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Nutrients Feb 2020Human breast milk is well known as the ideal source of nutrition during early life, ensuring optimal growth during infancy and early childhood. Breast milk is also the... (Review)
Review
Human breast milk is well known as the ideal source of nutrition during early life, ensuring optimal growth during infancy and early childhood. Breast milk is also the source of many unique and dynamic bioactive components that play a key role in the development of the immune system. These bioactive components include essential microbes, human milk oligosaccharides (HMOs), immunoglobulins, lactoferrin and dietary polyunsaturated fatty acids. These factors all interact with intestinal commensal bacteria and/or immune cells, playing a critical role in establishment of the intestinal microbiome and ultimately influencing intestinal inflammation and gut health during early life. Exposure to breast milk has been associated with a decreased incidence and severity of necrotizing enterocolitis (NEC), a devastating disease characterized by overwhelming intestinal inflammation and high morbidity among preterm infants. For this reason, breast milk is considered a protective factor against NEC and aberrant intestinal inflammation common in preterm infants. In this review, we will describe the key microbial, immunological, and metabolic components of breast milk that have been shown to play a role in the mechanisms of intestinal inflammation and/or NEC prevention.
Topics: Female; Gastrointestinal Microbiome; Humans; Infant; Infant, Newborn; Inflammation; Intestines; Milk, Human
PubMed: 32102231
DOI: 10.3390/nu12020581 -
Nutrients Aug 2021Human milk oligosaccharides (HMOs) are non-digestible and structurally diverse complex carbohydrates that are highly abundant in human milk. To date, more than 200... (Review)
Review
Human milk oligosaccharides (HMOs) are non-digestible and structurally diverse complex carbohydrates that are highly abundant in human milk. To date, more than 200 different HMO structures have been identified. Their concentrations in human milk vary according to various factors such as lactation period, mother's genetic secretor status, and length of gestation (term or preterm). The objective of this review is to assess and rank HMO concentrations from healthy mothers throughout lactation at a global level. To this aim, published data from pooled (secretor and non-secretor) human milk samples were used. When samples were reported as secretor or non-secretor, means were converted to a pooled level, using the reported mean of approximately 80/20% secretor/non-secretor frequency in the global population. This approach provides an estimate of HMO concentrations in the milk of an average, healthy mother independent of secretor status. Mean concentrations of HMOs were extracted and categorized by pre-defined lactation periods of colostrum (0-5 days), transitional milk (6-14 days), mature milk (15-90 days), and late milk (>90 days). Further categorizations were made by gestational length at birth, mother's ethnicity, and analytical methodology. Data were excluded if they were from preterm milk, unknown sample size and mothers with any known disease status. A total of 57 peer-reviewed articles reporting individual HMO concentrations published between 1996 and 2020 were included in the review. Pooled HMO means reported from 31 countries were analyzed. In addition to individual HMO concentrations, 12 articles reporting total HMO concentrations were also analyzed as a basis for relative HMO abundance. Total HMOs were found as 17.7 g/L in colostrum, 13.3 g/L in transitional milk, and 11.3 g/L in mature milk. The results show that HMO concentrations differ largely for each individual HMO and vary with lactation stages. For instance, while 2'-FL significantly decreased from colostrum (3.18 g/L ± 0.9) to late milk (1.64 g/L ± 0.67), 3-FL showed a significant increase from colostrum (0.37 g/L ± 0.1) to late milk (0.92 g/L ± 0.5). Although pooled human milk contains a diverse HMO profile with more than 200 structures identified, the top 10 individual HMOs make up over 70% of total HMO concentration. In mature pooled human milk, the top 15 HMOs in decreasing order of magnitude are 2'-FL, LNDFH-I (DFLNT), LNFP-I, LNFP-II, LNT, 3-FL, 6'-SL, DSLNT, LNnT, DFL (LDFT), FDS-LNH, LNFP-III, 3'-SL, LST c, and TF-LNH.
