Editing Lactoferrin (section)

==History==
Occurrence of iron-containing red protein in bovine milk was reported as early as in 1939;<ref>M. Sorensen and S. P. L. Sorensen, Compf. rend. trav. lab. Carlsberg (1939) 23, 55, cited by Groves (1960)</ref> however, the protein could not be properly characterized because it could not be extracted with sufficient purity. Its first detailed studies were reported around 1960. They documented the molecular weight, [[isoelectric point]], optical absorption spectra and presence of two iron atoms per protein molecule.<ref>{{Cite journal | vauthors = Groves ML |year=1960 |title=The Isolation of a Red Protein from Milk |journal=Journal of the American Chemical Society |volume=82 |issue=13 |page=3345 |doi=10.1021/ja01498a029}}</ref><ref name=j60/> The protein was extracted from milk, contained iron and was structurally and chemically similar to [[Blood serum|serum]] [[transferrin]]. Therefore, it was named lactoferrin in 1961, though the name lactotransferrin was used in some earlier publications, and later studies demonstrated that the protein is not restricted to milk. The antibacterial action of lactoferrin was also documented in 1961, and was associated with its ability to bind iron.<ref name="isbn 0-8493-0909-3">{{Cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=2oTsweiwImAC&pg=PA2 |title=Lactoferrin: natural, multifunctional, antimicrobial |vauthors=Naidu AS |publisher=CRC Press |year=2000 |isbn=978-0-8493-0909-0 |location=Boca Raton |pages=1–2}}</ref>