Abstract:Lutein in human breast milk plays an important role in the development of vision and cognitive function in infants. In this study, ultra-high performance liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry was used to determine the composition and contents of lutein and lutein esters in human breast milk collected at different ages for giving childbirth and lactation stages. Finally, lutein and 16 lutein esters in human breast milk were qualitatively and quantitatively analyzed. A strong positive correlation was found between lutein and lutein esters contents in human breast milk (Pearson correlation coefficient was 0.721). The contents of lutein and lutein esters in human breast milk in the age-appropriate group (childbirth age<35 years) was similar to that of the older age group (childbirth age ≥ 35 years), and the difference between the two was insignificant (P>0.05), indicating that the age for giving childbirth had little effect on the contents of lutein and lutein esters in human breast milk. The contents of lutein and lutein esters decreased gradually with the extension of the lactation period, and the contents of both in colostrum were the highest, with the average content of lutein reaching 183.78 μg/L and the average content of lutein esters reaching 45.89 μg/L. There were 10, 14 and 6 kinds of lutein esters detected in the colostrum, transitional milk and mature milk, respectively, with the content of lutein palmitate-stearate being the highest throughout the whole lactation period, followed by lutein distearate. The research results can provide certain experimental and theoretical bases for the research of human milk composition and the research and development of infant formula foods.
