Abstract
BACKGROUND: Colostrum, abundant in immunoglobulins and growth factors, plays a vital role in supporting immunity. Both yak and buffalo milk are characterized by their high protein and fat content. However, the metabolomic profiles of yak colostrum (YC), buffalo colostrum (BC), and bovine colostrum (CC) remain largely unexplored. The objective of this study is to identify unique metabolites that may impact the nutritional value of colostrum. METHODS: This study employed ultra-high performance liquid chromatography-electrospray ionization tandem mass spectrometry (UHPLC-ESI-MS/MS) for untargeted metabolomics analysis of YC, BC, and CC. RESULTS: The analysis revealed 97, 70, and 75 differentially expressed metabolites in the YC-CC, BC-CC, and YC-BC comparisons, respectively. In comparison to CC, both YC and BC shared common features, including reduced choline levels and elevated O-acetylcarnitine. Moreover, metabolites such as 2-hydroxy-6-pentadecylbenzoic acid, DL-glycerol-1-phosphate, thiamine, L-carnitine, methyl β-D-galactoside, and uridine diphosphate (UDP) were identified as potential biomarkers for YC, while 21-deoxycortisol, D-synephrine, uridine, mannitol-1-phosphate, nonadecanoic acid, and perillic acid were specific to BC. CONCLUSIONS: YC has greater advantages in energy supply, antioxidant activity, immune regulation, and cell homeostasis, and BC holds unique significance in physical development and energy balance regulation. These findings provide valuable insights, enabling the selection of unique bioactive metabolites to develop targeted functional foods from colostrum, catering to diverse nutritional needs.