Polymorphism of Bet v 1 homologs generated by BBAP in Citrus sinesis L. Osbeck varieties

Citrus fruits enjoy widespread consumption globally, being among the most popular fruits. They are highly regarded for their nutritional composition, offering a range of beneficial nutrients. However, it's important to acknowledge that they can also elicit allergic reactions in sensitised individuals, which presents a contrasting aspect. Bet v 1 cross reacting allergen is major birch pollen allergen and it the most commonly sensitizing allergen in central Europe. Bet v 1 belongs to the group of PR-10 proteins in the plant kingdom that cause a various allergic reactions. Bet v 1 allergen has a number of isoforms and homologues. These homologues genes are inherited from a common ancestor and subsequent amino acid similarity. It can cause the phenomen cross-reacticity in food allergies. The aim of the study was analysing the length polymorphism variability of the Bet v 1 homologs in orange varieties by using degenerated and nondegenerated primers. A total of 8 varieties of Citrus sinensis L. Osbeck were used in the analysis. BBAP technique (Bet v 1 based amplified polymorphism) was used to detect the length variability of fingerprints of allergen encoding genes of Bet v 1 homologs. Degenerated primer combination and only a one from nondegenerated variant of primers provided fingerprints, that were unique for every individual variety of analysed oranges. In all other primer variants, from 2 up to the 4 varieties generated the same BBAP profile, what indicate the higher degree of Bet v 1 homologs seguentional conservativity when compared to other fruit species.

Funding: This publication was supported by the Operational program Integrated Infrastructure within the project: Demand-driven research for the sustainable and innovative food, Drive4SIFood 313011V336, co-financed by the European Regional Development Fund.