Rajendran Vijayakumar Department of Biology, College of Science in Zulfi, Majmaah University, Majmaah 11952, Saudi Arabia
ABSTRACT
The present study was done to analyse the endotoxin limits of 20 camel milk samples collected from common vending outlets, i.e. desert farms, shops etc. The milk samples were divided into 4 types (raw milk, refrigerated, boiled, stored at – 20°C) and processed for endotoxin analysis by Limulous Amoebocyte Lysate (LAL) Gel clot method. The microbial count was examined for raw milk sample as per standard protocols. Endotoxin limits observed in the raw milk ranged from 3 to more than 1200 EU/ml. Elevated levels of endotoxin were observed in refrigerated samples. There is no significant change of endotoxin found between raw and deep freezed, boiled samples. Endotoxin value of processed milk from shops were in the range of 3 – 300 EU/mL. Among 20 samples, the total microbial count ranged from 1 to 7.39 log CFU/ml and coliform count was 0 to 3.58 log coliforms CFU/ml. The findings of this report on the endotoxin limits of camel milk showed the levels to be between 3 to 9 EU/ml. However, the samples showed high endotoxin values (>1200 EU/mL) if improperly stored. Presence of high level of microbial and endotoxin in camel milk is unsafe for human consumption.
Key words: Camel milk, endotoxin limit, gel clot method, LAL test, microbial count
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