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Chemical composition and whey protein fraction of late lactation mares' milk

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.idairyj.2013.02.006Get rights and content

Abstract

The aim of the study was to determine the whey protein profile, somatic cell count, total bacteria count, chemical composition and some physico-chemical properties of late lactation milk produced by Polish Cold Blooded Horses mares between 141 and 210 days post partum. The whey protein profile, expressed as a percentage of the total sum of the six whey proteins considered, was characterised by high proportions of lysozyme (11.6%), lactoferrin (14.6%) and immunoglobulin (15.8%). Whey proteins represented in greatest amounts included β-lactoglobulin (29.2%) and α-lactalbumin (25.4% of the total whey protein fraction). Mares' milk was characterised by very low numbers of somatic cells and total bacterial counts. Results presented confirm that late lactation mares' milk constitutes a valuable source of bioactive components.

Introduction

Mares' milk is a product of several health benefits, with alleviating effects in various diseases (Foekel et al., 2009; Schubert et al., 2009). The major factors that influence mares' milk composition and hygienic quality are the stage of lactation and milk management (Pikul & Wójtowski, 2008; Salimei & Fantuz, 2012). Changes in protein fractions in mares' milk have been discussed frequently in review papers (Malacarne, Martuzzi, Summer, & Mariani, 2002; Salimei & Fantuz, 2012; Uniacke-Lowe, Huppertz, & Fox, 2010). However, few studies concern the quantitative identification of individual whey proteins in mares' milk (Summer, Tirelli, Formaggioni, Malacarne, & Mariani, 2005). Also, the hygienic quality of mares' milk has not been yet investigated comprehensively (Centoducati, Maggiolino, De Palo, & Tateo, 2012; Danków, Wójtowski, Pikul, Niżnikowski, & Cais-Sokolińska, 2006; Kulisa, Makieła, & Hofman, 2010; Pecka, Dobrzański, Zachwieja, Szulc, & Czyż, 2012). In cited literature somatic cell count (SCC) was the only parameter describing hygienic status of mares' milk. Moreover, it is difficult to find data on total bacteria count (TBC) and SCC of machine milked mares' milk (Caroprese et al., 2007). Therefore, the aim of the present study was to determine the whey protein profile, SCC and TBC as well as chemical composition of late lactation machine milked mares' milk.

Section snippets

Animals, feeding and milk sample collection

The experiment was carried out on late lactation milk obtained from 11 Polish Cold Blooded Horses (CBHs) mares reared at a dairy mare farm in the Wielkopolska region of Western Poland. Mares and foals spent 5–7 h outdoors daily, while at night they were kept in pens of 16 m2. All mares were pregnant, in the late stage of lactation, between 141 and 210 days post partum. Age of experimental animals ranged from 7 to 14 years. The average bodyweight of mares was 703 kg. Milk samples were collected

Results and discussion

Table 1 presents the results of analyses for chemical composition, some physico-chemical characteristics, SCC, TBC and the whey protein profile in milk of CBHs mares in their late stage of lactation.

In the whey protein profile, expressed as a percentage of the total sum of six whey proteins, the most abundantly represented whey proteins were BLG and ALA with means of 29.2% and 25.4%, respectively.

Protein composition of mares' milk differs from that of milk produced by other dairy animals;

Conclusions

The results obtained in this study revealed that late lactation milk of mares of the Polish Cold Blooded breed consists of 9.5% total solids, including 1.6% total protein, 0.4% fat and 6.9% lactose. Moreover, our investigation confirmed that it is characterised by high contents of lactoferrin, lysozyme and immunoglobulins and by very low numbers of somatic cells and total bacteria count. These results indicate that mares of the Polish Cold Blooded Horse breed can be used to produce milk with a

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