Allergens are substances that cause allergic reactions as a result of the immune system’s response to foreign agents in the body. This reaction, which does not occur in all humans in the same way, occurs only with those that are sensitive to a specific antigen, so the body’s immune system will pick them up as dangerous or foreign, activating an inflammatory response to fight them.
The immune system on contact with an allergen causes an exaggerated response that manifests itself in various organs in the human body. This allergen can come into contact with the body in a variety of ways, such as by ingesting or inhaling certain types of drugs or foods, or by contact with the skin, resulting in severe symptoms such as rhinitis, sneezing, runny nose, and even bronchial asthma.
For the detection of allergens, a C-reactive protein test or immunochemical tests, such as the enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay, also known as an ELISA, are used by its acronym. This test is a method of determining whether antibodies or a foreign substance are present in a sample. The antibody is a protein produced by the immune system when the antigens are detected.
Allergen ELISA
The enzyme-linked immunoabsorption test, known as ELISA, is an immunochemical test that detects an antigen by means of an antibody that is interlaced with an enzyme through a product that can be detected, such as color change, which, by spectrophotometry, would allow the antigen to be measured in the sample. An antigen is known to be a foreign or toxic substance that elicits a defensive response from the immune system.
The ELISA is applied in various fields of research, human and veterinary medicine, as well as in the food industry, for the detection and quantification of antigens in a wide variety of samples. For example, in human medicine, it is possible to know whether a person has an autoimmune disease. In veterinary medicine, it can detect and diagnose diseases affecting pets, livestock or birds, such as enzootic leukosis, bluetongue, swine fever and tweezers, among others. In the food industry, it is used to detect allergens in food and feed products, the most common to which it is applied are eggs, fish, milk, wheat, soy and nuts, among others.
To carry out this technique, appropriate optical equipment is needed, namely spectrophotometers, which are responsible for measuring the amount of light absorbed or transmitted by a sample at different wavelengths. Spectrophotometers are composed of a light source, a monochromator and a detector.
Spectrophotometer and microplate reader
The spectrophotometer is a laboratory instrument used to measure the light intensity absorbed during the passage of a solution. This instrument is responsible for carrying out the ELISA test, measuring bacterial growth, DNA, RNA and protein analysis, among other applications.
The microplate reader, on the other hand, is a type of spectrophotometer mainly used in the ELISA technique, it is characterized by the fact that it works on a limited range of wavelengths, between 400 and 750 nm, those necessary for the technique already mentioned. By detecting specific antigens or antibodies in a sample, the detected antigen will be immobilized in a solid phase due to antibodies, which will directly or indirectly produce a reaction, which will generate a producer that can be read in the spectrophotometer.
Kalstein spectrophotometer
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