colostrum

What it means

1. uncountableusuallymedicineA form of milk produced by the mammary glands in late pregnancy and the few days after giving birth.

   This valuable fluid—colostrum—plays a number of important biological roles, including helping improve an infant's immune system. Nevertheless, many humans intuitively perceive colostrum as “sour milk,” which should not be given to infants. Other species do not make this serious mistake.

   2016, Joseph Henrich, chapter 16, in The Secret of Our Success […] , Princeton: Princeton University Press, →ISBN

   1 more example

   The researchers isolated the antibodies from the cow's colostrum, the first milk produced after birth, which has very high antibody concentrations. They gave these antibodies, extracted from the colostrum, to 10 volunteers and gave another 10 volunteers extracts from colostrum of cows that were not immunized against the traveler's diarrhea bacteria.

   1988 May 17, Gina Kolata, “For Travelers, Milk From Immunized Cows”, in The New York Times, →ISSN

   Synonyms: beestings, first milk, fore-milk, green milk

2. uncountableusuallyA mixture of turpentine and egg yolk, formerly used as an emulsion.

In a sentence

The researchers isolated the antibodies from the cow's colostrum, the first milk produced after birth, which has very high antibody concentrations. They gave these antibodies, extracted from the colostrum, to 10 volunteers and gave another 10 volunteers extracts from colostrum of cows that were not immunized against the traveler's diarrhea bacteria.

1988 May 17, Gina Kolata, “For Travelers, Milk From Immunized Cows”, in The New York Times, →ISSN

Where it comes from

1. Latincolostrum
2. Englishcolostrum

Borrowed from Latin colostrum, of uncertain origin.