Topics: Colostrum; Female; Humans; Lactation; Maternal Nutritional Physiological Phenomena; Milk, Human; Oligosaccharides; Pregnancy
PubMed: 34444897
DOI: 10.3390/nu13082737 -
Nutrients Mar 2021Breast milk is an unbeatable food that covers all the nutritional requirements of an infant in its different stages of growth up to six months after birth. In addition,... (Review)
Review
Breast milk is an unbeatable food that covers all the nutritional requirements of an infant in its different stages of growth up to six months after birth. In addition, breastfeeding benefits both maternal and child health. Increasing knowledge has been acquired regarding the composition of breast milk. Epidemiological studies and epigenetics allow us to understand the possible lifelong effects of breastfeeding. In this review we have compiled some of the components with clear functional activity that are present in human milk and the processes through which they promote infant development and maturation as well as modulate immunity. Milk fat globule membrane, proteins, oligosaccharides, growth factors, milk exosomes, or microorganisms are functional components to use in infant formulas, any other food products, nutritional supplements, nutraceuticals, or even for the development of new clinical therapies. The clinical evaluation of these compounds and their commercial exploitation are limited by the difficulty of isolating and producing them on an adequate scale. In this work we focus on the compounds produced using milk components from other species such as bovine, transgenic cattle capable of expressing components of human breast milk or microbial culture engineering.
Topics: Child Development; Female; Glycolipids; Glycoproteins; Humans; Infant; Infant Nutritional Physiological Phenomena; Infant, Newborn; Lipid Droplets; Milk Proteins; Milk, Human
PubMed: 33810073
DOI: 10.3390/nu13031026 -
Gut Microbes 2023Human milk oligosaccharides (HMOs) are the third most important solid component in human milk and act in tandem with other bioactive components. Individual HMO levels...
Human milk oligosaccharides (HMOs) are the third most important solid component in human milk and act in tandem with other bioactive components. Individual HMO levels and distribution vary greatly between mothers by multiple variables, such as secretor status, race, geographic region, environmental conditions, season, maternal diet, and weight, gestational age and mode of delivery. HMOs improve the gastrointestinal barrier and also promote a bifidobacterium-rich gut microbiome, which protects against infection, strengthens the epithelial barrier, and creates immunomodulatory metabolites. HMOs fulfil a variety of physiologic functions including potential support to the immune system, brain development, and cognitive function. Supplementing infant formula with HMOs is safe and promotes a healthy development of the infant revealing benefits for microbiota composition and infection prevention. Because of limited data comparing the effect of non-human oligosaccharides to HMOs, it is not known if HMOs offer an additional clinical benefit over non-human oligosaccharides. Better knowledge of the factors influencing HMO composition and their functions will help to understand their short- and long-term benefits.
Topics: Female; Humans; Infant; Milk, Human; Gastrointestinal Microbiome; Oligosaccharides; Mothers; Microbiota
PubMed: 36929926
DOI: 10.1080/19490976.2023.2186115 -
Nutrients Oct 2020Preterm infants are a vulnerable population at risk of intestinal dysbiosis. The newborn microbiome is dominated by species, though abnormal microbial colonization can... (Review)
Review
Preterm infants are a vulnerable population at risk of intestinal dysbiosis. The newborn microbiome is dominated by species, though abnormal microbial colonization can occur by exogenous factors such as mode of delivery, formula feeding, and exposure to antibiotics. Therefore, preterm infants are predisposed to sepsis and necrotizing enterocolitis (NEC), a fatal gastrointestinal disorder, due to an impaired intestinal barrier, immature immunity, and a dysbiotic gut microbiome. Properties of human milk serve as protection in the prevention of NEC. Human milk oligosaccharides (HMOs) and the microbiome of breast milk are immunomodulatory components that provide intestinal homeostasis through regulation of the microbiome and protection of the intestinal barrier. Enteral probiotic supplements have been trialed to evaluate their impact on establishing intestinal homeostasis. Here, we review the protective role of HMOs, probiotics, and synbiotic combinations in protecting a vulnerable population from the pathogenic features associated with necrotizing enterocolitis.
