Description
Mutton Allergy Test
Code: f88
Latin name: Ovis spp.
Family: Bovidae
Common names: Mutton, Lamb, Hogget
Mutton is a food which may result in allergy symptoms in sensitised individuals.
NB: In some countries, for example India, the term mutton is used to denote goat meat.
Mutton Allergy Test: Allergen Exposure
Mutton is the term for the meat obtained from the adult domesticated sheep. Sheep up to a year old are known as lambs, and the meat also as lamb, the meat of juvenile sheep older than one year is known as hogget. In general, the younger the sheep is at the time of slaughter, the more expensive the meat.
The largest consumers of mutton are Sudan, Kazakhstan, Australia, Algeria and Uruguay, although it is a popular meat in most countries, and traditionally an important ingredient in the cuisines of the Mediterranean, North Africa, the Middle East and Northern Europe.
In most markets nowadays, mutton is seldom sold, with consumers preferring the more delicately flavoured and tender lamb. The stronger flavour of mutton or, to a lesser extent, hogget is due to the accumulation of species-characteristic fatty acids in the meat.
Lamb is generally butchered into three major sections, forequarter (including the neck, shoulder, front legs, and the ribs up to the shoulder blade), loin (the ribs below the shoulder blade), and hindquarter (the rear legs and hip).
Popular cuts of lamb include chops, which are cut from the rib, loin or shoulder; leg, which is generally a whole leg; and saddle, which comprises the two loins and the hip.
The more tender cuts are generally prepared by grilling. The tougher meat, from the forequarter, is prepared using a moist heat method such as braising or stewing.
Lamb tongue is a popular delicacy in many Middle Eastern countries. Other commonly consumed parts of the lamb apart from the skeletal muscle include the liver, kidneys, sweetbreads and testicles.
Barbecued mutton is a traditional dish in Kentucky, stemming from a time when older sheep from the wool trade were used as food and required a long, slow cooking method to tenderise the tougher meat.
Macon is a name for fatty mutton, cured and cut into thin strips as a substitute for bacon.
Mutton Allergy Test: Allergen Description
No specific allergens present in mutton have been fully characterised to date, although a number of proteins have been identified.
Mutton Allergy Test: Potential Cross-Reactivity
Studies have shown that mutton and beef share some common allergens.
Additionally it is possible that mutton has some allergens in common with sheep wool.
Mutton Allergy Test: Clinical Experience
Mutton is regarded as a weak allergen and preparations of lamb meat have been suggested as an alternative to hydrolyzed cow’s milk formulas. The allergenicity of the meat is decreased by heating and pepsin treatment.
Allergy to red meat is rare in adults and the general understanding is that reactions to food are not delayed beyond one hour.
Other reactions
Research has revealed a previously not recognized clinical syndrome where skin
symptoms, but most importantly anaphylaxis, occur several hours after the ingestion of red
meat. Most cases occur after eating beef, pork or lamb. Sensitization is strongly associated with a history of tick bites.