Nucleosides and Nucleotides in Milk

Nucleosides and nucleotides belong to the bioactive substances in milk and colostrum. The concentration pattern is specific for the milk of a given species. The physiological capacity of these compounds in milk is given by the total potentially available nucleosides. Owing to their biofunctional properties, nucleotides are used as supplements in infant formulas. The relatively constant concentration pattern of nucleosides throughout lactation changes markedly on milk processing. Thus, nucleosides are useful indicators in dairy technology. In addition, the species-specific patterns of nucleoside contents are particularly recognizable in the unmodified nucleoside contents and by calculation of the concentration ratios of unmodified and modified nucleosides. Therefore, the nucleoside patterns are useful for distinguishing raw milk from cow, sheep, and goat.