BLG. Additionally, the proposed immunoassay showed high specificity and recoveries (91.24-109.61%). The ability of the IgE-EsAb-based sELISA to evaluate the potential milk allergenicity in foods was validated using sera from cow milk allergy patients. These results suggest that immunomagnetic beads are an effective tool for rapidly obtaining the IgE-EsAb, and our proposed sELISA could be a reliable and user-friendly method for monitoring trace amounts of BLG and predicting the potential milk allergenicity of food samples.

Sodium arsenite induces spatial learning and memory impairment associated with oxidative stress and activates the Nrf2/PPARγ pathway against oxidative injury in mice hippocampus.

Arsenic (As) is a ubiquitous environmental and industrial toxin with known correlates of oxidative stress and cognitive deficits in the brain. Nuclear factor erythroid 2-related factor 2 (Nrf2) is a transcriptional factor that represents a central cellular antioxidant defense mechanism and transcribes many antioxidant genes. Peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor-gamma (PPARγ) is a well-known nuclear receptor to regulate lipid metabolism in many tissues, and it has been also associated with the control of oxidative stress, neuronal death, neurogenesis and differentiation. The role of Nrf2 and PPARγ in As-induced neurotoxicity is still debated. The present study was designed to investigate the neurobehavioral toxic effect of sub-chronic and middle-dose sodium arsenite exposure in mice hippocampus, as well as the response of Nrf2/PPARγ expression and influence on protein expression levels of their downstream antioxidant genes. Our results showed that mice treated with intraperitoneal injection of sodium arsenite (50 mg/kg body wt.) twice a week for 7 weeks resulted in increased generation of reactive oxygen species and impairment of spatial cognitive function. The present study also found a positive association between Nrf2/PPARγ expression in hippocampus of mice, and activation of antioxidant defenses by the evidently upregulated expression of their downstream genes, including superoxide dismutase, heme oxygenase-1 and glutathione peroxidase-3. Therefore, our findings were helpful for further understanding the role of Nrf2/PPARγ feedback loop in As-induced neurobehavioral toxicity.

Highly Sensitive Detection of Bovine ß-Lactoglobulin with Wide Linear Dynamic Range Based on Platinum Nanoparticles Probe.

Cow's milk allergy is one of the most frequent and severe IgE-induced food allergies for children, demanding sensitive analytical methods, and ß-lactoglobulin (BLG) can be as an important biomarker for detection of milk protein. In this study, a highly sensitive sandwich enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (sELISA) based on a specific polyclonal antibody against human IgE linear epitopes of BLG and an anti-BLG polyclonal antibody-platinum nanoparticles probe was described for detection of BLG. This sELISA exhibited an ultrawide linear range of 0.49-1.6 × 104 ng/mL, covering more than four orders of magnitude. The limit of detection was 0.12 ng/mL, which was 16-fold lower than that using traditional sELISA with the same antibodies. Furthermore, the proposed approach showed high recoveries (93.53%-111.95%) and low coefficient of variation (1.49%-12.50%) after analysis of samples fortified with BLG. The presence of allergenic BLG residues also could be detected in partially hydrolyzed infant formulas. These results, in comparison with conventional and commercial BLG detection sELISAs, highlight that this proposed sELISA could be a reliable and user-friendly tool to monitor trace amounts of BLG and its potentially allergenic residues in foods.

A novel sandwich enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay with covalently bound monoclonal antibody and gold probe for sensitive and rapid detection of bovine ß-lactoglobulin.

Bovine milk is a recognized allergenic food source with ß-lactoglobulin (BLG) as its major allergen. Reliable detection of BLG epitopes can, therefore, be a useful marker for the presence of milk in processed food products, and for potential allergenicity. At the present, enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays (ELISA) for the detection of BLG are time-consuming and generally not specific to BLG IgE epitopes. In this study, the 1-ethyl-3-(3-dimethylaminopropyl)carbodiimide-activated anti-BLG IgE epitope monoclonal antibody (mAb 1G9) was covalently bound onto the KOH-treated microtiter plate surface. Using this mAb-bound plate in sandwich combination with biotinylated anti-BLG polyclonal antibody-labeled gold nanoparticles, a linear dynamic range between 31.25 and 64 × 103 ng mL-1 with a limit of detection for BLG of 0.49 ng mL-1 was obtained, which is 32 times wider and 16 times more sensitive than conventional sandwich ELISA (sELISA). Total recovery of BLG in spiked food samples was found, without matrix effects. Also in partially hydrolyzed infant formulas, the allergenic BLG residues were detected quantitatively. Compared with conventional and commercial BLG detection sELISAs, our sELISA is reliable, highly BLG epitope-specific, user-friendly, and time-saving and allows accurate detection of potentially allergenic residues in different types of processed foods. This improved sELISA protocol can be easily extended to detect other well-identified and characterized food allergens. Graphical abstract IgE epitope mAb-bound plate in sandwich combination with gold probe for sensitive and rapid detection of bovine ß-lactoglobulin and its potentially allergenic residues.

