Food biotechnologists at Alabama A&M University have successfully eliminated a major peanut allergen that causes sometimes fatal reactions in many people throughout the world.

There are at least six distinct peanut allergens that pose problems in some people who eat peanuts or its derivatives, say Dr. Hortense Dodo (photo) (pronounced with long vowels) and research colleague Dr. Koffi Konan.   Using a process referred to as RNA Interference (RNAi), the scientists were able to transform peanut tissues and silence the Ara h2 allergen gene, thus eliminating one of the proteins which triggers allergic reactions. 

Dodo called peanut allergies the most deadly of the food allergies.  The Ara h2 allergen and other peanut allergens, for instance, are responsible for causing such symptoms as hives, swelling, respiratory problems, gastrointestinal difficulties and anaphylactic shock.

Peanuts represent a more than $4 billion industry, says Dodo, and they are a cheap source of high quality proteins, good fats, vitamins and minerals.  Moreover, the crop can be grown “almost anywhere,” she adds.

Why the Increase in Peanut Allergies?

“The number of people experiencing allergic reactions to peanuts is increasing every year,” commented Dr. Dodo from one of her labs on the AAMU campus.   She noted that “more and more accidental deaths” occur as people unknowingly ingest foods that include peanut flour or oil. The tragic death last week of a 15-year-old Canadian girl is one such example.

Dodo says scientists are not really sure what is happening that is causing the rise in the number of new cases of peanut allergies each year.   Most of the cases involve young children, notes Dodo.  Some researchers suggest that statistics were not as prevalent in decades past.  Others point to a more sanitized lifestyle that has caused American immune systems to lose their bite.  But one thing seems certain, notes Dodo--peanut allergies are not as common in developing countries. 

Permanent Eradication of Peanut Allergy

Admittedly, the road toward the development of allergen-free peanuts was a long and winding one.  Dodo and Konan say it took some time to refine a process that yielded a transgenic hypoallergenic peanut plant that produced seeds. The AAMU researchers applied the RNAi process, which could permanently eliminate allergens’ accumulation in peanut, and they finally saw a light at the end of the research tunnel in February 2005.

Since that time, Dodo and Konan have been growing subsequent generations of the transgenic plant and testing for the presence of the most potent peanut allergens, which theoretically should not re-occur.  In the world of peanut research, a generation could mean six months or longer.

Of course, other scientists are approaching the peanut allergy problems in a variety of ways, including the development of methods to treat the allergic patient.  Dodo and Konan, however, prefer to find solutions by looking directly at “the culprit”—the peanut itself.

“Our goal in developing a hypo-allergenic and allergen–free peanut is not to push people who are allergic to peanuts to eat them,” explains Dodo, “but to foster industry-wide use of the new peanut variety in processed foods that contain peanuts.   So, if a person allergic to peanuts accidentally eats such foods, doing so should not trigger a severe reaction or death.”

Studies are currently underway at AAMU, says Dodo, to determine if the new transgenic peanuts maintain their nutritional quality.  Dr. Dodo is looking for commercial partners.