Amino Acid Composition of Breast Milk from Urban Chinese Mothers.
Human breast milk (BM) amino acid (AA) composition may be impacted by lactation stage or factors related to geographical location. The present cross-sectional study is aimed at assessing the temporal changes of BMAA over lactation stages in a large cohort of urban mothers in China. Four hundred fifty BM samples, collected in three Chinese cities covering eight months of lactation were analyzed for free (FAA) and total (TAA) AA by o-phthalaldehyde/ fluorenylmethylchloroformate (OPA/FMOC) derivatization. Concentrations and changes over lactation were aligned with previous reports. Both the sum and the individual TAA values significantly decreased during the first periods of lactation and then generally leveled off. Leucine and methionine were respectively the most and the least abundant indispensable amino acids across all the lactation stages, whereas glutamic acid + glutamine (Glx) was the most and cystine the least abundant dispensable AA. The contribution of FAA to TAA levels was less than 2%, except for free Glx, which was the most abundant FAA. In conclusion, the AA composition of the milk from our cohort of urban Chinese mothers was comparable to previous studies conducted in other parts of the world, suggesting that this is an evolutionary conserved trait largely independent of geographical, ethnic, or dietary factors.
Nestlé Research Center, Nestec Ltd., Lausanne 1000, Switzerland. clara.garcia@rdls.nestle.com.
Clara L
CL
Garcia-Rodenas
Nestlé Research Center, Nestec Ltd., Lausanne 1000, Switzerland. michael.affolter@rdls.nestle.com.
Michael
M
Affolter
Nestlé Health Sciences, Nestec Ltd., Epalinges 1066, Switzerland. gerard.vinyespares@nestle.com.
Gerard
G
Vinyes-Pares
Nestlé Research Center, Nestec Ltd., Lausanne 1000, Switzerland. carlosantonio.decastro@rdls.nestle.com.
Carlos A
CA
De Castro
Nestlé Research Center, Nestec Ltd., Lausanne 1000, Switzerland. leonidas.karagounis@rdls.nestle.com.
Leonidas G
LG
Karagounis
Department of Nutrition and Food Hygiene, School of Public Health, Peking University, Beijing 100191, China. zhangyumei@hsc.pku.edu.cn.
Yumei
Y
Zhang
Department of Social Medicine and Health Education, School of Public Health, Peking University, Beijing 100191, China. wpeiyu@bjmu.edu.cn.
Peiyu
P
Wang
Nestlé Research Center, Nestec Ltd., Lausanne 1000, Switzerland. sagar.thakkar@rdls.nestle.com.
Sagar K
SK
Thakkar
amino acids; breast milk; cross-sectional study; lactation period
Nutrients. 2016 Aug 17;8(8):
27548208
Am J Clin Nutr. 2003 Jun;77(6):1544S-1549S
12812152
Am J Clin Nutr. 2012 Apr;95(4):875-81
22357724
Am J Clin Nutr. 1977 Apr;30(4):499-507
557894
Clin Perinatol. 2002 Mar;29(1):65-96
11917740
Nutrients. 2013 Nov 26;5(12):4800-21
24288022
J Pediatr Gastroenterol Nutr. 2000 Nov;31(5):508-12
11144435
Am J Clin Nutr. 2014 Mar;99(3):718S-22S
24452233
Am J Clin Nutr. 2003 Jun;77(6):1537S-1543S
12812151
Asia Pac J Clin Nutr. 2010;19(3):344-9
20805078
Chin Med J (Engl). 2014;127(9):1721-5
24791881
J Nutr. 2001 Sep;131(9 Suppl):2505S-8S; discussion 2523S-4S
11533302
Anal Biochem. 1989 May 1;178(2):227-32
2751083
Am J Clin Nutr. 2013 Aug;98(2):521S-8S
23842459
J Nutr. 2000 Jul;130(7):1835S-40S
10867060
J Nutr. 2010 Dec;140(12):2227-32
20980653
J Zhejiang Univ Sci B. 2006 Feb;7(2):90-8
16421963
J Hum Lact. 2014 May;30(2):136-42
24646683
Ying Yang Xue Bao. 1989 Sep;11(3):227-32
12283956
J AOAC Int. 2005 May-Jun;88(3):877-87
16001866
J Anim Sci Biotechnol. 2013 Feb 27;4(1):7
23445937
J Nutr. 1996 Apr;126(4 Suppl):1115S-20S
8642443
Lancet. 1993 May 29;341(8857):1363-5
8098788
World Health Organ Tech Rep Ser. 2007;(935):1-265, back cover
18330140