Diurnal Variations and within the Feed in Lactose and Oligosaccharides of Human Milk

Abstract

Variations of lactose and oligosaccharides in human milk were studied during the day and the feed, by dialysis, chromatography on Bio-gel P-2 column, paper chromatography, colorimetric analysis and gas chromatography. Progressive changes were found during the day, but not during the feed. A diurnal variation in milk lactose was seen, which was the inverse of the oligosaccharides. Significant negative correlations between lactose and oligosaccharides were seen in the afternoon and evening (p < 0.05). The minimal mean value of lactose at 19.00 h is 58.64 ± 5.28 g/l and the maximal mean values of oligosaccharides was 17.93 ± 2.28 g/l. The data are discussed with regard to other milk constituents and to their possible physiological relevance.

Milk composition and lactational output in the greater spear-nosed bat, Phyllostomus hastatus

“…Signi®cant advances have been made in recent years that consider stage of lactation, time of day, and (in the case of domestic animals) breed, in addition to interspeci®c differences. In humans, milk composition and yield may vary with time of day, stage of lactation, parity, age, diet, water intake, and throughout a nursing bout (Morrison 1952;Macy and Kelly 1961;Neville et al 1984;Brown et al 1986;Viverge et al 1986). Even so, values for milk composition and yield in humans and other mammals are usually presented as means.…”

Evolution of the circadian profile of human milk amino acids during breastfeeding

“…Other authors have also reported such circadian variations in different components of breast milk, where values may differ between day and night. This is the case for some minerals, such as calcium and magnesium, trace elements, such as zinc (Karra andKirksey 1998), copper, andiron (Picciano andGuthrie 1976), for some micronutrients, such as lactose, which has minimum values at 17:00 h (Viverge et al 1986), and for the essential amino acid tryptophan which shows a nocturnal acrophase (Cubero et al 2005). All these compounds are crucial for the optimal growth of the newborn.…”

Human milk oligosaccharides are associated with protection against diarrhea in breast-fed infants

“…8,9,13,14 The concentration of oligosaccharides in human milk also varies systematically over the course of lactation and diurnally. 8,9,15,16 …”

“…8,9,13,14 The concentration of oligosaccharides in human milk also varies systematically over the course of lactation and diurnally. 8,9,15,16 See editorial, p 283. Human milk oligosaccharides containing a 2-linked fucose inhibit binding to host cell ligands by Campylobacter jejuni, 17 common strains of caliciviruses, 18,19 and heat stable enterotoxin of Escherichia coli.…”