Allergy and Immunology Commons^™

An Evaluation Of The Sensitivity Of Subjects With Peanut Allergy To Very Low Doses Of Peanut Protein: A Randomized, Double-Blind, Placebo-Controlled Food Challenge Study, Jonathan O'B. Hourihane, Sally A. Kilburn, Julie A. Nordlee, Susan L. Hefle, Steve L. Taylor, John O. Warner

Department of Food Science and Technology: Faculty Publications

The minimum dose of food protein to which subjects with food allergy have reacted in double-blind, placebo-controlled food challenges is between 50 and 100 mg. However, subjects with peanut allergy often report severe reactions after minimal contact with peanuts, even through intact skin.

Objective: We sought to determine whether adults previously proven by challenge to be allergic to peanut react to very low doses of peanut protein.

Methods: We used a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled food challenge of 14 subjects allergic to peanuts with doses of peanut ranging from 10 μg to 50 mg, administered in the form of …

Identification Of A Brazil-Nut Allergen In Transgenic Soybeans, Julie A. Nordlee, Steve L. Taylor, Jeffrey A. Townsend, Laurie A. Thomas, Robert K. Bush

Department of Food Science and Technology: Faculty Publications

Background: The nutritional quality of soybeans (Glycine max) is compromised by a relative deficiency of methionine in the protein fraction of the seeds. To improve the nutritional quality, methionine-rich 2S albumin from the Brazil nut (Bertholletia excelsa) has been introduced into transgenic soybeans. Since the Brazil nut is a known allergenic food, we assessed the allergenicity of the 2S albumin.

Methods: The ability of proteins in transgenic and nontransgenic soybeans, Brazil nuts, and purified 2S albumin to bind to IgE in serum from subjects allergic to Brazil nuts was determined by radioallergosorbent tests (four …

A Sandwich Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay (Elisa) For The Quantitation Of Peanut In Foods, S. L. Taylor, Julie A. Nordlee, S. L. Hefle

Department of Food Science and Technology: Faculty Publications

Peanuts are one of the most allergenic foods known. Strict avoidance of peanut by peanut-allergic individuals is difficult and often unsuccessful. Peanut proteins have previously been found in nonpeanut foodstuffs prepared on shared processing equipment, and such carryover contamination increases the risk of occurrence of allergic reactions. Immunoassays offer a specific, sensitive, and rapid technique to detect and quantitate small amounts of proteins in food systems.

A sandwich-type, enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) was developed for the detection of peanut protein in foods. Selected food samples were ground and extracts prepared by overnight extraction in 0.01 M phosphate buffered saline, followed …

Allergenic Foods, Susan L. Hefle, Julie A. Nordlee, Steve L. Taylor

Department of Food Science and Technology: Faculty Publications

Virtually all food allergens are proteins, although only a small percentage of the many proteins in foods are allergens. Any food that contains protein has the potential to cause allergic reactions in some individuals. However, a few foods or food groups are known to cause allergies on a more frequent basis than other foods. At a 1995 consultation on food allergies sponsored by the Food and Agriculture Organization, a group of international experts confirmed that peanuts, soybeans, crustacea, fish, cow’s milk, eggs, tree nuts, and wheat are the most common allergenic foods. These foods are responsible for more than 90% …

Sensitivity To Sulfited Foods Among Sulfite-Sensitive Subjects With Asthma, Steve L. Taylor, Robert K. Bush, John C. Selner, Julie A. Nordlee, Matthew B. Wiener, Karen Holden, Jerald W. Koepke, William W. Busse

Department of Food Science and Technology: Faculty Publications

Eight individuals with asthma who had been diagnosed as sulfite sensitive on the basis of double-blind capsule-beverage challenges were subjected to challenges with various sulfited foods, including lettuce, shrimp, dried apricots, white grape juice, dehydrated potatoes (as mashed potatoes), and mushrooms. Four of these patients failed to respond to challenges with any of the sulfited foods. The other four patients experienced a decrease in pulmonary function on double-blind challenges with sulfited lettuce. Two of three of these patients reacted to challenges with dried apricots and white grape juice; the fourth patient has not yet been challenged with these products. Only …

