Nutritional, antimicrobial and medicinal properties of Camel's milk: A review

Abstract

Camel's milk is an important part of staple diet in several parts of the world, particularly in the arid and semi-arid zones. Camel's milk is rich in health-beneficial substances, such as bioactive peptides, lactoferrin, zinc, and mono and polyunsaturated fatty acids. These substances could help in the treatment of some important human diseases like tuberculosis, asthma, gastrointestinal diseases, and jaundice. Camel's milk composition is more variable compared to cow's milk. The effects of feed, breed, age, and lactation stage on milk composition are more significant in camel. Region and season significantly change the ratio of compounds in camel's milk. Camel's whey protein is not only composed of numerous soluble proteins, but also has indigenous proteases such as chymotrypsin A and cathepsin D. In addition to their high nutritional value, these whey proteins have unique characteristics, including physical, chemical, physiological, functional, and technological features that are useful in the food application. The hydrolysis of camel's milk proteins leads to the formation of bioactive peptides, which affect major organ systems of the body and impart physiological functions to these systems. The camel's milk has antioxidant, antimicrobial, angiotensin-I-converting enzyme (ACE)-inhibitory peptides, antidiabetic as well as anticholesterol activities.

Keywords: Bacteria, Camel; Health; Medicine; Milk; Nutrition; Protein.

Fig. 1

The important differences between camel’s and cow’s milk.

Fig. 2

Hydrolysis of camel milk proteins and its antimicrobial mechanism.