Comparison of nutritional composition between plant-based drinks and cow's milk.

The high decline in liquid milk consumption in Western countries has been compensated by the increased consumption of processed dairy products and the rapidly increasing number of new plant-based beverages constantly introduced in the market, advertised as milk substitutes and placed on shelves near milk products. To provide better understanding about the nutritional value of these drinks compared with cow's milk, 27 plant-based drinks of 8 different species and two milk samples were purchased from two big retailers in Switzerland, and their composition regarding protein, carbohydrate, fat, vitamin, and mineral contents and residue load [glyphosate, aminomethylphosphonic acid (AMPA), and arsenic] was analyzed quantitatively and qualitatively. Energy and nutrient intakes were calculated and compared with the dietary reference values for Germany, Austria and Switzerland (D-A-CH). In addition, the digestible indispensable amino acid score (DIAAS) was calculated to estimate the quality of the proteins. Milk contained more energy; fat; carbohydrate; vitamins C, B2, B12, and A; biotin; pantothenic acid; calcium; phosphorus; and iodine than most plant-based drinks. Soy drinks provided slightly more protein and markedly more vitamins B1 and B6, folic acid, and vitamins E and D2 (with supplemented vitamin D2) and K1, magnesium, manganese, iron, and copper than milk and the other plant-based drinks. However, with the exception of cow's milk and soy drinks, which had > 3% protein, most milk alternatives contained ≤ 1% protein; therefore, they cannot be considered good protein sources. In regard to protein quality, milk was outstanding compared with all plant-based drinks and exhibited higher calculated DIAASs. Our results show that the analyzed plant-based drinks are not real alternatives to milk in terms of nutrient composition, even if the actual fortification is taken into account. Improved fortification is still an issue and can be optimized using the most bioavailable and soluble derivatives. Complete replacement of milk with plant-based drinks without adjusting the overall diet can lead to deficiencies of certain important nutrients in the long term.

Molecular effects of the consumption of margarine and butter varying in trans fat composition: a parallel human intervention study.

BACKGROUND: Whereas the dietary intake of industrial trans fatty acids (iTFA) has been specifically associated with inflammation, cardiovascular disease, and type 2 diabetes, understanding the impact of dietary fats on human health remains challenging owing to their complex composition and individual effects of their lipid components on metabolism. The aim of this study is to profile the composition of blood, measured by the fatty acid (FAs) profile and untargeted metabolome of serum and the transcriptome of blood cells, in order to identify molecular signatures that discriminate dietary fat intakes. METHODS: In a parallel study, the molecular effects of consuming dairy fat containing ruminant TFA (rTFA) or margarine containing iTFA were investigated. Healthy volunteers (n = 42; 45-69 y) were randomly assigned to diets containing margarine without TFA as major source of fat (wTFA control group with 0.4 g TFA per 100 g margarine), margarine with iTFA (iTFA group with 4.1 g TFA per 100 g margarine), or butter with rTFA (rTFA group with 6.3 g TFA per 100 g butter) for 4 weeks. The amounts of test products were individually selected so that fat intake contributed to 30-33% of energy requirements and TFA in the rTFA and iTFA groups contributed to up to 2% of energy intake. Changes in fasting blood values of lipid profiles (GC with flame-ionization detection), metabolome profiles (LC-MS, GC-MS), and gene expression (microarray) were measured. RESULTS: Eighteen FAs, as well as 242 additional features measured by LC-MS (185) and GC-MS (54) showed significantly different responses to the diets (PFDR-adjusted < 0.05), mainly distinguishing butter from the margarine diets while gene expression was not differentially affected. The most abundant TFA in the butter, i.e. TFA containing (E)-octadec-11-enoic acid (C18:1 t11; trans vaccenic acid), and margarines, i.e. TFA containing (E)-octadec-9-enoic acid (C18:1 t9; elaidic acid) were reflected in the significantly different serum levels of TFAs measured after the dietary interventions. CONCLUSIONS: The untargeted serum metabolome differentiates margarine from butter intake although the identification of the discriminating features remains a bottleneck. The targeted serum FA profile provides detailed information on specific molecules differentiating not only butter from margarine intake but also diets with different content of iTFAs in margarine. TRIAL REGISTRATION: ClinicalTrials.gov NCT00933322.

