Immune-modulating properties of horse milk administered to mice sensitized to cow milk

Publication date: December 2016
Source:Journal of Dairy Science, Volume 99, Issue 12
Author(s): J. Fotschki, A.M. Szyc, J.M. Laparra, L.H. Markiewicz, B. Wróblewska
The aim of this study was to examine immune adaptive changes, the expression of innate biomarkers and variations in intestinal microbiota composition after horse-milk administration in BALB/c mice, which were sensitized intraperitoneally using cow β-lactoglobulin and α-casein with aluminum adjuvant. We measured serum antibody IgE levels and the expression of MCP-1, IL-4, and TNF-α in duodenal samples. Changes in immune cell populations in peripheral blood were quantified using flow cytometry, and intestinal microbiota composition was assessed using real-time PCR. We found that horse-milk administration decreased serum IgE levels in sensitized mice. The groups that received horse milk showed an increased population of regulatory T cells (CD4⁺Foxp3⁺). Horse-milk administration decreased the mRNA levels of IL-4 and resulted in higher transcripts of TLR-4 in all treatment groups; however, the levels of MCP-1, TNF-α, and TLR-2 were unaltered. After horse-milk treatment, we observed a positive effect, with increased numbers of intestinal Bifidobacterium spp. We observed immune-modulating properties of horse milk, but future studies should focus on testing horse-milk processing, such as fermentation and destroying most allergenic epitopes to continue research under clinical conditions.



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