Effects of industrial heat treatments on bovine milk oxylipins and conventional markers of lipid oxidation

The effects of industrial heat treatments of raw bovine milk subjected to Batch Pasteurization (BP), High Temperature Short Time (HTST) and Ultra High Temperature (UHT) on the formation of primary (hydroperoxide content and oxylipins) and secondary lipid oxidation products (thiobarbituric acid reactive species -TBARS) were evaluated. Total fatty acid content, percent of free fatty acids (FFA), and total antioxidant capacity (TAC) were also measured. Except for a 30% reduction in capric acid (C10:0) after UHT compared to BP, no significant differences in total fatty acid concentrations were detected amongst the heat treatments. Compared to raw bovine milk, no statistically significant effects of heat treatment were observed on percent FFA (0.29–0.31%), hydroperoxide concentration (0.0558–0.0624 mmol L−1), and TBARS values (13.4–18.9 µg MDA kg−1). HTST and UHT led to significant reductions (50–65%) in linoleic and alpha-linolenic acid oxidized metabolites compared with raw milk and batch pasteurized milk. Compared to raw milk (2943.7 μmol of TEAC L−1), TAC was significantly reduced by all heat treatments (2245 – 2393 μmol of TEAC L−1), although no statistically significant differences were observed amongst the treatments. The results demonstrate that heat processing reduces milk oxylipin content and antioxidant capacity and that oxylipin and TAC measurements provide a new sensitive approach to assess the impact of milk processing on lipid oxidation. The nutritional, shelf life and sensory implications of reduced oxylipins in HTST and UHT processed bovine milk merit further investigation.