FOODHYPERSENS: Towards comprehensive analytical methods for partially hydrolysed gluten to assess product safety for celiac disease patients

Celiac disease is a common food-induced disease of the small intestine that is caused by ingestion of gluten from wheat, barley and rye. The only effective treatment available is a strict lifelong gluten-free diet. Gluten-free products for celiac disease patients must not exceed the regulatory threshold of 20 mg/kg of gluten. The current techniques for detection of gluten in food and drink products are inadequate and lead to inadvertent ingestion of gluten by celiac patients. Especially poorly mapped are gluten peptides in partially hydrolysed and fermented food products including sour dough bread, barley malt extracts, soy sauces and beer, and the current detection methods show wide variations when tested. This research project aims at finding better ways to measure gluten in these foods, including the use of celiac-disease patient-derived antibodies. By establishing new analytical methods, we can significantly improve the life quality of celiacs, and prevent the development of co-morbidities.

This is a joint European project with participants from Germany, Italy and Norway that is related to celiac disease (CeD). CeD is a common food-induced inflammatory disease of the small intestine that is caused by ingestion of gluten from wheat, barley and rye. The only effective treatment available is a strict lifelong gluten-free (GF) diet. GF products for CeD patients must not exceed the regulatory threshold of 20 mg/kg of gluten. Compliance of foods is typically assessed with an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA), but this assay performs less well in food products with fermented or partially hydrolysed gluten. The objectives of this joint European project will address this issue. In the project we will provide a comprehensive and unique toolbox of novel and validated methods to detect gluten (both intact and partially hydrolysed) in foods for CeD patients. This will be achieved by using discovery proteomics and quantitative LC-MS/MS methods, improved reference materials for partially hydrolysed gluten, CeD-patient derived monoclonal antibodies and functional gluten-specific T-cell assays. This Norwegian partner will specifically work on transforming CeD-patient derived monoclonal antibodies into reagents that can be used to detect gluten.