Expanding HMOs potential: BASF and Glycosyn sign strategic partnership for improved gut health

21 May 2019 --- BASF and Glycosyn have signed a partnership agreement for the development and commercialization of human milk oligosaccharides (HMOs) for broad use in dietary supplements, functional nutrition and medical food. The strategic partnership includes exclusive license of Glycosyn’s patent portfolio for gut health beyond infant nutrition to BASF. The agreement aims to improve gastrointestinal health in adolescents and adults, along with broadening the applications of HMO for further health conditions.

HMOs form the third most abundant solid component of human milk after lactose and fat, and research increasingly demonstrates that much of breast milk's value lies within these components. HMOs have prebiotic properties and are incredibly complex to replicate. Previous studies have underscored the value of HMOs in infant prenatal and postnatal development.

Glycosyn owns unique intellectual property and know-how in the use of HMOs for the benefit of improving gastrointestinal health of adults, such as inflammatory bowel diseases (IBD) and irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), as well as for use as prebiotics.

Representatives from BASF and Glycosyn signed a collaboration agreement on May 14, 2019 endorsing their commitment to advance nutrition with novel HMOs. HMOs are prebiotics that stimulate the growth of Bifidobacteria and Lactobacilli selectively. A range of manufacturers offer formula that has been enriched with HMOs, in attempts to deliver formula fed kids an equally healthy microbiome as well as the associated health benefits.

As part of the collaboration and under the exclusive license, BASF will extend its offering of the most abundant HMO, 2’-Fucosyllactose (2’-FL) branded PREBILAC, to a broad range of customers worldwide. Glycosyn is reportedly to leverage its scientific expertise and extensive collaboration with the HMO research community to expand the clinical knowledge of adult health.

Emerging scientific evidence shows that 2’-FL supports the development and maintenance of a healthy gut microbiome and immune system. Based on its prebiotic functions and the ability to inhibit pathogen adhesion and modulate immune functions, 2’-FL is a very promising agent for digestive health across various age groups beyond infancy.

“Extending the reach of nature-designed HMO molecules from infant nutrition to dietary supplements, functional nutrition, and medical food addresses unmet consumer health needs and unlocks a huge market potential. Partnering with Glycosyn, the pioneer in the field of HMOs, to establish synergies and advance the science on HMOs for human gut health and even beyond, creates significant value for us and profound benefits for consumers,” said Tina Low, Vice President, Business Management Human Nutrition at BASF.

“The time has come to bring the benefits of HMO to consumers worldwide who suffer from gut discomfort or even diseases such as irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) and inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). BASF’s scaled state-of-the-art production and extensive global customer access makes them the ideal partner for us to jointly tap into this huge market potential and take nutrition to the next level,” added John Garrett, co-CEO, Glycosyn.

BASF launched its first HMO, PREBILAC 2’-FL for the infant nutrition market in 2019. By successfully mastering the complete in-house development from strain development to downstream processing in Germany, BASF manufactures PREBILAC 2’-FL at the quality and volume levels necessary to supply global human nutrition markets.

Human milk is the gold standard for infant nutrition. When compared with infant formula, breastfeeding leads to favorable growth patterns, immune functions, cognitive development as well as positive long-term outcomes. For mothers who are unable to breastfeed, adding 2’-FL to infant milk formula is a substantial step in narrowing the functional gap between mother’s milk and breast milk substitutes.