Hazelnut ELISA

Enzyme immunoassay for the quantitative determination of Hazelnut in food.

Background: Hazelnut (Corylus avellana) belongs to the birch plants. With 13 % the fraction of proteins in hazel-nuts is high. Many of these proteins are known for being allergenic, such as Cor a 9 and Cor a 11. Most of them are very heat resistant making them stable to different production processes. For this reason hazelnut represents an important food allergen. For hazelnut allergic persons hidden hazelnut allergens in food are a critical problem. Already very low amounts of hazelnuts can cause allergic reactions, which may lead to anaphylactic shock in severe cases. Because of this, hazelnut allergic persons must strictly avoid the consumption of hazelnuts or hazelnut containing food. Cross-contamination, mostly in consequence of the production process is often noticed. The chocolate production process is a representative example. This explains why in many cases the existence of hazelnut residues in foods cannot be excluded. For this reason sensitive detection systems for hazelnut residues in foodstuffs are required. The Hazelnut ELISA represents a highly sensitive detection system and is particularly capable of the quantification of hazelnut residues in cookies, cereals, ice cream, sweets, food supplements and chocolate. Furthermore, it is validated for rinse water/ CIPs and swab samples.

Description: The Hazelnut quantitative test is based on the principle of the enzyme linked immunosorbent assay. An antibody directed against hazelnut proteins is bound on the surface of a microtiter plate. Hazelnut containing samples or standards are given into the wells of the microtiter plate. After 20 minutes incubation at room temperature, the wells are washed with diluted washing solution to remove unbound material. A peroxidase conjugated second antibody directed against hazelnut proteins is given into the wells and after 20 minutes of incubation the plate is washed again. A substrate solution is added and incubated for 20 minutes, resulting in the development of a blue colour. The colour development is inhibited by the addition of a stop solution, and the colour turns yellow. The yellow colour is measured photometrically at 450 nm. The concentration of hazelnut is directly proportional to the colour intensity of the test sample.

Product Features:
- The kit contains reagents for 96 determinations;
- Microtiter plate consisting of 12 strips with 8 breakable wells;
- Hazelnut Standards: 0, 1, 4, 10, 40 ppm;
- ELISA reader at 450 nm;
- Standard range: 1 - 40 ppm;
- Sensitivity analytical: 0.07 ppm.