One humped camel (Camelus dromedarius) breeds, indigenous to India, have been shown to have good genetic potential to produce milk. Camel milk not only is cost-effective in terms of feed conversion but also has additional advantage of longer lactation period and unique adaptation mechanisms for warm arid and semiarid regions. The key features of camel milk in comparison with other milk are low fat with high content of unsaturated and long-chain fatty acid. The proteins are rich in lactoferrin and lysozymes, but deficient in b-lactoglobulin. It has higher percentage of total salts, free calcium, protective proteins and vitamin C, and some of the microminerals, viz iron, copper and zinc. Physicochemical properties of camel milk are also unique and useful for food processing. The shelf life of raw camel milk is 8-9 h, which can be extended up to 18-20 h through activation of camel lactoperoxidase system. Heat stability of camel milk is shown to be highest at pH 6.8, and it ferments relatively slowly compared to the cattle milk. The camel milk is successfully processed for producing a variety of products, such as fermented milk ('lassi'), soft cheese, flavored milk and 'kulfee' (a kind of ice cream). Camel milk has been traditionally used in different regions of the world as natural adjuvant for managing a variety of human diseases.

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The aim of this work was to investigate the enzymatic hydrolysis of whole casein from camel milk with proteolytic enzymes, viz. alcalase, α-chymotrypsin and papain, and to assess the antioxidant activity of hydrolysates. Casein powder was reconstituted (5% TS) and the selected enzymes were added at 1:100 (enzyme/substrate). Hydrolysis was carried out for 6 h at 55°C for alcalase and papain and 37°C for α-chymotrypsin, and samples were drawn at 2-h interval. The hydrolysates were analysed for pH, degree of hydrolysis (DH) and antioxidant activities, viz. 2, 2′-azinobis (3-ethylbenzthiazoline-6-sulphonic acid) (ABTS), 2, 2′-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) and ferric reducing antioxidant power (FRAP) assay. The decrease in pH of the hydrolysates was observed with the progress of hydrolysis time, and as compared to alcalase, the rate of pH decrease was higher for α-chymotrypsin and papain. The DH increased significantly (P<0.05) up to 6 h on hydrolysis with alcalase and papain, whereas with chymotrypsinolysis, DH increased significantly (P<0.05) up to 4 h; thereafter, a non-significant increase was observed. The antioxidant activity assessed by ABTS, DPPH and FRAP assay increased significantly (P<0.05) with the increase in hydrolysis time as well as the degree of hydrolysis. The chymotrypsinolysis exhibited higher antioxidant activity as compared to alcalase and papain. The results obtained in this study suggested that camel milk casein could be used as an ingredient in nutraceuticals or health-oriented foods.

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Positive selection for inherited mutations in breast and ovarian cancer predisposing genes, BRCA1 and BRCA2, may contribute to the high frequency of BRCA mutations among the Ashkenazi Jewish population. Impact of BRCA mutations on fertility has not been generally explored in epidemiologic studies. There are reports of distorted sex ratios in BRCA carrier families but these findings have been attributed to bias. We investigated the effect of BRCA mutations on female fertility and offspring sex ratio in a study of 260 Ashkenazi Jewish women with ovarian cancer and 331 controls, unselected for age or family history of the disease. Pregnancy success was similar for 96 mutation carrier (0.84) and 164 noncarrier cases (0.87) and controls (0.83). After adjusting for covariates, there were no significant differences between BRCA carrier and noncarrier cases and controls with regards to fertility, despite lower pregnancy rates among all cases compared to controls (P = 0.0049). Male/female sex ratios were significantly lower among offspring of carriers (0.71) than offspring of noncarriers (0.95) or those of the controls (0.99). Comparisons among the three groups yielded statistically significant distortion against males among the offspring of known and obligate BRCA carriers compared to noncarriers (OR = 0.74, 95% CI:0.55–0.99) and controls (OR = 0.71, 95% CI:0.54–0.94). In conclusion, we did not find evidence for an effect of BRCA mutations on female fertility. We found a significant excess of females among the offspring of female carriers of BRCA1 and BRCA2 mutations. Potential contribution of observed sex ratio distortions to positive selection for BRCA mutations may warrant further investigation.