In short:
A large dairy processor is working with scientists to see if surplus cow’s milk could be used to prevent COVID-19 and other respiratory diseases.
Milk protein lactoferrin is used in many protein powders and therapeutic supplements.
What’s next?
Creating an antiviral can be challenging and costly, with many hurdles involved in getting products onto pharmacy shelves.
Scientists and one of Australia’s biggest dairy processors are working to prove the old wives’ tale — that you should avoid dairy when you’re sick — is just that.
Dairy processor Noumi, in partnership with the Hunter Medical Research Institute at the University of Newcastle, is investigating whether a milk protein could help prevent COVID-19 and the common cold.
Scientist Sonja Kukuljan, who works for Noumi, said the milk protein lactoferrin was discovered more than 80 years ago.
“Today’s research is focusing more on looking at lactoferrin and its response to specific viruses like coronavirus and other common cold-causing viruses,” Dr Kukuljan said.
Lactoferrin has been the subject of many studies looking into its broad antiviral, antibacterial, antifungal, antiparasitic and anti-inflammatory properties.
It’s used in infant milk formula, skincare products, protein powder and therapeutic supplements, including iron.
The protein is found in both human and cow’s milk.
“Our own bodies make a lot of lactoferrin,” Dr Kukuljan said.
“But what happens when you consume more?”
Dr Kukuljan said consuming lactoferrin helped to boost the body’s immune system to fight and defend against viral respiratory diseases.
“Lactoferrin attaches to the virus so it can’t attach to the cell,” she said.
“If the virus does attach to the cell, lactoferrin then binds with bits on the human cell, which means the carrier to the virus can’t get it in the cell.”
Researchers involved in the study are developing multiple ways for the protein to be ingested, including a nasal spray.
“We are working to show that a little bit of extra lactoferrin a day, taken in food or as a capsule, whatever suits the consumer, actually helps to further boost the body’s immune system,” Dr Kukuljan said.
The medical industry’s ‘next frontier’
The CSIRO says growing and diversifying protein products is a $13 billion opportunity for Australia.
Queensland University of Technology professor Kirsten Spann said using lactoferrin to prevent COVID-19 was an interesting prospect, but it was early days in the process of proving its success.
The director of QUT’s Centre of Immunology and Infection Control said developing an antiviral to prevent sickness was the “next frontier” for the medical industry.
“It’s a growth market,” Professor Spann said.
“We’ve learnt a lot through the pandemic and particularly for respiratory viruses, vaccines will get you so far and certainly reduce mortality, morbidity and disease.
“But I think we can all attest now that they don’t necessarily stop you getting infected in the first place.”
Professor Spann said getting an antiviral on pharmacy shelves often took years, with many products not making it past the pre-clinical stage.
“You may have a product that works very well as an antiviral, but it may be incredibly costly to actually scale that product up through mass production,” she said.
“You might easily be able to make it for a clinical trial with hundreds or thousands of people, but then to scale it for manufacture for an entire population is a difficult thing.
“There can be costs and technologies that don’t translate.”
Professor Spann believed antiviral nasal sprays were the future instead of oral or intravenous consumption.
“Because then you can actually deliver a preventative or treatment compound to the site of infection and try to induce an effective local immune response that’s protective in your nose,” she said.
‘Pink gold’
Noumi is Australia’s largest long-life milk company and also one of the biggest milk and plant milk manufacturers.
Chief executive Michael Perich said investing in alternate and innovative milk products was crucial to survival in the dairy industry, which had historically suffered with fluctuating milk prices.
“In the dairy industry there’s getting less and less of us,” he said.
Mr Perich said using lactoferrin or “pink gold” was a significant opportunity.
The protein was usually a waste product in milk and could be sold for up to $1,100 per kilogram.
“Protein is always surplus generally in dairy milk,” he said.
“It was an opportunity for us to look at how do we take some of those protein fractionation and put them into other products to deliver them in the other forms for Australian consumers to look for.”
He said the dairy industry didn’t want to “just become a commodity player”.
“We want to make sure we’re bringing value,” he said.
“We’re reinventing new products that deliver, that taste and that has health benefits to the people that purchase our product.”
Dr Kukuljan said acquiring enough of the protein was the next hurdle, with 10,000 litres of milk required to produce just one kilogram of lactoferrin.
“As the demand for lactoferrin globally increases, we have to find smarter, more sustainable ways to produce more lactoferrin,” she said.
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