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Review
. 2022 Jan;21(1):127-147.
doi: 10.1111/1541-4337.12889. Epub 2021 Dec 26.

An overview of tropomyosin as an important seafood allergen: Structure, cross-reactivity, epitopes, allergenicity, and processing modifications

Jun-Hu Cheng  1   2   3 , Huifen Wang  1   2   3 , Da-Wen Sun  1   2   3   4
Affiliations
Review

An overview of tropomyosin as an important seafood allergen: Structure, cross-reactivity, epitopes, allergenicity, and processing modifications

Jun-Hu Cheng et al. Compr Rev Food Sci Food Saf. 2022 Jan.

Abstract

Tropomyosin (TM) is a major allergen in crustaceans, which often causes allergy and is fatal to some consumers. Currently, the most effective treatment is to avoid ingesting TM, although most adverse events occur in accidental ingestion. In this review, the molecular characterization, epitopes, cross-reactivity, and pathogenesis of TM are introduced and elucidated. Modification of TM by traditional processing methods such as heat treatment and enzymatic hydrolysis, and innovative processing technologies including high-pressure treatment, cold plasma (CP), ultrasound, pulsed electric field (PEF), pulsed ultraviolet, microwave and irradiation are discussed in detail. Particularly, enzymolysis, PEF, and CP technologies show great potential for modifying TM and more studies are needed to verify their effectiveness for the seafood industry. Possible mechanisms and the advantages/disadvantages of these technologies for the mitigation of TM allergenicity are also highlighted. Further work should be conducted to investigate the allergenicity caused by protein segments such as epitopes, examine the interaction sites between the allergen and the processing techniques and reveal the reduction mechanism of allergenicity.

Keywords: cross-reactivity; epitopes; modification methods; seafood; tropomyosin.

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References

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