Investigating the properties of Lactoferrin and comparing its ‎amount in cow, sheep and goat milk

Lactoferrin is one of the milk proteins that has shown a wide range of physiological activities such as antibacterial, anti-protozoal, anti-fungal, anti-viral, anti-cancer, antioxidant, anti-inflammatory and immunomodulatory. In this study, lactoferrin was extracted and purified from cow, sheep and goat milk. HPLC analysis and determination of the concentration of these three extracted lactoferrins were performed. Antibacterial activity against Gram negative Escherichia coli and Salmonella typhi and gram positive Bacillus cereus and Staphylococcus aureus and antioxidant activity were investigated. The activity of lactoferrin against DPPH free radical was investigated. Also, lactoferrin activity was evaluated in neutral acidic and alkaline environments. The combination test with iron was also performed with FeNTA reagent. The findings showed that lactoferrin has the ability to inhibit two bacteria, Escherichia coli and Staphylococcus aureus. Also, the evaluation of lactoferrin activity in neutral acidic and alkaline environments showed that lactoferrin is more stable in alkaline environment than other environments. In the combination test with iron, the results indicated the combination of lactoferrin with iron. The percentage of free radical inhibition was equal to %4.49. Also, the results showed that the concentration of lactoferrin in goat's milk is higher than that of sheep's and cow's milk and its amount was equal to 131.66 μg/ml.