Managing Allergens in Food provides a clear introduction to food allergens and allergy and discusses the effects of food processing on allergens.

Part 1 discusses the diagnosis of offending foods and how allergens can affect the quality of life.

Part 2 covers the effect of different methods of food processing on allergens and novel technologies which can reduce the potency of allergens or remove them altogether from foods.

Part 3 covers the key area of risk assessment and allergen management to achieve more uniform standards within the industry. Practical strategies to improve consumer acceptance of GM foods are also discussed.

Contents

Part 1: What Are Food Allergens and Allergies

Food allergy: diagnosis and management

• Offending foods
• Clinical manifestations
• Clinical diagnosis of food allergy
• Management of food allergy
• Key issues in diagnosis and management

The immune system and allergic responses to food

• The Physiological immune response
• Types of allergic reactions
• Oral tolerance
• The role of the gut immune system in food allergic reactions
• Crossing the barrier
• Altered immunoregulation in allergy

Impact of food allergies on quality of life

• Approaches to study quality of life
• Current knowledge regarding food allergy and quality of life

Allergens in food

• The major plant and animal food allergen protein families
• Cross-reactivity between protein families
• Protein structure and allergenic potential of proteins
• Structural approaches to reducing allergenic potential of foods

Cross-reactivity of plant allergens

• Analysing cross-reactivity
• Applications: anticipating risks from cross reactivity

Intestinal microflora and allergic response to food

• Infection and allergy
• Intestinal microbiota in allergic infants
• Modifying the gut microbiota in infants to prevent the development of allergenicity and symptoms of allergy

Part 2: Allergens in foods—from Raw to Processed Foods

The effects of food processing on allergens

• Effects of food processing on allergen structure and interactions between food components
• Processing – induced covalent modification of proteins
• Food processing, the matrix and allergenic potential

Identifying fruit, nut and vegetable cultivars with low allergenic levels and effects

• Apple as a model
• Techniques for detecting and measuring allergen levels
• Identification of cultivars low in allergenicity
• Post-harvest treatments and allergen levels

Developing allergen-free foods by genetic manipulation

• Manipulation of gene expression in crop plants
• The application of GM technology to allergen removal
• Why has GM technology not been adapted for commercial production?

Reducing allergens in milk and milk products

• Cow’s milk proteins
• Factors affecting cow’s milk allergenicity
• Milk products

Reducing allergens in eggs and egg products

• Egg proteins
• Egg white
• Egg yolk
• Bird-egg syndrome
• Cross reactivity
• Factors affecting allergenicity

Minimal processing and the allergenic properties of food

• Examples of the impact of traditional processing on allergenicity
• Options for novel processing technology to reduce allergenicity
• The need for standardisation of an assessment system to evaluate processing effects

Part 3: Assessing Allergenic Risks and Practical Management of Allergens in Food

Integrative approaches to assessing the allergenicity of foods

• Allergenic foods vs allergens in foods
• Effects of processing and digestion on the structure of the allergens and on the allergenicity
• Factors influencing the development of allergic reactions
• Measures of allergenicity (in vitro and in vivo tests)
• Assessing individual thresholds
• Post market monitoring as an additional step to increase the evidence of non-allergenicity

Detecting allergens in foods

• Methods for analysing allergenic proteins
• Methods for detecting food allergens
• Developing new rapid tests: dipsticks and biosensors

Practical application of allergenic risk assessment of proteins

• Qualitative considerations – should the protein in question be considered as an allergen?
• Quantitative considerations – is the protein in question present in concentrations that may elicit symptoms in sensitized people?
• Case studies relating to fish allergy
• Trends in risk evaluation

Allergen management in the food industry

• Principles
• Objectives
• Issues associated with allergen management
• Application

Risk communication issues in food allergy

• Effective communication about food allergy
• Risk communication – an overview
• Communication with food allergic patients
• Communication with the population in general
• Communication with health professionals
• Communication with food authorities
• Communication with food retailers
• Communication with food manufacturers

Consumer acceptance of new technologies for manipulating allergens in food

• Key factors determining consumer acceptance of new technologies
• Strategies to improve acceptance of new technologies to manipulate allergens

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