Techniques for Analyzing Gluten

According to the Codex Alimentarius, the quantitative determination of gluten in food samples and ingredients will be based on an immunologic or other method providing at least equal sensitivity and specificity. Enzyme-linked immunosorbant assays (mAbs) are most commonly used for routine gluten analysis. The monoclonal antibodies are the most used, and many researchers have proposed using antibodies against toxic prolamin fractions, but only a few have been commercialized. Other proteomic techniques, such as electrophoresis, chromatography, mass spectrometry, and DNA-based methods, have engendered more interest over the past few years, and new approaches, such as systematic evolution of ligands by exponential enrichment and immunosensors have been yielding promising results. Furthermore, gluten analysis is affected by several processes that constrain the extraction step and technical analysis and, subsequently, the obtained data. Some of these problems, such as heating and hydrolysis, have nearly been solved, but others are open to question.