Effect Of Igf-I Rich Fraction From Bovine Colostral Whey On Murine Immunity

Insulin-like growth factor-I (IGF-I) rich fraction, collected components between I kDa and 30 kDa, was fractionated from bovine colostral whey using an ultrafiltration membrane. IGF-I was confirmed in the collected IGF-I rich fraction by both SDS-PAGE and Western blotting. The concentration of IGF-I in the IGF-I rich fraction was 10 ng/mg protein. One hundred microliters of the reconstituted IGF-I rich fraction was intraperitoneally injected into ICR male mice for 2 weeks at 24 h intervals. The functions of peritoneal macrophages, including phagocytosis, interleukin (IL)-6 and tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-alpha production, and nitric oxide and hydrogen peroxide production, were enhanced significantly by the administration of the. IGF-I rich fraction in a dose-dependent manner (p < 0.01). The proliferation of Concanavalin (Con) A-stimulated and Lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-stimulated splenocytes was also determined to have been enhanced significantly by the administration of the IGF-I rich fraction in a dose-dependent manner (p < 0.01). Our results indicate that the administration of IGF-I rich fraction obtained from bovine colostral whey enhances both innate and acquired immunity for ICR male mice.