Ng, Sing WeiSing WeiNgLu, PengPengLuRulikowska, AleksandraAleksandraRulikowskaBourke, PaulaPaulaBourkeet al.2021-11-112021-11-112020 Elsev2021-04-16Food Chemistry0308-8146http://hdl.handle.net/10197/12643Casein, β-lactoglobulin and α-lactalbumin are major milk protein allergens. In the present study, the structural modifications and antigenic response of these bovine milk allergens as induced by non-thermal treatment by atmospheric cold plasma were investigated. Spark discharge (SD) and glow discharge (GD), as previously characterized cold plasma systems, were used for protein treatments. Casein, β-lactoglobulin and α-lactalbumin were analyzed before and after plasma treatment using SDS-PAGE, FTIR, UPLC-MS/MS and ELISA. SDS-PAGE results revealed a reduction in the casein and α-lactalbumin intensity bands after SD or GD treatments; however, the β-lactoglobulin intensity band remained unchanged. FTIR studies revealed alterations in protein secondary structure induced by plasma, particularly contents of β-sheet and β-turn. The UPLC-MS/MS results showed that the amino acid compositions decreased after plasma treatments. ELISA of casein and α-lactalbumin showed a decrease in antigenicity post plasma treatment, whereas ELISA of β-lactoglobulin showed an increase in antigenicity. The study indicates that atmospheric cold plasma can be tailored to mitigate the risk of bovine milk allergens in the dairy processing and ingredients sectors.Print-ElectronicenThis is the author’s version of a work that was accepted for publication in Food Chemistry. Changes resulting from the publishing process, such as peer review, editing, corrections, structural formatting, and other quality control mechanisms may not be reflected in this document. Changes may have been made to this work since it was submitted for publication. A definitive version was subsequently published in Food Chemistry (342, Article Number: 128283. (2020)) https://doi.org/10.1016/j.foodchem.2020.128283MilkAnimalsCattleCaseinsAllergensAtmospherePlasma GasesWhey ProteinsJournal Article34210.1016/j.foodchem.2020.1282832021-09-29SFI/16/BBSRC/3391BB/P008496/1https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/3.0/ie/