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The Evolution and Genomic Aspects of Milk

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Breastfeeding and Metabolic Programming

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Abstract

Lactation can be defined as a process by which milk is secreted in large amounts by mammary glands in order to nourish the organism’s offspring. It plays a key role in the reproductive strategy of mammals, so much so that the Linnaean classification that created the class Mammalia in 1758 did so on the basis of the ability to lactate, rather than on other features of anatomy shared by the group. Choosing lactation as the basis to categorize the group is reflective of the great significance lactation plays in nourishing the young of all mammalian species, including humans. Indeed, lactation is said to have created a unique nutritional environment in this group of organisms [1].

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Child Health and Diseases, Arel University, Medical Faculty, Istanbul, Türkiye

    Özlem Naciye Şahin

  2. Centre of Perinatal Medicine of the University of Perugia/Sechenov University, Moscow, Russia

    Gian Carlo Di Renzo

Authors
  1. Özlem Naciye Şahin
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  2. Gian Carlo Di Renzo
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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Child Health and Diseases, Arel University, Medical Faculty, Istanbul, Türkiye

    Özlem Naciye Şahin

  2. Pediatrics Department, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, Athens, Greece

    Despina D. Briana

  3. Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, University of Perugia, Perugia, Perugia, Italy

    Gian Carlo Di Renzo

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Şahin, Ö.N., Di Renzo, G.C. (2023). The Evolution and Genomic Aspects of Milk. In: Şahin, Ö.N., Briana, D.D., Di Renzo, G.C. (eds) Breastfeeding and Metabolic Programming. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-33278-4_10

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-33278-4_10

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  • Publisher Name: Springer, Cham

  • Print ISBN: 978-3-031-33277-7

  • Online ISBN: 978-3-031-33278-4

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