A role for monoclonal antibodies in the analysis of food proteins

Monoclonal antibodies can be a useful means of detecting structural modifications of food proteins in the presence of components of the complex food matrix. Specific applications include authenticity testing, monitoring structural changes that occur during thermal processing, the detection of known food allergens, and the characterization of fermentation starter cultures. Further work is ongoing in improving methods of solubilizing foodstuffs and in raising diverse monoclonal antibodies against antigens of interest in food analysis and quality control applications.