Pregnancy-Related Proteins Detected by Their Biological Activities
Gábor N. Than, Hans Bohn, Dénes G. Szabó in Advances in Pregnancy-Related Protein Research, 2020
Lactoferrin is an iron-binding protein which occurs in higher concentrations in colostrum and milk. It has the electrophoretic mobility of a γ-globulin, a molecular weight of 82,600 and specifically binds two ferric atoms per molecule. It differs from serum transferrin in its immunological properties, conformation, and localization of the iron-binding sites; the binding constant of iron for human milk lactoferrin is nearly 300 times greater than that for serum transferrin. The concentration of lactoferrin in colostrum amounts to about 400 mg/dl. Despite its designation, lactoferrin is not specific to milk. It is secreted not only by the mammary glands, but also by the lacrimal, bronchial, and salivary glands, as well as the mucosal surface of the endometrium and seminal versicles (reviewed by Cejka).197 Lactoferrin also has been detected by immunochemical methods in protein fractions of the human placenta solubilized with 6 M urea. In the placenta, this protein thus appears to be bound to membranes.198
Nutritional and Medicinal Properties of Camel Milk
Mehwish Iqbal in Complementary and Alternative Medicinal Approaches for Enhancing Immunity, 2023
One of the studies explored the capability of lactoferrin from camel milk to impede the growth of cancer cells. This research has documented that 3–5 mg/ml (high concentrations) of lactoferrin from camel milk diminish the multiplication of HCT-116 cancer cells in the colon by approximately 56%. On the other hand, no considerable reduction of cell multiplication was observed at minimum concentrations, i.e. less than 1 mg. Lactoferrin (Figure 15.2) has also been demonstrated to have a range of biological properties, including antimicrobial activity (Tsuda & Sekine, 2000). Gader and Al-Haider (2016) reported that camel milk could eliminate lung, liver, leukaemia, glioma and colon cancer cells (Abdel Gader & Alhaider, 2016). The dynamic immunoglobulins of camel milk have the capacity to damage tumour cells (Levy et al., 2013). Furthermore, camel milk has blood-clot-dissolving (thrombolytic) activity, which decreases the synthesis of fibrin, thus decreasing the growth of tumour cells (Mohammadabadi, 2020).
Constituents of breastmilk and formula milk
Wendy Jones in Breastfeeding and Medication, 2013
Lactoferrin accounts for 10–15% of the total protein content of breastmilk. Human milk is lower in protein content than the milk of many other mammals. Lactoferrin and secretory immunoglobulin A (SigA) are as concerned with immunoprotection as they are with nutrition. Lactoferrin is resistant to digestion by gut enzymes and is found in the stools of breastfed infants. It is an iron-binding protein which mediates the absorption of iron by the baby from breastmilk, thereby reducing the levels of free iron in the blood. It is one of the main components of the immune system as in addition to iron transport it also has promotes antimicrobial activity by depriving bacterial flora from the iron, which is necessary for growth. Breastmilk has relatively low levels of iron but the presence of lactoferrin increases bio-availability. In comparison, artificial formula has five to six 31
Estimation of numbers of mature and immature neutrophils in blood by a novel, rapid and simple technology
Published in Scandinavian Journal of Clinical and Laboratory Investigation, 2021
Per Venge, Ann-Katrin Eriksson, Lena Moberg, Christer Peterson, Shengyuan Xu, Kerstin Hamberg, Martin Höglund
Myeloperoxidase is primarily contained in the primary, azurophil granules of neutrophils but also in monocytes [2,3]. The content in monocytes has been estimated to be about 50% of what is found in neutrophils. Thus, in rare cases with monocythemia the numbers of neutrophils may be overestimated by our novel technology. MPO deficiency is a rare genetic abnormality in which neutrophil counts may be underestimated [4]. Lactoferrin is not present in any other blood cell but neutrophils. However, as the name implies lactoferrin is found abundantly in breast milk and serves as an anti-bacterial principle in the milk [5]. Lactoferrin is present in the secondary, specific granules of neutrophils. The differences in the degree of correlations to neutrophil numbers with a much closer correlation for MPO than for Lactoferrin is probably a sign of two conditions. One is the fact that Lactoferrin is produced late in the myeloid cell development and subject to variable marrow transit times depending on the demand from the body [6]. Thus, in diseases such as bacterial infections, the transit time is shortened and the time to produce Lactoferrin goes down [7]. Myeloperoxidase on the other hand is produced already early during the myeloid development and much less affected by changes in marrow transit time. The second condition is the fact that secondary granules are secretory granules, meaning that mobilization of proteins from this class of granules is more responsive to external stimuli than from Myeloperoxidase containing primary granules [3].
The role of chitosan on oral delivery of peptide-loaded nanoparticle formulation
Published in Journal of Drug Targeting, 2018
Chun Y. Wong, Hani Al-Salami, Crispin R. Dass
Lactoferrin is a natural polypeptide in milk, which is well-documented with potent anti-microbial effects against bacteria, viruses, parasite and fungi [71]. Toxoplasma gondii is one of the deadly intracellular parasites that invades nucleated cell in human and animals, which cause toxoplasmosis and severe complications especially in pregnant women and immunocompromised patients [51]. Standard regime, such as sulfadiazine and pyrimethamine causes gastric-related problems, weight loss and headache [72]. In order to overcome the side-effects, alternative natural drugs, which can target the infected organs, modulate immune response and cause no side-effects, are preferred. A nanocapsule formulation (alginate/chitosan/calcium phosphate) was developed to load bovine lactoferrin for toxoplasmosis treatment [51]. The study found that the nanoformulation enhanced the stability of lactoferrin, increased reactive oxygen species (ROS) and cytokines (Th1) production in liver and spleen cells and reduced the number of infected macrophages in vitro. It was concluded that lactoferrin-loaded nanoparticles interrupted parasite multiplication and improved the lifespan of mice.
Development of an enzymatic method for the evaluation of protein deposition on contact lenses
Published in Biofouling, 2022
Simin Masoudi, Mark Willcox
The amount of lactoferrin on the surface of all lenses was similar to the total amount extracted, indicating the majority would have been surface-bound. The concentration of extracted lactoferrin as measured in the current study is similar to a previous report (Chow et al. 2009). No difference was found between the concentration of surface lactoferrin across the lens types. The concentration of total lactoferrin between the lens types was also the same except for Balafilcon A and Senofilcon A or Comfilcon A, with more being in the bulk of Balafilcon A. Even though, Balafilcon A has smaller average pore size than Senofilcon A, the number of pores on Balafilcon A is more than Senofilcon A (504 vs. 32) (Green et al. 2012; Lewandowska et al. 2015). The number, size and distribution of pores on each lens might play a role in the penetration of lactoferrin into the bulk of contact lenses (Garrett et al. 1998).
Related Knowledge Centers
- Globular Protein
- Milk
- Mucus
- Protein
- Granulocyte
- Glycoprotein
- Saliva
- Transferrin
- Tears
- Centroacinar Cell