PROBLEMATICHE legate alla DETERMINAZIONE del GLUTINE in prodotti derivati dai cereali

Gluten is a protein complex present in some cereals (wheat, rye, barley, emmer, spelt, kamut, triticale) and its ingestion in intolerant patients (celiac) unleashes a strong immune reaction primarily in the small intestine. For this reason the development of a system to detect gluten in foods is a very important goal, but it is quite problematic. Various methods for a quantitative determination can be mentioned: immunological techniques, PCR (Polymerase Chain Reaction), biosensors and systems coupled with liquid chromatography and mass spectrometer. Nowadays the most widely used technique is the enzyme immunoassay (ELISA), which is, despite the shortcomings highlighted in this article, the reference method for the determination of gluten in foods and cereal based beverages (beer).