Development of monoclonal antibodies and a competitive ELISA detection method for glycinin, an allergen in soybean

Soybean glycinin is a major food allergen causing anaphylaxis. A sensitive detection method for glycinin is needed to evaluate soybean allergies in food and feed products. In the present study, monoclonal antibodies (Mabs) against glycinin were prepared using purified glycinin as the immunogen. The generated Mabs, named 3B2 and 4B2, were identified as being IgG2b and IgG2a iso-types respectively, and exhibited high specificity to glycinin. Then we developed a competitive ELISA based on Mab 4B2 to measure glycinin which showed an IC50 value of 1.7 ng/mL with a detection limit of 0.3 ng/mL, and the linear portion of the curve was 0.3–11.2 ng/mL. Recovery tests indicated that the competitive ELISA based on Mab 4B2 gave reliable reproducibility. The produced Mab 4B2 and the developed ELISA could provide a valuable tool for sensitive determination of glycinin and for future studies conducted to reveal the mechanism of how glycinin functions in anaphylaxis.