Sensitivity To Ingested Sulfites, Steve L. Taylor, Julie A. Nordlee

Department of Food Science and Technology: Faculty Publications

Sulfiting agents, including sodium and potassium bisulfite, sodium and potassium metabisulfite, sodium sulfite, and sulfur dioxide, have enjoyed widespread use as food and drug ingredients. The oral ingestion of these sulfiting agents is now known to trigger asthma in a small subset of the asthmatic population. The best evidence suggests that perhaps 150,000 to 200,000 individuals in the United States may be sulfite sensitive. Although the mechanism of sulfite-induced asthma remains unknown, several possibilities have been considered, including inhalation of sulfur dioxide (SO₂) while swallowing, an IgE-mediated reaction, and a deficiency of sulfite oxidase leading to impaired sulfite …

Prevalence Of Sensitivity To Sulfiting Agents In Asthmatic Patients, Robert K. Bush, Steve L. Taylor, Karen Holden, Julie A. Nordlee, William S. Busse

Department of Food Science and Technology: Faculty Publications

Ingestion of sulfiting agents can induce wheezing in some asthmatic patients. However, neither the prevalence of sulfite sensitivity nor the clinical characteristics of the affected asthmatic population are known. In a prospective single-blind screening study, 120 non-steroid-dependent and 83 steroid-dependent asthmatic patients underwent challenge with oral capsules of potassium metabisulfite. Five non-steroid-dependent and 16 steroid-dependent asthmatic patients experienced a greater than 20 percent reduction in their one-second forced expiratory volume within 30 minutes following the oral challenge. Twelve of these sulfite reactors were rechallenged with metabisulfite capsules in a double-blind protocol. Under these conditions, only three of seven steroid-dependent patients …

Soybean Oil Is Not Allergenic To Soybean-Sensitive Individuals, Robert K. Bush, Steve L. Taylor, Julie A. Nordlee, William W. Busse

Department of Food Science and Technology: Faculty Publications

We have previously demonstrated that peanut oil is not allergenic to peanut-sensitive individuals. Seven soybean-sensitive patients were enrolled in a double-blind crossover study to determine whether ingestion of soybean oil can induce adverse reactions in such patients. All subjects had histories of systemic allergic reactions (urticaria, angioedema, wheezing, dyspnea, and/or vomiting) after soybean ingestion and had positive puncture skin tests with a 1:20 w/v glycerinated-saline whole soybean extract. Sera from six of the seven subjects were tested by RAST assay for the presence of specific IgE antibodies to soybean allergens. All patients had elevated levels of serum IgE antibodies to …

Sulfite Residues In Maraschino Cherries, Julie A. Nordlee, Laura B. Martin, Steve L. Taylor

Department of Food Science and Technology: Faculty Publications

A survey of 53 samples of maraschino cherries from 14 different processors revealed that total sulfite residues averaged 52.3 ± 44.7 ppm. However, 58.5% of the samples had less than 40 ppm total SO₂, while only 7.6% had greater than 120 ppm total SO₂ indicating that the distribution was skewed in the direction of lower residue levels. Free sulfite residues in the 53 samples were considerably lower, averaging 14.2 ± 7.1 ppm. With free SO₂ levels, 35.8% of the samples had less than 10 ppm free SO₂, while only 5.7% had greater than 30 …

Allergenicity Of Various Peanut Products As Determined By Rast Inhibition, Julie A. Nordlee, Steve L. Taylor, R. T. Jones, John W. Yunginger

Department of Food Science and Technology: Faculty Publications

Extracts of 19 different peanut products and peanut oil were tested for their allergenicity by the radioallergosorbent test inhibition assay using a crude peanut extract from raw peanuts as the standard for comparison. Seventeen of the extracts were able to competitively inhibit the binding of serum IgE from peanut-sensitive patients with the solid-phase raw peanut extract. Peanut oil and the extract from hydrolyzed peanut protein did not inhibit binding, which suggests that these products are not allergenic. The peanut hull flour extract showed a slight ability to inhibit binding, suggesting that this product contains minor amounts of the peanut allergen.