Effect of dietary bovine colostrum on the responses of immune cells to stimulation with bacterial lipopolysaccharide

The therapeutic effect of bovine colostrum on 5-Fluorouracil-Induced oral mucositis in rats

OBJECTIVE

The purpose of this study is to determine the effect of bovine colostrum on 5-fluorouracil-induced oral mucositis in rats.

MATERIAL AND METHOD

Twenty-four male Wistar albino rats were randomly divided into three groups as the Preoperative, Postoperative and Control groups. All rats were administered 100 mg/kg 5-fluorouracil on the first day and 65 mg/kg 5-FU on the third day intraperitoneally. On the third and fifth days, a superficial incision was created on the mucosa of the right cheek pouch. The oral mucositis protocol was applied in the control group. The preoperative group was given bovine colostrum by gavage from the 1st day of the 5-FU procedure to the 5th day, while the postoperative group was given bovine colostrum by gavage from the 5th day to the 10th day.

RESULTS

According to the scoring made in terms of secondary infections, two cases in the control group had moderate infections, and two cases in each of the preoperative and postoperative groups had severe infections. The difference between the control group and the preoperative and postoperative groups was significant (p=0.020). There was no significant difference between the preoperative and postoperative groups. While the degree of wound healing in the postoperative group was higher than the other groups, the difference was not statistically significant.

CONCLUSION

No significant effect of bovine colostrum on the healing of oral mucositis was observed. Additional studies are needed to shed light on the pathogenic inflammatory mechanisms in mucositis and the prophylactic and therapeutic roles of antioxidants.

Pharmacological activities and potential use of bovine colostrum for peptide-based radiopharmaceuticals: A review

Bovine colostrum (BC) is the initial milk produced by cows after giving birth. It has been used to treat human diseases, such as infections, inflammations, and cancers. Accumulating evidence suggests that bovine lactoferrin and bovine antibodies seem to be the most important bioactive constituents in BC. Thus, BC has also been reviewed for its potential to deliver short-term protection against coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). In addition, it can potentially be explored as a precursor for peptide-based radiopharmaceuticals. To date, several bioactive peptides have been isolated from BC, including casocidin-1, casecidin 15 and 17, isracidin, caseicin A, B, and C. Like other peptides, bioactive peptides derived from BC could be used as a valuable precursor for radiopharmaceuticals either for diagnosis or therapy purposes. This review provides bovine colostrum’s biological activities and a perspective on the potential use of peptides from BC for developing radiopharmaceuticals in nuclear medicine.

Enteral Nutrition Supplemented with Transforming Growth Factor-β, Colostrum, Probiotics, and Other Nutritional Compounds in the Treatment of Patients with Inflammatory Bowel Disease

Enteral nutrition seems to play a significant role in the treatment of both adults and children with active Crohn's disease, and to a lesser degree in the treatment of patients with active ulcerative colitis. The inclusion of some special factors in the enteral nutrition formulas might increase the rate of the efficacy. Actually, enteral nutrition enriched in Transforming Growth Factor-β reduced the activity index and maintained remission in patients with Crohn's disease. In addition, a number of experimental animal studies have shown that colostrum exerts a significantly positive result. Probiotics of a special type and a certain dosage could also reduce the inflammatory process in patients with active ulcerative colitis. Therefore, the addition of these factors in an enteral nutrition formula might increase its effectiveness. Although the use of these formulas is not supported by large clinical trials, it could be argued that their administration in selected cases as an exclusive diet or in combination with the drugs used in patients with inflammatory bowel disease could benefit the patient. In this review, the authors provide an update on the role of enteral nutrition, supplemented with Transforming Growth Factor-β, colostrum, and probiotics in patients with inflammatory bowel disease.

Preventive effects of bovine colostrum supplementation in TNBS-induced colitis in mice

Inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) is a chronic inflammatory disorder for which the current medical therapy is not completely effective. Bovine colostrum (BC) is a biological fluid rich in bioactive molecules that may have beneficial effects on several gastrointestinal disorders. The objectives of this study were to assess the preventive effects of BC supplementation in a mouse model of 2,4,6 trinitrobenzene sulfonic acid (TNBS)-induced colitis using a multidisciplinary approach. Specifically, the following parameters were evaluated: (i) disease activity index (DAI), (ii) histological score, (iii) expression levels of TLR4, anti- and pro-inflammatory cytokines, and (iv) count of some bacterial species of the intestinal microbiota. Mice received a daily suspension of BC (BC group, n = 12) or saline solution (control, CN group, n = 12) for 21 days before the intrarectal inoculation with 1% of TNBS solution. BC was well tolerated and did not induce any histological damage or clinical symptoms. After TNBS treatment, BC group showed a reduction of body weight (BW) loss (P<0.01) and histological score (P<0.05) compared to CN. Moreover, the expression levels of TLR4 (P<0.05), IL-1β (P<0.001), IL-8 (P<0.001), and IL-10 (P<0.001) were lower in mice administered with BC, while the concentrations of TNF-α did not show any differences between groups. Finally, the supplementation with BC resulted in a differential response to TNBS treatment in the bacterial count. In CN group, E. coli and Enterococci increased (P<0.001), while Anaerobes (P<0.01), Lactobacilli, and Bifidobacteria (P<0.001) reduced. Conversely, no significant changes in bacterial load were found after the inoculation of TNBS in BC pre-treated mice. This study confirms that TNBS-induced colitis model in mice is useful for studying the mechanisms involved in IBD pathogenesis and shows that pre-treatment with BC reduces the intestinal damages and clinical signs of the colitis. Molecular mechanisms and intestinal microflora could be involved in the protective effect of colostrum.

The effect of dietary bovine colostrum on respiratory syncytial virus infection and immune responses following the infection in the mouse

Human respiratory syncytial virus (hRSV) is the most common cause of respiratory tract infection among young children because of immature T cell immunity of them against hRSV. CD8 T cells play a pivotal role in clearing hRSV and preventing subsequent infection. We examined the effects of dietary bovine colostrum on virus infection and CD8 T cell responses following hRSV infection in the mouse model. Mice received bovine colostrum for 14 days prior to hRSV challenge, and lung indexes (severity of symptom) and lung virus titers were analyzed. In addition, the activation of CD8 T cells in the bronchoalveolar lavage fluids (BALFs) of mice receiving bovine colostrum were compared with those in the BALFs of mice receiving phosphate-buffered saline (PBS) or ribavirin, post virus challenge. The severity of infection and lung virus titers were reduced in the mice receiving bovine colostrum, compared to those receiving PBS. Moreover CD8 T cell responses were selectively enhanced in the former. Our results suggest that dietary bovine colostrum exerts the effects to inhibit hRSV and ameliorate the symptom by hRSV infection, and enhances the CD8 T cell response during the hRSV infection.