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Triacylglycerol structure of human colostrum and mature milk
Author(s) -
Martin JeanCharles,
Bougnoux Philippe,
Antoine JeanMichel,
Lanson Monique,
Couet Charles
Publication year - 1993
Publication title -
lipids
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.601
H-Index - 120
eISSN - 1558-9307
pISSN - 0024-4201
DOI - 10.1007/bf02536059
Subject(s) - polyunsaturated fatty acid , palmitic acid , linoleic acid , colostrum , biochemistry , docosahexaenoic acid , chemistry , fatty acid , arachidonic acid , oleic acid , clinical chemistry , food science , biology , enzyme , antibody , immunology
Because triacylglycerol (TAG) structure influences the metabolic fate of its component fatty acids, we have examined human colostrum and mature milk TAG with particular attention to the location of the very long chain polyunsaturated fatty acid on the glycerol backbone. The analysis was based on the formation of various diacylglycerol species from human milk TAG upon chemical (Grignard degradation) or enzymatic degradation. The structure of the TAG was subsequently deduced from data obtained by gas chromatographic analysis of the fatty acid methyl esters in the diacylglycerol subfractions. The highly specific TAG structure observed was identical in mature milk and colostrum. The three major fatty acids (oleic, palmitic and linoleic acids) each showed a specific preference for a particular position within milk TAG: oleic acid for the sn ‐1 position, palmitic acid for the sn ‐2 position and linoleic acid for the sn ‐3 position. Linoleic and α‐linolenic acids exhibited the same pattern of distribution and they were both found primarily in the sn ‐3 (50%) and sn ‐1 (30%) positions. Their longer chain analogs, arachidonic and docosahexaenoic acids, were located in the sn ‐2 and sn ‐3 positions. These results show that polyunsaturated fatty acids are distributed within the TAG molecule of human milk in a highly specific fashion, and that in the first month of lactation the maturation of the mammary gland does not affect the milk TAG structure.