[HMOs] 🔬 Biotechnology research uses transgenic plants to produce human milk oligosaccharides.
👉 These genetically modified plants are capable of producing 11 known HMOs, as well as other sugars with similar complex linkage patterns.
📝 Research carried out by two Californian universities shows that HMO production by microbial fermentation can only produce a limited number of strains. They propose an alternative approach using the metabolism of plant sugars and recombinant DNA technology, making it possible to obtain up to eleven different strains of HMO.
📝 Advances in plant-derived systems could in future lead to the discovery of new human milk oligosaccharides from genetically modified plants. These oligosaccharides could serve as prebiotics for the treatment of gastrointestinal and immune system disorders in adults.