Topics: Dysbiosis; Eating; Enterocolitis, Necrotizing; Female; Gastrointestinal Microbiome; Homeostasis; Humans; Infant Nutritional Physiological Phenomena; Infant, Newborn; Infant, Premature; Intestines; Male; Milk, Human; Oligosaccharides; Probiotics; Risk
PubMed: 33036184
DOI: 10.3390/nu12103052 -
Nutrients Mar 2020Human milk is uniquely tailored to meet infants' specific nutritional requirements [...].
Human milk is uniquely tailored to meet infants' specific nutritional requirements [...].
Topics: Breast Feeding; Female; Humans; Infant; Infant Nutritional Physiological Phenomena; Lactation; Milk, Human
PubMed: 32224879
DOI: 10.3390/nu12040899 -
Annals of Nutrition & Metabolism 2016Human milk banks play an essential role by providing human milk to infants who would otherwise not be able to receive human milk. The largest group of recipients are... (Review)
Review
Human milk banks play an essential role by providing human milk to infants who would otherwise not be able to receive human milk. The largest group of recipients are premature infants who derive very substantial benefits from it. Human milk protects premature infants from necrotizing enterocolitis and from sepsis, two devastating medical conditions. Milk banks collect, screen, store, process, and distribute human milk. Donating women usually nurse their own infants and have a milk supply that exceeds their own infants' needs. Donor women are carefully selected and are screened for HIV-1, HIV-2, human T-cell leukemia virus 1 and 2, hepatitis B, hepatitis C, and syphilis. In the milk bank, handling, storing, processing, pooling, and bacterial screening follow standardized algorithms. Heat treatment of human milk diminishes anti-infective properties, cellular components, growth factors, and nutrients. However, the beneficial effects of donor milk remain significant and donor milk is still highly preferable in comparison to formula.
Topics: Food, Fortified; History, 20th Century; History, 21st Century; Humans; Infant Nutritional Physiological Phenomena; Infant, Newborn; Infant, Premature; Milk Banks; Milk, Human
PubMed: 28103607
DOI: 10.1159/000452821 -
Nutrients May 2023Osteopontin (OPN) is a multifunctional protein found in all vertebrates. OPN is expressed in many different cell types, and is consequently found in most tissues and... (Review)
Review
Osteopontin (OPN) is a multifunctional protein found in all vertebrates. OPN is expressed in many different cell types, and is consequently found in most tissues and physiological secretions. OPN is involved in a multitude of biological processes, such as activation and regulation of the immune system; biomineralization; tissue-transformative processes, including growth and development of the gut and brain; interaction with bacteria; and many more. OPN is found in the highest concentrations in milk, where it is believed to initiate and regulate developmental, immunological and physiological processes in infants who consume milk. Processes for the isolation of bovine OPN for use in infant formula have been developed, and in recent years, many studies have investigated the effects of the intake of milk OPN. The purpose of this article is to review and compare existing knowledge about the structure and function of milk OPN, with a particular focus on the effects of milk OPN on human health and disease.
Topics: Infant; Humans; Animals; Cattle; Milk; Osteopontin; Infant Formula; Brain; Milk, Human
PubMed: 37299387
DOI: 10.3390/nu15112423 -
Nutrients Apr 2019Breastfeeding is the very means by which humans have thrived and developed as a species [...].
Breastfeeding is the very means by which humans have thrived and developed as a species [...].
Topics: Adult; Breast Feeding; Female; Humans; Lactation; Milk, Human
PubMed: 30970568
DOI: 10.3390/nu11040802 -
Annals of Nutrition & Metabolism 2016
Topics: Breast Feeding; Humans; Infant Formula; Infant, Newborn; Infant, Premature; Lipids; Milk Banks; Milk Proteins; Milk, Human; Oligosaccharides
PubMed: 28103606
DOI: 10.1159/000453596