A new method for removing allergens from peanuts means help could soon be on the way for millions suffering from a potentially life-threatening allergy to the popular food, the US Department of Agriculture said.

In a blog post, the agency said researchers at North Carolina A&T State University have found a way to reduce peanut allergens by 98 to 100 per cent by focusing on certain proteins that can trigger food-related anaphylaxis, a severe, whole-body allergic reaction.

“We found that treating peanuts with protein-breaking enzymes reduced allergenic proteins,” said Jianmai Yu, a food and nutrition researcher at NC A&T’s School of Agriculture and Environmental Sciences.

The university has signed an agreement with Xemerge, a Toronto-based firm that commercialises emerging technologies in food and agriculture, to research the marketing potential of hypoallergenic peanut products.

“This is one of the best technologies in the food and nutrition space we have seen,” Johnny Rodrigues, chief commercialisation officer of Xemerge, said on the university’s website. “It checks all the boxes: non-GMO, patented, human clinical data, does not change physical characteristics of the peanut.”

The treatment is effective whether peanuts are whole, broken into pieces or ground into flour, USDA said. It has also shown promise in wheat and tree nuts.

USDA’s National Institute of Food and Agriculture supported the research with funding through an Agriculture and Food Research Initiative grant.

Peanuts are increasingly used in food products, which make it difficult for the allergic individuals to avoid accidental exposure

The process consists of pre-treating shelled and skinless peanuts with a food-grade enzyme. This post-harvest process does not change the peanut’s shape or cause lipid oxidation – a key consideration when determining a product’s shelf life.

Researchers at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill’s School of Medicine performed skin-prick tests to validate the research results on human test subjects, USDA said.

“Peanuts are increasingly used in food products, which make it difficult for the allergic individuals to avoid accidental exposure. Therefore, it is very important for us to find a way to make peanuts less or non-allergenic,” Yu said.

Peanuts cause serious allergic reactions which can include difficulty breathing, low blood pressure, swelling of the tongue, eyes or face; stomach pain, nausea and vomiting; skin rashes, blisters, itching, inflammation, and pain; and in some cases death.

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