Nutritional characteristics of “Kefir” fermented milk

The fermented milk “Kefir” is a drink of Caucasian origin, made by inoculating cow, goat, or sheep milk with kefir “grains” which is a starter made up of proteins, lipids, bacteria and yeasts kept together by a liposoluble polysaccharide called "Kefiran". In the kefir, milk proteins are partially digested, therefore can be easily metabolized by the human organism, and are also characterized by a low allergenic potential. From a nutritional point of view, kefir is rich in essential amino acids, minerals and vitamins, it is also considered a probiotic drink since it contains a number of microorganisms useful for the proper functioning of the gut microbiota. Furthermore, kefir is a drink suitable for lactose-intolerant individuals since the “grains” show a good -galactosidase activity. The aim of the present work has been a proteomic analysis of kefir (derived from bovine milk) through two-dimensional electrophoresis (2DE).