Journal
JOURNAL OF PEDIATRIC GASTROENTEROLOGY AND NUTRITION
Volume 39, Issue 5, Pages 499-503Publisher
LIPPINCOTT WILLIAMS & WILKINS
DOI: 10.1097/00005176-200411000-00010
Keywords
glycoconjugates; human milk; lactational stages; sialic acids
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Objectives: The protective effect of human milk against infection is well known. Several non-immunologic components, including complex carbohydrates, have been described. The present study was undertaken to determine the sialic acid distribution in different milk fractions (complex carbohydrates). Methods: Milk samples from 12 Spanish women at three different lactational stages (colostrum, transitional milk and mature milk) were analyzed. Total and glycoprotein-bound, oligosaccharide-bound, casein-bound, and lipid-bound sialic acids were determined. Results: Sialic acids from human milk are mainly bound to oligosaccharides and only a small amount is present bound to glycoproteins or in the free form. All the fractions analyzed showed a similar trend: sialic acids decrease rapidly along lactation. Casein-bound sialic acid does not follow this trend. We detected the presence of an O-acetylated species of N-acetylneuraminic acid. Conclusions: In human milk from Spanish women we observed slightly different values than those previously reported. This could be a result of population differences but nutritional or methodological aspects can not be discarded.
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