Mass spectrometry data of in vitro and in vivo pig digestion of skim milk powder.

The data in this article are related to the research article entitled "Physiological comparability of the harmonized INFOGEST in vitro digestion method to in vivo pig digestion" (Egger et al., 2012). In this article, proteins identified in the different sections of pig skim milk powder (SMP) digestion are presented. In addition to the exemplary ß-casein profiles of the paper, the peptide patterns of the other most abundant milk proteins during in vivo digestion in individual pigs are shown as heatmaps and line graphs. These data clearly reveal the digestion resistant protein regions and illustrate the variability between the pigs in the different sampling sections. Moreover, peptide patterns of the same SMP proteins comparing the harmonized in vitro digestion (IVD) with pig in vivo digestion show the physiological relevance of the IVD protocol. Finally, correlation coefficients were calculated to indicate similarities between pig sampling sections and gastric and intestinal IVD endpoints.

Physiological comparability of the harmonized INFOGEST in vitro digestion method to in vivo pig digestion.

Recently, a static in vitro digestion (IVD) protocol was published by Minekus and coworkers (Minekus et al., 2014) within the COST INFOGEST network. The protocol, concentrating on physiological enzyme activities had the main goal to improve the comparability of experimental data between labs. The protocol was validated in several inter-laboratory studies using skim milk powder (SMP) and indeed demonstrated improved harmonization compared with previous experiments with individual IVD protocols (Egger et al., 2016). Although the enzyme activities and salt concentrations of the harmonized protocol are based on available human in vivo data, confirmation of the protocol's physiological relevance has been lacking until now. The main goal of the study was therefore to compare the harmonized IVD protocol with data from in vivo digestion. Towards this aim, an in vivo pig experiment with the same SMP as used for the validation of the IVD protocol was performed followed by a comparison of protein hydrolysis between in vivo and in vitro results. Protein hydrolysis at different levels was analyzed with gel electrophoresis, mass spectrometry, high performance liquid chromatography, and spectrophotometric o-phthaldialdehyde determination of free amino acids. Principle component analysis was used for graphical data comparison. Milk proteins detected after gastric IVD corresponded to gastric and duodenal in vivo samples and intestinal IVD samples corresponded to distal jejunal in vivo samples. Peptides identified after the gastric phase of IVD, correlated with in vivo gastric samples (r=0.8) and intestinal IVD peptides correlated best with in vivo samples collected from the median jejunum (r=0.57). Free amino acids were in both systems mainly released during the intestinal phase of digestion. Protein hydrolysis in the harmonized IVD was similar to in vivo protein hydrolysis in pigs at the gastric and intestinal endpoints. Therefore, the harmonized static in vitro protocol is suited to study protein hydrolysis at these endpoints.

Limited Associations between Keel Bone Damage and Bone Properties Measured with Computer Tomography, Three-Point Bending Test, and Analysis of Minerals in Swiss Laying Hens.

Keel bone damage is a wide-spread welfare problem in laying hens. It is unclear so far whether bone quality relates to keel bone damage. The goal of the present study was to detect possible associations between keel bone damage and bone properties of intact and damaged keel bones and of tibias in end-of-lay hens raised in loose housing systems. Bones were palpated and examined by peripheral quantitative computer tomography (PQCT), a three-point bending test, and analyses of bone ash. Contrary to our expectations, PQCT revealed higher cortical and trabecular contents in fractured than in intact keel bones. This might be due to structural bone repair after fractures. Density measurements of cortical and trabecular tissues of keel bones did not differ between individuals with and without fractures. In the three-point bending test of the tibias, ultimate shear strength was significantly higher in birds with intact vs. fractured keel bones. Likewise, birds with intact or slightly deviated keel bones had higher mineral and calcium contents of the keel bone than birds with fractured keel bones. Calcium content in keel bones was correlated with calcium content in tibias. Although there were some associations between bone traits related to bone strength and keel bone damage, other factors such as stochastic events related to housing such as falls and collisions seem to be at least as important for the prevalence of keel bone damage.