Author Identifier
Utpal Bose
https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1156-6504
Angéla Juhász
https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4317-2027
Michelle L. Colgrave
Document Type
Journal Article
Publication Title
Molecular Nutrition and Food Research
Publisher
Wiley
School
Australian Research Council Centre of Excellence for Innovations in Peptide and Protein Science / School of Science
Funders
1st Singapore-Australia Bilateral Programon Innovations in Food for Precision Health / National Health and Medical Research Council /
Grant Number
NHMRC Number : GNT1086656
Abstract
Scope: Edible insect proteins are increasingly introduced as an alternative sustainable food source to address the world's need to feed the growing population. Tropomyosin is the main insect allergen; however, additional potential allergens are not well characterized and the impact of extraction procedures on immunological reactivity is unknown. Methods and results: Proteins from different commercial food products derived from cricket (Acheta domesticus) and black soldier fly (BSF) (Hermetia illucens) are extracted using five different extraction buffers. The proteins are analyzed by SDS-PAGE and immunoblotting using allergen-specific antibodies and crustacean allergic patient sera. IgE binding bands are analyzed by mass spectrometry as well as the complete allergen profile of all 30 extracts. Urea-based buffers are most efficient in extracting insect allergens. Shrimp-specific antibody cross-reactivity to tropomyosin from cricket and BSF indicates high sequence and structural similarity between shrimp and insects. Additional unique allergens are identified in both species, including hemocyanin, vitellogenin, HSP20, apolipophorin-III, and chitin-binding protein. Conclusions: Identifying potential allergenic proteins and their isoforms in cricket and BSF requires specific extraction approaches using urea-based methods. While tropomyosin is the most abundant and immunoreactive allergen, seven unique allergens are identified, highlighting the need for insect species-specific allergen detection in food products.
DOI
10.1002/mnfr.202300811
Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 4.0 License.
Comments
Karnaneedi, S., Johnston, E. B., Bose, U., Juhász, A., Broadbent, J. A., Ruethers, T., ... & Lopata, A. L. (2024). The allergen profile of two edible insect species—Acheta domesticus and hermetia illucens. Molecular Nutrition & Food Research, 68 (16), Article 2300811. https://doi.org/10.1002/mnfr.202300811