National Centre for Innovative Technologies in Public Health, National Institute of Health, Viale Regina Elena 299, 00161 Rome, Italy.
Nutrients. 2020 Aug 24;12(9):2562. doi: 10.3390/nu12092562.
Lactoferrin (Lf), an iron-binding multifunctional glycoprotein belonging to the transferrin family, is present in most biological secretions and reaches particularly high concentrations in colostrum and breast milk. A key function of lactoferrin is non-immune defence and it is considered to be a mediator linking innate and adaptive immune responses. Lf from bovine milk (bLf), the main Lf used in human medicine because of its easy availability, has been designated by the United States Food and Drug Administration as a food additive that is generally recognized as safe (GRAS). Among the numerous protective activities exercised by this nutraceutical protein, the most important ones demonstrated after its oral administration are: Antianemic, anti-inflammatory, antimicrobial, immunomodulatory, antioxidant and anticancer activities. All these activities underline the significance in host defence of bLf, which represents an ideal nutraceutical product both for its economic production and for its tolerance after ingestion. The purpose of this review is to summarize the most important beneficial activities demonstrated following the oral administration of bLf, trying to identify potential perspectives on its prophylactic and therapeutic applications in the future.
乳铁蛋白（Lf）是一种铁结合的多功能糖蛋白，属于转铁蛋白家族，存在于大多数生物分泌物中，在初乳和母乳中达到特别高的浓度。乳铁蛋白的一个关键功能是非免疫防御，它被认为是连接先天和适应性免疫反应的介质。牛乳铁蛋白（bLf）是人类医学中主要使用的乳铁蛋白，因其易于获得而被美国食品和药物管理局指定为一般公认安全（GRAS）的食品添加剂。在这种营养蛋白发挥的众多保护作用中，经口服给药后证明最重要的作用是：抗贫血、抗炎、抗菌、免疫调节、抗氧化和抗癌活性。所有这些活动都强调了 bLf 在宿主防御中的重要性，它是一种理想的营养保健品，既具有经济的生产效益，又具有口服后的耐受性。本文综述的目的是总结口服 bLf 后表现出的最重要的有益作用，试图确定其在未来预防和治疗应用方面的潜在前景。
