AUTHOR=Di Stasio Luigia , Picascia Stefania , Auricchio Renata , Vitale Serena , Gazza Laura , Picariello Gianluca , Gianfrani Carmen , Mamone Gianfranco 

TITLE=Comparative Analysis of in vitro Digestibility and Immunogenicity of Gliadin Proteins From Durum and Einkorn Wheat

JOURNAL=Frontiers in Nutrition

VOLUME=7

YEAR=2020

URL=https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/nutrition/articles/10.3389/fnut.2020.00056

DOI=10.3389/fnut.2020.00056

ISSN=2296-861X

ABSTRACT=<p>Recent studies suggested that gliadin proteins from the ancient diploid einkorn wheat <italic>Triticum monococcum</italic> retained a reduced number of immunogenic peptides for celiac disease patients because of a high <italic>in vitro</italic> digestibility with respect to hexaploid common wheat. In this study, we compared the immunological properties of gliadins from two <italic>Triticum monococcum</italic> cultivars (Hammurabi and Norberto-ID331) with those of a <italic>Triticum durum</italic> cultivar (Adamello). Gliadins were digested by mimicking the <italic>in vitro</italic> gastrointestinal digestion process that includes the brush border membrane peptidases. Competitive ELISA, based on R5 monoclonal antibody, showed that gastrointestinal digestion reduced the immunogenicity of <italic>Triticum monococcum</italic> gliadins; conversely, the immunogenic potential of <italic>Triticum durum</italic> gliadins remained almost unchanged by the <italic>in vitro</italic> digestion. The immune stimulatory activity was also evaluated by detecting the IFN-γ production in gliadin-reactive T-cell lines obtained from the small intestinal mucosa of HLA-DQ2+ celiac disease patients. Interestingly, gastrointestinal digestion markedly reduced the capability of <italic>Triticum monococcum</italic> gliadins (<italic>p</italic> &lt;0.05) of both cultivars to activate T cells, while it slightly affected the activity of <italic>Triticum durum</italic>. In conclusion, our results showed that <italic>Triticum durum</italic> was almost unaffected by the <italic>in vitro</italic> gastrointestinal digestion, while <italic>Triticum monococcum</italic> had a marked sensibility to digestion, thus determining a lower toxicity for celiac disease patients.</p>