Effects of two different domestic boiling practices on the allergenicity of cow's milk proteins

BACKGROUND: the sale of raw drinking milk through automatic dispensers is permitted in some European Member States, but consumers are usually advised to boil the milk before consumption. The present study has been conducted to evaluate the effects of two common domestic boiling techniques on the proteins of raw milk, and, in particular, on their potential allergenicity. RESULTS: Native 1-D electrophoresis, N-terminal amino acid sequencing and immunoblotting have been used to characterize the protein pattern, and to evaluate the possible changes in the allergenic properties of the processed milk. The main result of this investigation is that heating induces the aggregation of ?-lactoglobulin in higher molecular weight products, while caseins result to be more resistant to the treatments. ?-lactoglobulin aggregates have been found to be non-immunoreactive with the sera of subjects suffering from cow's milk protein allergy. CONCLUSION: domestic boiling modifies the milk protein profile causing minor reduction in milk allergenicity.