Koffi Konan

Use of Pulsed Ultraviolet Light to Reduce the Allergenic Potency of Soybean Extracts

Pulsed ultraviolet light (PUV), a non-thermal food processing technology, is reported to be able to inactivate enzymes and reduce allergen levels from peanut extracts. The objective of this study was to determine if PUV would reduce the allergen levels and allergenic potency of soy extracts. Soy extracts were treated with PUV at various times (2, 4 and 6 min), centrifuged, and analyzed by SDS-PAGE and an indirect ELISA for IgE binding or allergenic potency. Results showed that PUV treatment led to an increase in sample temperature/weight loss but a decrease in the levels of soy allergens (i.e., glycinin and ?-conglycinin) as shown in SDS-PAGE. Allergens were reduced probably through aggregation which increased with treatment time. IgE binding was reduced as well in the following order: 20%, 44% and 50% reductions in absorbance values at 2, 4, 6 min, respectively (the latter two were not significantly different (p < 0.05%) from each other). It was concluded that PUV was capable of reducing the allergenic potency of soy extracts, and that the optimal PUV treatment time was 4 min. Clinical data is still needed before PUV can find an application in the development of less allergenic soybean beverages and products.

Prospects for Transgenic and Molecular Breeding for Cold Tolerance in Canola (Brassica napus L.)

Canola is cultivated both during winter and spring seasons in the United States and this exposes the crop to winter kill, frost, and high temperatures, during the reproductive period. The temperatures during winter and spring are known to influence all the crucial steps of the reproductive cycle including gametogenesis, pollination, fertilization and embryogenesis (Angadi, 2000). Winter rapeseed has been successfully grown in the Pacific Northwest, southern Great Plains, Midwest, and southeast regions of the USA. The hardiest cultivars will routinely survive winters in the north east of USA but survival is inconsistent further south (Rife et al., 2001). Winter-grown canola (Brassica napus L.) production is limited mostly by frost and winter-kill in the southern canola-growing regions of the United States (Singh et al., 2008). For instance, the late freeze in 2007 resulted in significant damage to most of the winter canola cultivars at the National Winter Canola Variety Trials in Alabama, U.S. (Cebert and Rufina, 2007). Winter hardiness and freezing tolerance are a major concern for improving production consistency in many regions of the canola growing countries.

Comparison of major peanut allergens Ara h 1, Ara h 2 and Ara h 3 between peanut cultivars from Côte d’Ivoire and the USA using SDS PAGE and Western Blots

Peanut is commonly consumed in many forms. The ubiquitous presence of peanut in processed food is responsible for an increasing number of allergic reactions due to accidental ingestion. The prevalence of peanut allergy seems to be underestimated in the African population possibly because of the lack of testing and clinical documentation. In this study, a comparison was made between raw and roasted peanut seeds from cultivars of Côte d’Ivoire (ARA-CI) and raw peanut seeds from the cultivar Georgia Green, grown commercially in the USA. The main objective of this study was to identify the protein profile of peanut seeds from Côte d’Ivoire and compare it with the molecular specificities of major allergens of Georgia green seeds from the USA using a combination of two methods, SDS PAGE and Western blots. Peanut protein profiles via SDS PAGE, coupled with Western blots were carried out on two collections of peanut seeds. In the raw peanut seed extracts from Côte d’Ivoire, are visible fingerprints of the major allergenic proteins Ara h 1(63.5 kDa),Ara h 2(17, 20 kDa), and Ara h 3(25,36, 40 and 44 kDa) and an allergenic bands of Ara h 3 of about 36kDa.This provides evidence of the presence of the major allergens in peanut from Côte d’Ivoire, this, a presumption of a high allergenic potency peanut despite a low prevalence of peanut allergy in the country. The presence of a strongly expressed 30 kDa protein, potentially corresponding to a component of Ara h 3 in the roasted sample means that cooking processes could increase the allergenic potency of peanut. This study makes it possible to identify molecular specificity in peanut from Côte d’Ivoire for the development of local screening test adapted to the environment.