Bovine milk fortifiers and fortified pasteurized donor human milk for premature infant nutrition. Peptidomic overview

Human milk (HM) is the best source of nourishment for infants, but it must be fortified for optimal growth of premature babies. Hydrolyzates of bovine milk proteins are used for fortification of pasteurized donor HM (PDHM). In the present work, peptidomic approach was applied to characterize three commercial fortifiers. These products, intended for premature infant nutrition, are commonly used in neonatal intensive care units. Besides intact fortifiers and PDHM, digests of (un)fortified PDHMs (after preterm in vitro static gastrointestinal digestion, SGID) were investigated. Specifically, 186 unique peptides were revealed among the three fortifiers, 21 potential bioactive peptides (BPs) among them. After SGID of fortified PDHMs, 515 unique peptides were identified. They originated mostly from human β-casein; 15 were homologous to potential BPs of human and bovine milk protein origin. This work represents one of the few peptidomic investigations on fortifiers and fortified PDHM after a simulated preterm infant digestion.