Development of a H2 O2 -sensitive quantum dots-based fluorescent sandwich ELISA for sensitive detection of bovine ß-lactoglobulin by monoclonal antibody.

BACKGROUND: Bovine ß-lactoglobulin (BLG) is the major allergen in cows' milk, and the specific epitope plays a key role in food allergy. Developing a method specifically bind to the IgE epitope is necessary for testing BLG and its allergenic residues. RESULTS: The monoclonal antibody (1G9) specific to the IgE linear epitope for BLG was identified as high affinity and specificity. Based on 1G9, a sensitive fluorescent sandwich enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (sELISA) was successfully developed using catalase-mediated fluorescence quenching of thiolated CdTe quantum dots in the presence of hydrogen peroxide as fluorescent signal output. The fluorescent sELISA showed high sensitivity and specificity, the limit of detection was 0.49 ng mL-1 , which was 16-fold lower than horseradish peroxidase (HRP)-based sELISA. The linear range for BLG detection were 125-4000 ng mL-1 (r = 0.9939) and 0.48-62.5 ng mL-1 (r = 0.9919). The recoveries and coefficients of variation were 94.25-109.83% and 4.38-20.29%, respectively. Allergenic residues were also detected in hydrolysed infant formulas. The results of fluorescent sELISA showed good performance as HRP-based sELISA and commercial sELISA kit. CONCLUSION: This proposed fluorescent sELISA could be employed to detect BLG and its allergenic residues in food with highly sensitivity, reliability, and recovery. © 2017 Society of Chemical Industry.

Development of sandwich ELISA for testing bovine ß-lactoglobulin allergenic residues by specific polyclonal antibody against human IgE binding epitopes.

Bovine ß-lactoglobulin (BLG) is the main allergen in cows' milk, and the most commonly used method for detecting BLG is enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). However, antibodies used in commercial ELISA kits do not recognize specifically BLG IgE epitopes. Here, an antibody specific to IgE linear epitopes for BLG was used to develop a sandwich ELISA using a rabbit anti-BLG polyclonal antibody. The linear range for BLG detection was 31.25-8000ng/mL and limit of detection was 1.96ng/mL. BLG content in dairy samples was determined, and there was a good agreement between this immunoassay and reversed-phase high-performance liquid chromatography with high recovery. Additionally, BLG content in food samples had an average recovery of 104.25%. Allergenic residues were also detected in hydrolyzed infant formulas. The method developed could be a practical approach to determine BLG and its allergenic residues in food with a high degree of sensitivity, reliability and recovery.

Identification and characterization of the antigenic site (epitope) on bovine ß-lactoglobulin: common residues in linear and conformational epitopes.

BACKGROUND: ß-Lactoglobulin is recognised as one of major allergens in milk and its epitopes include linear and conformational epitopes contributed to milk allergy. RESULTS: In our work, two types of epitopes have been identified. Linear epitopes identified by using SPOT™ peptide arrays approach and three common peptide sequences AA77-82 (KIPAVF), AA126-131 (PEVDNE) and AA142-147 (ALPMHI) were obtained by reacting with specific sera from two rabbits. At the same time, mimotopes were screened by the panning of a phage display peptide library and the corresponding conformational epitopes were calculated by the web tool of Peptiope server with Mapitope algorithm. Three conformational epitopes against two specific sera were identified, in which there were 15 common residues as well and located in the different position and appeared mainly as an α-helix. CONCLUSION: Common residues on the linear and conformational epitopes were identified in the first time, respectively, which could be regarded as informative epitopes for detection of allergen in dairy products.