Role of lactotransferrin

Role of lactotransferrin. When the first lactotransferrins were isolated from mammalian milks, two hypotheses were proposed about the role they could play [34] iron nutrition of the new-born and antibacterial defence of the gut due to growth inhibition 

Iron transport. Experiments in vitro carried out in 1979 by Cox et al. [164] and using human intestinal biopsies demonstrated that human lactotransferrin can donate iron to intestinal mucosal cells. The characterization of a specific intestinal lactotransferrin receptor in rabbit [48], mouse [165,166], Rhesus monkey [167] and human foetal intestinal brush border membranes [168] reinforces the concept of the role of lactotransferrin in intestinal iron absorption. However, despite these findings, the nutritional activity of lactotransferrin is still a subject of controversy (for a review, see ref. [7]). 

Lactotransferrins also possess a bactericidal effect observed in 1977 by Arnold et al. [176] according to Tomita et al. [177,178] this is due to the liberation of short peptides like lactoferricin B (fragment 17-41 of bovine lactotransferrin) by partial proteolysis. Lactoferricin B derived from the peptidic segment binding to lactotransferrin receptors. The industrial interest in lactoferricin is evident. 

Cell mediated defence of organism. A concise description of the different mechanisms of cell mediated defence of the organism by lactotransferrin would be an impossible mission . Consequently, the reader is referred to a series of excellent books and reviews [7,158-162]. 

Briefly, lactotransferrin has been shown to be involved in numerous inflammatory events (for reviews, see refs. [179,180]) and in immune response functions such as regulation of granulocyte monocyte colony stimulating factor synthesis with suppression of myelopoiesis by inhibition of the production of IL-1 (for a review, see ref [181]), 

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