Towards the development of a dipstick immunoassay for the detection of trace amounts of egg proteins in food

Abstract

Immunoassays using antigen-specific antibodies offer a powerful tool for the detection of the analyte proteins in a complex food protein mixture. This study reports the first approach to the development of a dipstick assay for the determination of egg proteins in food. Dipstick tests are very inexpensive, rapid, and portable, and do not require technical skill to perform. The polyclonal antibodies specific to egg proteins, developed in Health Canada, that do not cross-react with any of the 38 nuts, legumes or other common food ingredients tested will be used to develop the dipstick test for egg. Different food samples were tested. A non-competitive format with direct spotting of the antibody onto a nitrocellulose membrane and detection with an antibody coupled to peroxidase was used. The assay proved to be sensitive enough to detect trace amounts of egg protein in the lower microgram per kilogram range.