The sale of grain products is a very competitive business worldwide. Quality standards with regards to contamination by insects, birds and rodents are limited by the analytical method used to make the assessments. The current standard method for detection of the contamination in flour (an acid hydrolysis insect fragment method) is unreliable and time-consuming. To assure the high quality of grain products, a simple and accurate method is definitely needed. Immunoassays are widely used in all biological fields and have the advantages of being simple, accurate, sensitive and specific. Although an immunoassay for detection of insects in grain has been developed, it is not applicable to flour products. This project is proposed for development of a sandwich immunoassay to specifically detect and quantitate insects in flour products. An insect antigen that is stable in flour will be identified, purified, and immunized into rabbits for production of antibodies. A sandwich immunoassay will be developed that can detect insect matters in flour products. With the development of this insect assay and the availability of rodent and bird assays (already developed under and USDA/SBIR grant), we will have the best tool to ensure a good sanitary condition in all our grain products.
Anticipated Results/Potential Commercial Applications of Research: Good analytical methods are required to improve the sanitary conditions of American grain products. The development of a rapid, reliable immunoassay method for analyzing insect matter in milled products and the availability of already developed avian and rodent assays would make routine screening possible, either in the manufacture or retail level. U.S. grain producers can know the condition of their product and use the sanitary quality as a selling and marketing tool. Adoption of these tests by FDA to augment the insect fragment test can increase the consumer confidence in the product quality and, therefore, the revenue potential.
