Research article summary (published 19 May 2008):

Presence of obestatin in breast milk: relationship among obestatin, ghrelin, and leptin in lactating women.

Full Abstract

OBJECTIVE: The peptide hormones ghrelin and leptin have been found in blood and breast milk. This study was undertaken to investigate whether breast milk also contains obestatin, which is derived from the same gene as ghrelin but has opposite actions, and to characterize the relations among serum and milk ghrelin, obestatin, and leptin levels in lactating mothers. METHODS: Venous blood, colostrum, and mature milk were obtained from healthy lactating women (n = 31) just before suckling. The ghrelin and obestatin concentrations were determined by radioimmunoassay. Leptin levels were measured by enzyme-amplified sensitivity immunoassay. RESULTS: Obestatin levels in colostrum (538.9 pg/mL) and mature milk (528.5 pg/mL) were more than twice the corresponding blood levels (270.3 and 289.4 pg/mL, respectively). In contrast, leptin levels in colostrum (2.01 ng/mL) and mature milk (2.04 ng/mL) were more than five-fold lower than the corresponding blood levels (11.54 ng/mL). There was no correlation between breast milk ghrelin levels and leptin (r = -0.18, P > 0.05). However, there was a positive correlation between leptin levels in breast milk and blood (r = 0.369, P < 0.05). CONCLUSION: The origin of milk obestatin is not currently known, but it comes from the blood or breast and may drain through the mammary glands into the milk. Ghrelin, obestatin, and leptin in the milk may directly affect appetite and their levels may be related to the regulation of energy balance and the pathogenesis of obesity.

Author information

Author/s: Aydin, Suleyman (S); Ozkan, Yusuf (Y); Erman, Fazilet (F); Gurates, Bilgin (B); Kilic, Nermin (N); Colak, Ramis (R); Gundogan, Tugba (T); Catak, Zekiye (Z); Bozkurt, Mahmut (M); Akin, Okhan (O); Sen, Yasar (Y); Sahn, Ibrahim (I);

Affiliation: Department of Biochemistry and Clinical Biochemistry, School of Medicine, Firat University, Firat Medical Center, Elazig, Turkey. saydin1(-atsign-)hotmail.com

Journal and publication information

Publication Type: Journal Article

Journal: Nutrition (Burbank, Los Angeles County, Calif.) (Nutrition), published in United States. (Language: eng)

Reference: -2008 Jul-Aug; vol 24 (issue 7-8) : pp 689-93

Dates: Created 2008/06/13; Completed 2008/09/22;

PMID: 18499397, status: MEDLINE (last retrieved date: 2/18/2009)

Sourced from the National Library of Medicine. Abstract text and other information may be subject to copyright.

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MeSH headings (categories)

This article was linked to the MeSH Headings (categories) shown below.

Adult Colostrum - chemistry Female Ghrelin - analysis; blood Humans

Lactation - blood; metabolism Leptin - analysis; blood Milk, Human - chemistry Peptide Hormones - analysis; blood Postpartum Period

Note: Bold headings indicate primary MeSH headings or qualifiers.

Associated Chemicals: Ghrelin (0) ; Leptin (0) ; Peptide Hormones (0) ; obestatin, human (0)

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