Preparation of anti-idiotypic antibodies and their applications in mycotoxin detection: a review

Agricultural products and food are frequently contaminated with mycotoxins. Immunoassays have the advantages of high specificity, high sensitivity, and rapidity. However, these methods involve the use of large quantities of toxic reagents, toxin standards, and coating antigens for detecting mycotoxins, posing risks to operators and the environment. Anti-idiotypic antibodies are specific antibodies produced against the unique epitopes of the variable region of the antibody. These antibodies can simulate the functions of antigens and serve as replacements for antigens or toxin standards in immunoassays. The immunoassays for mycotoxin detection based on anti-idiotypic antibodies are referred to as "green immunoassays". These methods exhibit high sensitivity and align with green development principles. This article reviews the preparation method of anti-idiotypic antibodies and their applications in immunoassays for food mycotoxin detection, points out that the anti-idiotypic antibodies can serve as a substitute for antigens or toxin standards and could meet the market demand for non-toxic analytical reagents, compares the advantages and disadvantages of anti-idiotypic antibodies with mimotopes and aptamers, and looks ahead to the prospects of anti-idiotypic antibodies in food mycotoxin detection, aiming to provide new insights for developing more green mycotoxin immunoassays, such as combining anti-idiotypic antibodies with small portable instruments.