Mare's milk is the natural lactation product of female horses and serves as the primary source of nutrition for foals in the early stages of life. It provides essential nutrients, including proteins, fats, carbohydrates, vitamins, and minerals, necessary for the growth and development of young horses. The composition of mare's milk can vary based on factors such as the mare's diet, health, and stage of lactation. Researchers study mare's milk to understand its nutritional profile, its role in foal development, and its potential applications in equine nutrition and management. This page compiles peer-reviewed research studies and scholarly articles that explore the composition, benefits, and variations of mare's milk in equine science.
HOLMES AD, JONES CP.Fifteen samples of mares' milk with initial potencies of from 86 mg to 161 mg of reduced ascorbic acid per liter were stored in the dark at 10°C. They were assayed at daily or longer intervals. Four samples observed for 10 days lost an average of 2.5 mg per liter daily; 4 samples stored 20 days lost 1.8 mg per day; 2 stored 28 days lost 1.3 mg daily; and 3 observed for 33 days lost 1.1 mg per liter per day. These data show that the rate of loss of reduced ascorbic acid from mares' milk is only a fraction of the rate of loss from cows' milk.
Kolyganova TI, Arzumanyan VG, Matvienko MA, Rodionova AA, Korshunova DS, Shatunova PO, Yastrebova NE.Antimicrobial activity of milk whey in different mammals against Candida albicans yeast cells was studied by a spectrophotometric method. The activity increased in the order goat→horse→camel→cow→human→mouse. The level of whey activity in mice was higher by 3 and 10 times than in humans and goats, respectively. Similar changes were noted for activity of the whey fraction <100 kDa containing a complex of antimicrobial polypeptides, and there was a direct correlation between these two parameters (r=0.881; p<0.05). The total activity of whey had a high degree of correlation with th...
Nasciutti NR, Garcia FG, da Silva ESM, de Miranda RL, Fontes LAR, Rosa JB, Headley SA, Mundim AV, Saut JPE.Several studies have demonstrated variations in peripartum blood biochemical analytes used to monitor the health status of mares and their foals of different breeds. Objective: We aimed to characterize the physiologic changes of peripartum energy and mineral metabolism in healthy Quarter Horse mares and their neonatal foals. Methods: Blood samples were initially collected from 17 mares on days 60 and 30 prepartum, and from mares and their foals on the day of parturition (after colostrum ingestion), and on days 15, 30, and 60 postpartum. The serum concentrations of calcium, phosphorus, magnesiu...
Cieslak J, Mackowski M, Czyzak-Runowska G, Wojtowski J, Puppel K, Kuczynska B, Pawlak P.Apart from the well-known role of somatic cell count as a parameter reflecting the inflammatory status of the mammary gland, the composition of cells isolated from milk is considered as a valuable material for gene expression studies in mammals. Due to its unique composition, in recent years an increasing interest in mare's milk consumption has been observed. Thus, investigating the genetic background of horse's milk variability presents and interesting study model. Relying on 39 milk samples collected from mares representing three breeds (Polish Primitive Horse, Polish Cold-blooded Horse, Pol...
Lv K, Yang Y, Li Q, Chen R, Deng L, Zhang Y, Jiang N.Horse's milk, with a high nutritional value and few allergenic proteins, could substitute cow's milk for infant consumption. Herein, a label-free, proteomic method was used to identify and compare milk fat globule membrane (MFGM) and whey proteins from three different horse breeds: Selle Français (SF), Welsh pony (WP), and Tieling Draft Horse (TDH). In MFGMs, 16 (SF), 66 (WP), and 45 (TDH) unique proteins were identified, which are involved in the endocytosis, ribosome, and staphylococcus aureus infection pathways, respectively. In whey, 31 (SF), 75 (WP), and 23 (TDH) unique proteins were ide...
