LAUSR

BACKGROUND Milk derived protein hydrolysates of late have generated a great deal of interest due to their numerous beneficial health effects. However, comparative studies on protein hydrolysates from different dairy species, their production, characterization and their respective bioactivities are limited. In the present study, skimmed milk from both major and minor dairy species were hydrolyzed with alcalase, and their protein profile was studied by tricine polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis and reverse phase-high protein liquid chromatography (RP-HPLC). The antioxidant and invitro immunostimulatory properties were determined. RESULTS The Fe2+ chelation activity was highest in hydrolysates of whey (25.00 ± 0.32 mM), casein (25.14 ± 0.34 mM), colostrum (24.52 ± 0.28 mM), and skimmed cattle milk (24.21 ± 0.26 mM). The DPPH scavenging and ABTS activities were lowest in skimmed donkey milk protein hydrolysates (IC50 : 5.37 ± 0.05 mg/mL and 151.59 ± 2.1 mg/mL). Production of nitric oxide and phagocytosis activity in RAW 264.7 was significantly higher among whey and buffalo skimmed milk protein hydrolysate treated groups as compared to the untreated group. The incorporation of whey protein hydrolysate and skimmed buffalo milk protein hydrolysate were acceptable upto 10% in beverage mix. CONCLUSION This study gives a comparative evaluation on antioxidative and immunomodulatory properties of different skimmed milk protein hydrolysates and their potential applications as ingredients in pediatric, geriatric and other health-promoting foods. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.