Fresh forage in dairy ass's ration: effect on milk fatty acid composition and flavours

The first studies on the quali-quantitative aspects of ass's milk have focussed the attention towards nutrition of human infants affected by multiple food intolerance (Carroccio et al., 2000). More recently, its use is studied also in cardiopathology prevention, in neonatal cerebral growth and in the regulation of the immuno-inflammatory system, where the fatty acids are directly implicated (Chiofalo et al., 2003)

Minor and potentially toxic trace elements in milk and blood serum of dairy donkeys

The aim of this trial was to study the concentration of Ti, V, As, Rb, Sr, Mo, Cd, Cs, and Pb in donkey milk and blood serum. One hundred twelve individual milk and blood serum samples were collected from 16 lactating donkeys (Martina-Franca-derived population; 6 to 12 yr old; 3 to 7 parities; average live weight 205.4kg; 32 to 58 d after foaling at the beginning of the trial) during a 3-mo-long experiment. The samples were analyzed for the aforementioned elements by inductively coupled plasma-mass spectrometry. Feedstuff and drinking water were also analyzed for the investigated elements. Data were processed by ANOVA for repeated measures. Average milk concentrations (±SD) of Ti, Rb, Sr, Mo, Cs, and Pb were 77.3 (±7.7), 339.1 (±82.1), 881.7 (±270.4), 4.5 (±1.6), 0.49 (±0.09), and 3.2 (±2.7) μg/L, respectively. More than 80% of samples were below the limit of detection for V, As, and Cd in milk and for Cd, and Pb in blood serum. The lower bound calculated for milk V, As, and Cd was 0.03μg/L for the 3 elements, the upper bound was calculated at 0.23, 0.10, and 0.31μg/L and the maximum value was observed at 0.54, 0.15, and 0.51μg/L, respectively. The average milk concentrations of Ti, Rb, Sr, Mo, and Cs were 600, 458, 346, 16, and 294%, respectively, than those of blood serum. Yet, Cs concentrations were in the same order of magnitude in milk and serum. Moderate to strong positive and significant correlation coefficients were observed between milk and blood serum concentrations for Ti, Rb, Sr, and Cs. The effect of the stage of lactation was significant for all the investigated elements in milk and blood serum, but most of the elements showed only small changes or inconsistent trends, and only the concentrations of Rb and Sr showed decreasing trends both in milk and blood serum. The relationship between milk and blood serum element concentrations indicates that the mammary gland plays a role in determining the milk concentrations of Mo, Ti, Rb, Sr, Mo, and Cs. In the current experimental conditions, in agreement with the low levels in drinking water and feedstuff, donkey milk concentration of potentially toxic elements was very low and did not raise health concerns for human consumption

Thyroid hormones in donkey blood and milk: correlations with milk yield and environmental temperatures

Thyroid hormones (TH) are the primary endocrine stimulators of non-shivering thermogenesis and are known to stimulate lactation. Triiodothyronine (T3) is the bioactive form, mainly derived by deiodination of thyroxine (T4), and the free quote (unbound to plasma proteins) is immediately bioavailable. This study aimed to evaluate potential relationships among TH in the blood, triiodothyronine in the milk (T3M), milk yield and environmental temperature in March to July for 8 lactating donkeys. Milk yield and blood TH concentrations changed significantly over time, whereas T3M was rather stable among individuals and not affected by time of sampling. Free T3 was not correlated with free T4 or with total TH in the blood, but was weakly correlated with T3M. No relationship was found between blood TH and milk yield, which was negatively correlated with T3M, thus the absolute quantity of bioactive hormone in milk secretion is maintained. Milk yield was positively correlated with the free/total T3 and free T3/free T4 ratios and, thus, with the relative quote of the circulating bioactive hormone. Circulating T3/T4 ratios were negatively correlated with environmental temperature. It is concluded that environmental temperature, in the range of the present study (-2 to 35 °C), does not significantly entrain thyroid gland activity, which is affected more by other factors, such as inter-individual variations and physiological status (i.e., stage of lactation). However, increases in environmental temperature most likely induced decreases in deiodinase activity at the peripheral tissue level, as indicated by the decrease in the T3/T4 ratios in the blood

