In vitro screening of mare’s milk antimicrobial effect and antiproliverative activity.

The research article explored the effects of mare’s milk on virulence gene expression in Salmonella Typhimurium and its potential to control the growth of adenocarcinoma Caco-2 cells, a type of cancer cell. This study demonstrates that raw mare’s milk may be able to control harmful gene expressions and slow down cancer cell growth.

Research Methodology

• In this study, the researchers used different supernatants of mare’s milk. A supernatant is the liquid lying above a solid residue after centrifugation. Some supernatants were raw, while some were heat-treated at 65°C for either 15 seconds or 30 minutes.
• The researchers tested the impact of these supernatants on hilA gene expression in Salmonella Typhimurium, a bacterium causes salmonellosis, a type of food poisoning.
• The researchers used a reporter luminescent strain, a type of bacterium that emits light, to assess changes in gene expressions. This allowed them to visually observe whether the mare’s milk supernatants were affecting the bacteria’s gene expressions.

Key Findings

• The researchers observed a significant decrease in hilA gene expression with all tested supernatants. This indicates that the mare’s milk exerted a repressive effect on this gene, which is related to the bacterium’s ability to infect the host.
• When the virulence gene expression was assessed using qPCR on a wild-type strain of Salmonella Typhimurium, a significant decrease in expressions of hilA and ssrB2 genes was noted with raw milk supernatants, but not with heat-treated ones.
• The researchers also administered the same supernatants to Caco-2 cells, a type of cancer cell. The growth rate of these cancer cells was significantly reduced when they were exposed to raw milk supernatants. This suggests that raw mare’s milk has a inhibitory effect on cancer cell proliferation.

Implications of the Findings

• The findings demonstrate the potential benefits of raw mare’s milk in health promotion. The study suggests that raw mare’s milk may have the ability to suppress the expression of harmful genes in the Salmonella bacterial strain and exert an inhibitory effect on cancer cell proliferation. Therefore, it could have potential as a novel approach to promoting gastrointestinal health.