Development and application of an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) for the quantification of amygdalin, a cyanogenic glycoside, in food

Amygdalin is a member of the cyanogenic glycoside group of plant secondary metabolites capable of generating hydrogen cyanide under certain conditions. As a consequence, the cyanogenic glycosides have been associated with incidents of acute and subacute food poisoning. Specific antibodies were raised against an amygdalin-bovine serum albumin immunogen synthesized using a novel approach. The antibodies were used in a microtitration plate enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) for the quantification, for the first time, of amygdalin in commercially available foods. Correlation of results with high-performance liquid chromatography was very high (r = 0.983). The limit of detection of the immunoassay was 200 ± 0.05 pg mL(-1), and the 50% inhibitory concentration of amygdalin was 50 ± 0.02 ng mL(-1), making the ELISA particularly sensitive.