Everybody
loves peanuts, right? You'll
find
them
at
the
ballgame,
on
picnics,
at
the
circus—even
on
airplanes.
The
crunchy
nuggets
can
be
popped
in
your
mouth,
one
by
one.
Or
they
can
be
ground
up
into
velvety
smooth
peanut
butter
and
smeared
on
a sandwich.
But, the truth is, not everyone
loves peanuts. In fact, a
lot of people, including
kids like you, are allergic
to peanuts. Maybe you've
got some friends who
can't eat them.
Food allergies
are nothing to sneeze at. They're
much more serious than that.
A person with peanut allergies
who accidentally eats
a peanut can become very sick—very
fast. Even the tiniest
little taste of peanut can
spell trouble for kids with
allergies. It can even mean
being rushed to the hospital!
Scientists with the Agricultural
Research Service (ARS) are involved
in several projects to help
find peanuts that EVERYONE
can enjoy. In one project,
researchers are looking for
ways to make food products
containing peanut butter
safer for people with allergies.
Can you think of any foods
that contain peanuts or peanut
butter? What about snack
crackers with peanut butter
on them? Or chewy granola
bars made with peanuts? Trail
mix usually contains them,
too.
Can you imagine
what it would be like to not
be able to eat a PB&J sandwich?
That's what it's like
for kids with peanut allergies.
Going Fruity
Si-Yin Chung is one ARS researcher
who's discovered a great way
to make peanuts safer for kids
with peanuts allergies. But
I bet you'll never guess where
he found a helping hand: in
apples.
Apples and other fruits, like
bananas, contain a natural
protein that scientists call "PPO." That's
short for "polyphenoloxidase" ("polly-FEE-nol-OX-ee-dace").
This special protein is the
reason why apples and bananas
turn brown when they're sliced.
You can even try this experiment
at home. With the help of an
adult, cut an apple into several
slices. Wait a few minutes.
Do you see the surface of the
apple slices turning brown?
By cutting the apple open,
the PPO protein is exposed
to the oxygen in the surrounding
air. This causes a reaction
to occur that's kind of like
what happens when metal on
a car, or on a bike, turns
to rust.
A
Chain Reaction
Chung is taking advantage
of this chemical reaction and
using it on peanuts. When he
adds the PPO from apples to
ground-up peanuts, something
interesting happens.
"Unusual molecules called
tyrosines ("TY-ro-seens") start reacting," he
says. These molecules, like
balls in a pinball machine,
bounce around inside the peanut
proteins and react with each
other.
The tyrosine molecules also
impact a specific group of
peanut proteins known as allergens.
That's important since it's
these proteins that cause some
people to have painful peanut
allergies.
"The PPO changes the
way the peanut proteins, or
allergens, are built or structured," says
Chung.
And these changes, as a result,
make peanuts less allergenic.
This means they could be safer
for kids with peanut allergies.
Chung says the next step
is to test the peanuts treated
with the PPO in animal laboratory
tests. He and his colleagues
will investigate whether or
not the all-natural fruit PPO
affects peanuts' flavor at
all.
Hopefully, that won't be the
case. After all, peanuts are
a yummy snack that's also good
for us!
By Erin
Peabody, Agricultural Research Service, Information Staff.