Chickpea allergy and cross-reactivity with pea, lentil, soybean and hazelnut
What it found
In lab tests on blood serum from allergic people, chickpea proteins reacted with antibodies that also bind pea, lentil, soybean and hazelnut.
The reaction worked one way: pea and lentil blocked chickpea binding, but chickpea did not block them.
What they found
Animal and lab studies
Pea and lentil block chickpea
In lab tests, pea and lentil completely stopped IgE from binding to chickpea globulin allergens. The reverse test did not work the same way.
Chickpea blocks soybean and hazelnut
When sera were pre-absorbed with chickpea globulin, IgE binding to a protein in soybean and hazelnut extracts disappeared.
Cross-reactivity found
The results suggest cross-reactivity exists between chickpea and pea, lentil, soybean and hazelnut.
Chickpea allergy may not stand alone
Chickpea allergy is associated with lentil and/or pea allergy, but evidently may not present independently.
Pea or lentil as primary allergen
The authors suggest chickpea allergy is merely an expression of cross-reactivity, caused by pea and/or lentil as the primary allergen.
What the authors conclude
“This, together with the described asymmetric cross-reactivity and phylogenetic aspects, suggest that chickpea allergy is merely an expression of cross-reactivity, caused by pea and/or lentil as the "primary" allergen.”
Also in their conclusions
- They suggest that cross-reactivity exists between chickpea and pea, lentil, soybean and hazelnut.
- They state that chickpea allergy is associated with lentil and/or pea allergy, but evidently may not present independently.
- They conclude that chickpea allergy is merely an expression of cross-reactivity, caused by pea and/or lentil as the "primary" allergen.
How it was done
Chickpea is now one of the most widely eaten crops in the Mediterranean and the western world. Chickpea allergy is reported in some areas and is linked with lentil and pea allergy, so the authors wanted to see how these allergies overlap.
They studied the IgE-binding profiles of chickpea globulin and extracts of pea, lentil, soybean and hazelnut using immunoblotting and immunoblot-inhibition tests. They also pre-absorbed sera with chickpea globulin and checked binding to soybean and hazelnut proteins.
What it can’t tell you
- We summarised it from the abstract only.
- These are lab tests on blood serum, not studies in people eating these foods.
- They can show which proteins react with antibodies, but not how likely a person is to have a reaction.
Who paid
- Authors work at
- The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Israel; Hospital Universitario Infanta Sofia, Spain
The paper
- Title
- Food allergy and cross-reactivity-chickpea as a test case
- Type
- Study
- Evidence
- Animals and lab studies
- Summarised from
- Abstract only
- Cite
- Bar-El Dadon S, Pascual CY, Reifen R (2014). Food allergy and cross-reactivity-chickpea as a test case. Food chemistry. doi:10.1016/j.foodchem.2014.05.138PubMed 25038702DOI
Summary written 26 Sep 2026. Check it against the paper before it changes what you eat. How we summarise papers · Report an error