Therapeutic Applications of Human and Bovine Colostrum in the Treatment of Gastrointestinal Diseases and Distinctive Cancer Types: The Current Evidence

Abstract

The incidence of gastrointestinal disorders (GID) and cancers is escalating all over the world. Limited consumption of colostrum by newborns not only weakens the immune system but also predisposes infants to microbial infections. Colostrum is nature’s perfect food, sometimes referred to as the ‘elixir of life’. Breast-fed infants have a lower incidence of GI tract infections than infants fed formula or cow’s milk. As per WHO statistics, cancer is the most prevalent disease globally and causes 9.6 million deaths worldwide. The current strategies for treating cancer include chemotherapy, radiation, and surgery. However, chemotherapy and radiation exposure are usually associated with serious long-term side effects and deterioration in the quality of life (QOL) of patients. Furthermore, the hospitalization and medication costs for treating cancers are exorbitant and impose high economic burden on healthcare systems. People are desperately looking for cost-effective and affordable alternative therapies for treating GID and cancers. Therefore, there is an urgent need for clinically evaluating the anticancer compounds isolated from plants and animals. Such therapies would not only be economical and have fewer side effects, but also help to improve the QOL of cancer patients. Recently, bovine colostrum (BC) has caught the attention of many investigators to explore its anticancer potential in humans. BC impregnated dressings are highly effective in treating chronic wounds and diabetic foot ulcer. BC is rich in lactoferrin, a glycoprotein with strong antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, anti-cancer, and anti-microbial properties. Intravaginal application of BC tablets is effective in causing the regression of low-grade cervical intraepithelial neoplasia. The underlying mechanisms of BC at cellular, genetic, and molecular levels remain to be ascertained. Oral BC supplement is well-tolerated, but some people may experience problems such as flatulence and nausea. Well-designed, randomized, placebo-controlled, clinical trials are needed to access the therapeutic potential, long-term safety, and optimal doses of BC products. This review is aimed to highlight the anticancer potential of BC and its components, and the therapeutic applications of BC supplements in treating gastrointestinal diseases in children and adults. We also discuss the health promotion benefits and therapeutic potential of BC nutraceuticals in reducing the incidence of non-communicable diseases.

Bovine Colostrum: Its Constituents and Uses

“… Ranges are shown where available. Values were obtained from refs [ 15 , 23 , 40 , 41 , 42 , 43 , 44 , 45 ]. …”

Potential Benefits of Bovine Colostrum in Pediatric Nutrition and Health

“…Bovine IgG can also bind to the human Fc receptor with higher affinity than human IgG [ 61 ]. The specificity of BC IgG for pathogens mainly present in humans can be optimized by pathogen-specific vaccination of cows prior to collection of milk during lactation to produce ‘hyper-immune colostrum’ [ 20 , 62 ], as discussed further below. The applicability of bovine IgG as a medical supplement has also been developed by using serum-derived bovine immunoglobulin (SBI) that is enriched with >50% IgG.…”

“…One of the most extensively studied applications of BC is treatment of gut infections in children, including rotavirus, enteropathogenic and enterotoxigenic E. coli, Shigella , and Helicobacter pylori infections (for detailed reviews, see References [ 19 , 23 , 62 ]). Most of these studies have been conducted by using hyperimmune BC, which is produced by immunizing cows with select pathogens or toxins prior to lactation, with the intention to obtain BC with enriched titers of pathogen- or antigen-specific IgG antibodies.…”

“…In other placebo-controlled studies, children infected with Shighella were treated with hyperimmune BC with one study showing a reduction in stool frequency [ 197 ] and another study no effect [ 198 ]. Studies in adults and pathogen challenge studies with Clostridium difficile , ETEC, and Cryptosporidium parvum showed that hyperimmune BC products can indeed reduce diarrhea and the presence of pathogens in stool [ 19 , 62 ].…”

A Neuroprotective Bovine Colostrum Attenuates Apoptosis in Dexamethasone-Treated MC3T3-E1 Osteoblastic Cells

“…Antioxidant components of colostrum, such as the iron-binding protein lactoferrin, the colostral component similar to ascorbate [ 16 ], glutathione peroxidase, catalase [ 17 ], and proline-rich polypeptide (PRP) complex known as colostrinin [ 18 , 19 ], among others, have been shown to prevent oxidative cell damage both in osteoblast and neurons. Furthermore, in vitro modulation of cell proliferation/differentiation and apoptosis has been described by colostrum constituents such as ribonucleosides [ 20 ], colostrinin [ 21 ], insulin-like growth factor 1 (IGF-1) [ 22 , 23 ], growth hormone (GH), platelet-derived growth factor (PDGF) [ 24 ], insulin [ 25 ], leptin [ 26 ], unsaturated fatty acids and calcium [ 27 ] and lactoferrin [ 28 ].…”