Macro Minerals and Trace Elements in Milk of Dairy Buffaloes and Cows Reared in Mediterranean Areas

Aim of this study was to evaluate the differences in Ca, P, K, Na, Mg, Zn, Fe, Cu, Mn, Se, Mo, Co, Li, B, Ti, Rb, and Sr concentrations in milk from buffaloes and cows reared in the same farm in Mediterranean areas and fed diets including the same ingredients. Individual milk samples were obtained from 32 Mediterranean buffaloes and 29 Italian Friesian cows and samples of milk, dietary ingredients and drinking water were analyzed for the investigated chemical elements by inductively coupled plasma-mass spectrometry. Data about milk element concentrations were processed by one-way analysis of variance. Buffalo milk contains higher concentrations of Ca, P, Mg, Zn, Fe, Cu, B, Ti, and Sr, and lower concentrations of K, Na, Mo, Li, and Rb compared to cow milk, whereas milk from both species contains similar concentrations of Mn, Se, and Co. The concentrations of the investigated elements in the diet were similar for both species and the differences observed between buffalo and cow milk were not dependent on environmental factors

Major constituents, leptin, and non-protein nitrogen compounds in mares' colostrum and milk

Five Haflinger mares were hand-milked at 0 h (pre-suckle) and 6 h (postsuckle), 12, 24, 48, 72 and 96 h after parturition. Total solids, protein, fat, lactose, calculated gross energy content, leptin and non-protein nitrogen components (urea, alpha-amino nitrogen, creatinine and allantoin) were determined. The levels of the major constituents differed significantly in pre-suckle colostrum from subsequent samples. Leptin levels were the highest in whole (9 ng x mL(-1) of immunoreactive human equivalent HE +/- 0.48 ng x mL(-1), SEM) and skimmed (7.8 ng HE x mL(-1) +/- 0.52 ng x mL(-1), SEM) pre-suckle colostrum, declined sharply at 6 hours postpartum, and more slowly subsequently. Mean urea concentration was constant at around 5.0 mM, while a-amino N increased over the observation period and creatinine and allantoin decreased. These findings provide a further indication that mares' milk can be regarded as a functional food

Distribution of selected trace elements in the major fractions of donkey milk

The aim of this study was to evaluate the concentrations of Zn, Cu, Mn, Se, Mo, Co, Li, B, Ti, Cr, Rb, Sr, Cd, and Pb in donkey milk and their distribution in major milk fractions (i.e., fat, casein, whey proteins, and aqueous phase). Individual milk samples were provided by 16 clinically healthy lactating donkeys. Subsequent centrifugation, ultracentrifugation, and ultrafiltration were carried out to remove fat, casein, and whey proteins to obtain skim milk, a supernatant whey fraction, and the aqueous phase of milk, respectively. Concentrations of the elements were measured in whole milk and fractions by inductively coupled plasma-mass spectrometry, and the concentrations associated with fat, casein, and whey proteins were then calculated. The effect of removal of fat, casein, and whey proteins was determined by repeated-measures ANOVA. The fat fraction of donkey milk carried a small (∼4.5% to 13.5%) but significant proportion of Mo, Co, Ti, Cr, and Sr. The casein fraction in donkey milk carried almost all milk Zn, a majority of Cu and Mn, and most of Mo, Ti, and Sr. Relevant proportions, between 20% and 36%, of Se, Co, and Cr were also associated with caseins. The majority of Se, Co, Li, B, Cr, and Rb, and relevant proportions of Mn, Mo, Ti, and Sr were found in soluble form (ultracentrifuged samples) and distributed between whey proteins and the aqueous phase of milk (ultrafiltered samples). Whey proteins in donkey milk carried the majority of milk Se and Co. All Li and B was present in the aqueous phase of milk, which also contained most Rb and Cr, and 17% to 42% of Mn, Se, Mo, Co, Ti, and Sr

The Protective Effect of a Unique Mix of Polyphenols and Micronutrients against Neurodegeneration Induced by an In Vitro Model of Parkinson’s Disease

