Effects of bovine lactoferrin on -DOPA absorption and metabolism in mice

• Published in: Food & function 2018-05, Vol.9 (5), p.2865-2871
• Main Authors: Ikeda, Masayuki, Iijima, Hiroshi, Shinoda, Ichizo, Iwamoto, Hiroshi, Takeda, Yasuhiro
• Format: Article
• ISSN: 2042-6496; 2042-650X
• DOI: 10.1039/c7fo01518f

Bioactive natural products, habitually ingested with milk or its derivative nutrients, have been studied for their bioavailability. In this study, we investigated the effects of the co-administration of bovine milk-derived lactoferrin (bLF) and bioactive products, with a focus on catechol- O -methyltransferase (COMT), an enzyme in the catechol metabolism. bLF showed inhibitory activity on COMT in vitro , and acidic pretreatment of bLF enhanced its inhibitory activity. Moreover, partially digested products of bLF by pepsin retained inhibitory activity. Based on these results, bLF was co-administered with levodopa ( l -DOPA), which is a catechol compound and a precursor of dopamine, and the effect of bLF on l -DOPA absorption and metabolism was investigated in a mouse model. The co-administration of l -DOPA and bLF alone showed no effect on the concentration of l -DOPA in plasma. However, with the additional administration of carbidopa, the concentration of l -DOPA was significantly enhanced. Furthermore, the ratio of l -DOPA/3- O -methyldopa significantly increased. On the other hand, casein, which is a major milk protein, was not effective. In addition, COMT activity in the intestines was lowered with bLF administration. We concluded that the co-administration of bLF and carbidopa enhances the concentration of l -DOPA. Bovine lactoferrin (bLF) inhibited catechol- O -methyltransferase (COMT) activity and enhanced concentrations of levodopa ( l -DOPA) in mice by co-administration with carbidopa.