Trace elements and their distribution in protein fractions of camel milk in comparison to other commonly consumed milks

Studies on camels' milk., whether with respect to concentration or bioavail ability of trace elements from this milk. are limited and warrant further i nvestigation. The object of this study was to analyse the concentration and distribution of zinc. copper, selenium. manganese and iron in camel milk c ompared to those in human milk. cows' milk and infant formula under similar experimental conditions. Camels' milk and cows' milk were collected from l ocal farms, human milk samples were obtained from healthy donors in Kuwait and infant formula was purchased locally. Milk fractionation was performed by ultra-centrifugation and gel-column chromatography. The concentration of trace elements was analysed by atomic absorption spectrometry and that of protein was determined spectrophotometrically. The concentration of mangane se and iron in camels' milk was remarkably higher (7-20-fold and 4-10-fold, respectively) than in human milk. cows' milk and infant formula. The zinc content of camels' milk was higher than that of human milk but slightly low er than in cows' milk and infant formula. The concentration of copper in ca mels' milk was similar to that of cows' milk but lower than in human milk a nd infant formula. The selenium content of camels' milk was comparable to t hose of other types of milk. Approximately 50-80% of zinc, copper and manga nese in camels' milk were associated with the casein fraction, similar to t hat of cows' milk. The majority of selenium and iron in camels' milk was in association with the low molecular weight fraction. It is recommended that camels' milk be considered as a potential source of manganese, selenium an d iron, perhaps not only for infants, but also for other groups suspected o f mild deficiency of these elements. Further investigations are required to confirm this proposal.