: Parkinson's disease (PD) is second-most common disabling neurological disorder worldwide, and unfortunately, there is not yet a definitive way to prevent it. Polyphenols have been widely shown protective efficacy against various PD symptoms. However, data on their effect on physio-pathological mechanisms underlying this disease are still lacking. In the present work, we evaluated the activity of a mixture of polyphenols and micronutrients, named A5+, in the murine neuroblastoma cell line N1E115 treated with 6-Hydroxydopamine (6-OHDA), an established neurotoxic stimulus used to induce an in vitro PD model. We demonstrate that a pretreatment of these cells with A5+ causes significant reduction of inflammation, resulting in a decrease in pro-inflammatory cytokines (IFN-γ, IL-6, TNF-α, and CXCL1), a reduction in ROS production and activation of extracellular signal-regulated kinases (ERK)1/2, and a decrease in apoptotic mechanisms with the related increase in cell viability. Intriguingly, A5+ treatment promoted cellular differentiation into dopaminergic neurons, as evident by the enhancement in the expression of tyrosine hydroxylase, a well-established dopaminergic neuronal marker. Overall, these results demonstrate the synergic and innovative efficacy of A5+ mixture against PD cellular pathological processes, although further studies are needed to clarify the mechanisms underlying its beneficial effect

The role of MTHFR polymorphisms in the risk of lipedema

Objective: This study examines the role of MTHFR gene polymorphism (rs1801133) in women with lipedema (LIPPY) body composition parameters compared to a control group (CTRL). Subjects and methods: We carried out a study on a sample of 45 LIPPY and 50 women as a CTRL. Body composition parameters were examined by Dual-energy X-ray Absorptiometry (DXA). A genetic test was performed for the MTHFR polymorphism (rs1801133, 677C>T) using a saliva sample for LIPPY and CTRL groups. Mann-Whitney tests evaluated statistically significant differences between four groups (carriers and non-carriers of the MTHFR polymorphism for LIPPY and CTRL groups) on anthropometric/body composition parameters to identify patterns. Results: LIPPY showed significantly higher (p<0.05) anthropometric parameters (weight, BMI, waist, abdominal, hip circumferences) and lower waist/hip ratio (p<0.05) compared to the CTRL group. The association between the polymorphism alleles related to the rs1801133 MTHFR gene and the body composition values LIPPY carriers (+) showed an increase in fat tissue of legs and fat region of legs percentage, arm's fat mass (g), leg's fat mass (g), and leg's lean mass (g) (p<0.05) compared to CTRL (+). Lean/fat arms and lean/fat legs were lower (p<0.05) in LIPPY (+) than in CTRL (+). In the LIPPY (+), the risk of developing the lipedema disease was 2.85 times higher (OR=2.85; p<0.05; 95% confidence interval = 0.842-8.625) with respect to LIPPY (-) and CTRL. Conclusions: The presence or absence of MTHFR polymorphism offers predictive parameters that could better characterize women with lipedema based on the association between body composition and MTHFR presence

Influence of FTO rs9939609 and Mediterranean diet on body composition and weight loss: a randomized clinical trial

Background The Mediterranean diet (MeD) plays a key role in the prevention of obesity. Among the genes involved in obesity, the Fat mass and obesity-associated gene (FTO) is one of the most known, but its interaction with MeD remained uncertain so far. Methods We carried out a study on a sample of 188 Italian subjects, analyzing their FTO rs9939609 alleles, and the difference in body composition between the baseline and a 4-weeks nutritional intervention. The sample was divided into two groups: the control group of 49 subjects, and the MeD group of 139 subjects. Results We found significant relations between MeD and both variation of total body fat (ΔTBFat) (p = 0.00) and gynoid body fat (p = 0.04). ∆TBFat (kg) demonstrated to have a significant relation with the interaction diet-gene (p = 0.04), whereas FTO was associated with the variation of total body water (p = 0.02). Conclusions MeD demonstrated to be a good nutritional treatment to reduce the body fat mass, whereas data about FTO remain uncertain. Confirming or rejecting the hypothesis of FTO and its influence on body tissues during nutritional treatments is fundamental to decide whether its effect has to be taken into consideration during both development of dietetic plans and patients monitoring. Trial Registration ClinicalTrials.gov Id: NCT01890070. Registered 01 July 2013, https://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT0189007