The main objective of this review is to summarize the compositional characteristics and the health and functional properties of Mediterranean buffalo milk and whey derived from mozzarella cheese production. Several studies have investigated the composition of buffalo milk and in particular its fat, protein, and carbohydrates contents. These characteristics may change depending on the breed, feeding regime, and rearing system of the animals involved in the study, and also with the seasons. In particular, buffalo milk showed a higher nutritional value and higher levels of proteins, vitamins, and minerals when compared to milks produced by other animal species. Additionally, buffalo milk contains beneficial compounds such as gangliosides that can provide antioxidant protection and neuronal protection, and can improve bone, heart, and gastrointestinal health in humans.

In this work we report a lipidomics approach to study the effects of two diet systems on the composition of ovine milk. Milk from two groups of Sarda sheep grazing on 40% (P40) and 60% (P60) of pasture were analyzed by a UHPLC-QTOF-MS analytical platform and data submitted to multivariate statistical analysis. Pairwise partial least square discriminant analysis of the lipid profile of the data was carried out to classify samples and to find discriminant lipids. The two dietary groups were characterized by differences in triacylglycerols, phosphocholines and phosphatidylethanolamines levels. Discriminants of the P40 group were TG and PC containing in their backbone saturated medium chain FA thus suggesting greater de novo fatty synthesis in the mammary gland. On the other hand, the P60 group was characterized by TG and PC formed by unsaturated long chain FA originating from the diet or from lipid mobilization.

In this work, we report an analytical procedure to investigate the lipid compositions of sheep and goat milk. This approach is based on an ion mobility–high-resolution mass spectrometric method to facilitate the identification of complex lipid species and their regiochemistry. A common triacylglycerol profile was observed for sheep and goat milk samples, while a higher abundance of medium-chain fatty acids was observed at the sn-2 position for sheep milk. Furthermore, differences can be also observed in the levels of saturated and unsaturated fatty acids at the sn-2 position. In terms of lipid classes, goat milk showed higher levels of triacylglycerols, phosphatidylinositols and ether-linked phosphatidylethanolamines, while sheep milk showed higher levels of free fatty acids, lysophosphatidylethanolamines, lysophosphocholines and non-hydroxy fatty acid-dihydrosphingosine ceramides when compared with goat milk.