Tuesday, February 24, 2009

Common dairy additives

DHA: Docosahexaenoic acid (commonly known as DHA; 22:6(ω-3), all-cis-docosa-4,7,10,13,16,19-hexa-enoic acid; trivial name cervonic acid) is an omega-3 essential fatty acid. In chemical structure, DHA is a carboxylic acid with a 22-carbon chain and six cis double bonds; the first double bond is located at the third carbon from the omega end.

Lutein: Lutein is one of over 600 known naturally occurring carotenoids. Found in green leafy vegetables such as spinach and kale, lutein is employed by organisms as an antioxidant and for blue light absorption. Lutein is present in the plant as fatty-acid ester, with one or two fatty acids bound to the two hydroxyl-groups. Saponification of lutein esters yields lutein in approximately a 1:2 molar ratio. Lutein is also found in egg yolks, animal fats and the corpus luteum. Lutein is a lipophilic molecule and is generally insoluble in water. The presence of the long chromophore of conjugated double bonds (polyene chain) provides the distinctive light-absorbing properties. The polyene chain is susceptible to oxidative degradation by light or heat and is chemically unstable in acids.

Nucleotide: Nucleotides are molecules which comprise the structural units of RNA and DNA. Additionally, nucleotides play central roles in metabolism. In that capacity, they serve as sources of chemical energy, participate in cellular signaling, and are incorporated into important cofactors of enzymatic reactions.

Immunoglobulin: Immunoglobulin are gamma globulin proteins that are found in blood or other bodily fluids of vertebrates, and are used by the immune system to identify and neutralize foreign objects, such as bacteria and viruses. They are typically made of basic structural units—each with two large heavy chains and two small light chains—to form, for example, monomers with one unit, dimers with two units or pentamers with five units. Antibodies are produced by a kind of white blood cell called a B cell. There are several different types of antibody heavy chains, and several different kinds of antibodies, which are grouped into different isotypes based on which heavy chain they possess. Five different antibody isotypes are known in mammals, which perform different roles, and help direct the appropriate immune response for each different type of foreign object they encounter.

Taurine: Taurine is an organic acid. It is also a major constituent of bile and can be found in the lower intestine and in small amounts in the tissues of many animals and in humans as well. Taurine is a derivative of the sulfur-containing (sulfhydryl) amino acid, cysteine. Taurine is one of the few known naturally occurring sulfonic acids.

Originally Posted: About Additive

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