Anti-acetylcholinesterase and antidiabetic activities of raw and heated camel milk

Abstract

This study aimed to investigate the effect of different heat treatments on camel milk’s in vitro anti-Alzheimer and anti-diabetic potential. Camel milk was subjected to three heat treatments: low and high-heat pasteurization and boiling. Unheated camel milk was used as a control. Camel milk caseins were identified by sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (SDS-PAGE) after separation by fast ion exchange liquid chromatography (FPLC). The concentration of insulin-like substances was measured using an ELISA kit. The in vitro anti-Alzheimer activity was evaluated using acetylcholinesterase (AChE) inhibitory assay and the in vitro antidiabetic activity was evaluated using alpha-amylase and alpha-glycosidase inhibitory assay. The unheated camel milk and caseins exhibited significantly higher anti-AChE activity than the heated ones (p < 0.05) and showed higher antidiabetic potential than the heated samples at all concentrations tested. There was also a significant (p < 0.05) difference in insulin-like substance content in the heat-treated groups compared with the control group. Heat treatment could affect the anti-diabetic and anti-AChE properties of camel milk. Therefore, among these different heat treatments, pasteurization at 63 °C showed the strongest inhibition of these activities and the highest insulin content in camel milk. Moreover, at all concentrations and activities tested, the percentage of inhibition of beta-casein (β-CN) was more pronounced than that of alpha-casein (α-CN).

Keywords

• Camel milk
• caseins
• heat treatment
• anti-acetylcholinesterase inhibitory
• antidiabetic activities
• Food Additives & Ingredients