MILK PROTEINS
Β-casein (A2 variant) and Κ-casein
The Molecular Genetics Veterinary Service (SVGM) of the Autonomous University of Barcelona has the latest technologies for an efficient characterization of the beta-casein and kappa-casein genes in cows, from the reception and processing of the biological samples (blood , hair or other biological tissues) to genotyping by single nucleotide polymorphisms with the QuantStudioTM 12K Flex equipment.
We have extensive experience in determining the genetic profile of caseins on more than 20,000 dairy cows, as well as performing quality controls on more than 3,000 A2 milk samples.
Although the different caseins have an important impact on the composition of milk and the productivity of animals, the A2 variant of beta-casein has been revealed as more digestible, generating a differentiated product with a rapidly expanding market niche. However, most genotyping services tend to group other variants under the name A2, confusing the real genetic profile of the animal and, consequently, the technological and organoleptic properties of its milk.
Kappa-casein has a similar situation, with intermediate variants (A and C), others that reduce milk and increase protein (B), or vice versa (E).
