Conclusions
Treatments at 50 °C at any pressure intensity did not cause a significant effect on the tocopherol contents in breast milk. However, treatments carried out at 65 or 80 °C decreased these compounds. Similarly,
the most extreme treatments (900 MPa at 80 °C) caused the most intense changes on the fatty acid profile of breast milk. HPT treatments
had different effect on the immune components of milk. It had a minimaleffect on the levels of some cytokines, such as IL-12, IL-17 and IFN-γ.
However, the levels of IL-6 and TNF-αin breast milk were reduced
after processing. All treatments applied reduced the leukocyte content
of breast milk and only the treatment at 50 °C and 300 MPa maintained
theoriginal levels of certain Igs. Therefore, the treatments that combine
the most intense pressures and temperatures importantly reduced the
nutritional and immunological properties of breast milk. Only the treatments at 300 MPa and 50 °C could be suitable for milk preservation. In
contrast, high pressure at low temperature of processing could be an alternative to improve the quality of breast milk of banks (Moltó-Puigmartí
et al., 2011; Permanyer et al., 2010; Viazis et al., 2007). Future research
should evaluate the application of shorter treatments (flash treatments)
at moderate temperatures, since that could improve the preservation of
some immunological and nutritive factors of breast milk while increasing
the food safety of banked milk.