Two chemists with the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) based in Kansas, U.S. have developed a process to produce high-quality, gluten-free bread.

Chemists Scott Bean and Tilman Schober at the Agricultural Research Service (ARS) Grain Quality and Structure Research Unit found that by removing a certain amount of fat from a corn protein called zein, they were able to produce a dough more similar to wheat dough, and free-standing, hearth-type rolls that resemble wheat rolls.

Roughly 1 per cent of Americans are affected by celiac disease, and they are unable to digest gluten, a protein in flour from grains such as wheat, barley and rye.

The research results were published in the Journal of Cereal Science and in the November/December 2010 issue of Agricultural Research magazine.