Equine Milk Lactoferrin: Current Evidence and Future Prospects in Medicine and Nutraceuticals
Narmuratova M. Orazova S. Serikbayeva A. Narmuratova Z. Kanayat S.
December 2025Engineered Science Publisher
ES Food and Agroforestry
2025#22
The rising demand for functional foods has increased interest in milk-derived bioactive proteins, particularly whey proteins and their peptides, which contribute to nutrition, immunity, and disease prevention. Lactoferrin (LF), an iron-binding glycoprotein, is one of the most studied milk proteins due to its antimicrobial, antiviral, antioxidant, and immunomodulatory functions. While bovine and human lactoferrin have been extensively investigated and applied in pharmaceuticals and nutraceuticals, equine milk lactoferrin (eLF) remains underexplored despite its distinctive advantages. Equine milk, which closely resembles human breast milk, is rich in whey proteins and contains higher concentrations of lactoferrin, offering enhanced digestibility and hypoallergenicity. Recent studies suggest that enzymatic hydrolysis of eLF generates bioactive peptides with antibacterial, antiviral, antihypertensive, and anti-inflammatory activities, making it a promising source of functional ingredients. Nevertheless, research on eLF is limited by insufficient characterization of its molecular mechanisms, lack of comparative studies with bovine and human LF, and poor understanding of its peptide-derived activities. Moreover, clinical evidence on safety, bioavailability, and long-term efficacy is scarce, restricting its broader application in therapeutic and nutritional products. This review synthesizes current knowledge on the structure, biological activities, and mechanisms of equine lactoferrin while highlighting its potential in antimicrobial defense, oxidative stress regulation, and functional nutrition. By identifying existing knowledge gaps and proposing future research priorities, this work positions eLF as a promising bioactive protein for next-generation pharmaceuticals, nutraceuticals, and functional foods.
Biologically active peptides , Equine milk , Functional foods , Lactoferrin
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Department of Biotechnology, Faculty of Biology and Biotechnology, Al-Farabi Kazakh National University, 71 Al-Farabi, Almaty, 050040, Kazakhstan
Department of Zooengeneering and Biotechnology, Kazakh National Agrarian Research University, 8 Abay Avenue, Almaty, 050010, Kazakhstan
Department of Chemical and Biochemical Engineering, Satbayev University, 22a Satbayev, Almaty, 050013, Kazakhstan
Department of Biotechnology
Department of Zooengeneering and Biotechnology
Department of Chemical and Biochemical Engineering
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