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Scaife K, Taylor SL, Pařenicová L, Goodman RE, Vo TD, Leune E, Abdelmoteleb M, Dommels Y. In silico evaluation of the potential allergenicity of a fungal biomass from Rhizomucor pusillus for use as a novel food ingredient. Regul Toxicol Pharmacol 2024; 150:105629. [PMID: 38657894 DOI: 10.1016/j.yrtph.2024.105629] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/19/2024] [Revised: 04/04/2024] [Accepted: 04/17/2024] [Indexed: 04/26/2024]
Abstract
The world's hunger for novel food ingredients drives the development of safe, sustainable, and nutritious novel food products. For foods containing novel proteins, potential allergenicity of the proteins is a key safety consideration. One such product is a fungal biomass obtained from the fermentation of Rhizomucor pusillus. The annotated whole genome sequence of this strain was subjected to sequence homology searches against the AllergenOnline database (sliding 80-amino acid windows and full sequence searches). In a stepwise manner, proteins were designated as potentially allergenic and were further compared to proteins from commonly consumed foods and from humans. From the sliding 80-mer searches, 356 proteins met the conservative >35% Codex Alimentarius threshold, 72 of which shared ≥50% identity over the full sequence. Although matches were identified between R. pusillus proteins and proteins from allergenic food sources, the matches were limited to minor allergens from these sources, and they shared a greater degree of sequence homology with those from commonly consumed foods and human proteins. Based on the in silico analysis and a literature review for the source organism, the risk of allergenic cross-reactivity of R. pusillus is low.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kevin Scaife
- Intertek Health Sciences Inc., 2233 Argentia Road, Suite 201, Mississauga, ON, L5N 2X7, Canada.
| | - Steve L Taylor
- Taylor Consulting LLC, 941 Evergreen Drive, Lincoln, NE, 68510, USA
| | - Lucie Pařenicová
- The Protein Brewery B.V., Goeseelsstraat 10, 4817 MV, Breda, the Netherlands; BioXact B.V., Böttgerwater 44, 2497 ZJ, Den Haag, the Netherlands
| | - Richard E Goodman
- RE Goodman Consulting LLC, 8110 Dougan Circle, Lincoln, NE, 68516, USA
| | - Trung D Vo
- Intertek Health Sciences Inc., 2233 Argentia Road, Suite 201, Mississauga, ON, L5N 2X7, Canada
| | - Elisa Leune
- The Protein Brewery B.V., Goeseelsstraat 10, 4817 MV, Breda, the Netherlands
| | - Mohamed Abdelmoteleb
- Mohamed Abdelmoteleb, Botany Department, Faculty of Science, Mansoura University, Mansoura, 35516, Egypt
| | - Yvonne Dommels
- The Protein Brewery B.V., Goeseelsstraat 10, 4817 MV, Breda, the Netherlands
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Scaife K, Vo TD, Dommels Y, Leune E, Albermann K, Pařenicová L. In silico and in vitro safety assessment of a fungal biomass from Rhizomucor pusillus for use as a novel food ingredient. Food Chem Toxicol 2023; 179:113972. [PMID: 37532172 DOI: 10.1016/j.fct.2023.113972] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/23/2023] [Revised: 07/24/2023] [Accepted: 07/25/2023] [Indexed: 08/04/2023]
Abstract
To address the growing world population and reduce the impact of environmental changes on the global food supply, ingredients are being produced using microorganisms to yield sustainable and innovative products. Food ingredients manufactured using modern biotechnology must be produced by non-toxigenic and nonpathogenic production organisms that do not harbor antimicrobial resistance (AMR). Several fungal species represent attractive targets as sources of alternative food products. One such product is a fungal biomass obtained from the fermentation of Rhizomucor pusillus strain CBS 143028. The whole genome sequence of this strain was annotated and subjected to sequence homology searches and in silico phenotype prediction tools to identify genetic elements encoding for protein toxins active via oral consumption, virulence factors associated with pathogenicity, and determinants of AMR. The in silico investigation revealed no genetic elements sharing significant sequence homology with putative virulence factors, protein toxins, or AMR determinants, including the absence of mucoricin, an essential toxin in the pathogenesis of mucormycosis. These in silico findings were corroborated in vitro based on the absence of clinically relevant mycotoxin or antibacterial secondary metabolites. Consequently, it is unlikely that R. pusillis strain CBS 143028 would pose a safety concern for use in food for human consumption.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kevin Scaife
- Intertek Health Sciences Inc., 2233 Argentia Road, Suite 21, Mississauga, ON, L5N 2X7, Canada.
| | - Trung D Vo
- Intertek Health Sciences Inc., 2233 Argentia Road, Suite 21, Mississauga, ON, L5N 2X7, Canada
| | - Yvonne Dommels
- The Protein Brewery B.V., Goeseelsstraat 10, 4817, MV, Breda, the Netherlands
| | - Elisa Leune
- The Protein Brewery B.V., Goeseelsstraat 10, 4817, MV, Breda, the Netherlands
| | - Kaj Albermann
- Labvantage - Biomax GmbH, Robert-Koch-Str. 2, 82152, Planegg, Germany
| | - Lucie Pařenicová
- The Protein Brewery B.V., Goeseelsstraat 10, 4817, MV, Breda, the Netherlands; BioXact, Böttgerwater 44, 2497, ZJ, Den Haag, Netherlands
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