Infant formula innovation: Yali Bio leverages precision fermentation to introduce human breast milk fat from yeast

13 Feb 2024 --- Researchers at the food tech start-up Yali Bio, supported by the US National Institutes of Health (NIH), have utilized precision fermentation to create a fat compound identical to OPO (1,3-dioleoyl-2-palmitoyl-glycerol/1,3-dioleolyl-2-palmitate), which is naturally abundant in human breast milk.

OPO plays a crucial role in aiding infants’ absorption of nutrients, significantly impacting their health outcomes.

“We’re grateful for the support of NIH that allowed our team to conduct this important research, especially given the potential long-term impact it could have on infant nutrition,” says Dr. Aravind Somanchi, Yali Bio’s Vice President of biology and principal investigator on the project.

The breakthrough came about following a grant from the NIH Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development.

Yali Bio’s precision fermentation bioreactor technology could offer a viable source of non-human OPO.“We are at a pivotal point in the growth of our company, which is transitioning from a platform innovator with strong scientific proofs of concept into a business that can serve multiple markets in food and nutrition,” adds Dr. Yulin Lu, CEO of Yali Bio. 

Formula bioidentical to human milk
The OPO fat in human breast milk is an essential ingredient differentiating infant formula from its natural nutritional counterpart. 

According to the company, there is no economically feasible and readily available source of OPO on the market for use in infant nutrition products. Most formulas rely on fats derived from vegetable oils or cow milk, which, while containing some OPO, lack the abundant presence found in human breast milk, thus not facilitating nutrient absorption as effectively.

In a recent interview with Nutrition Insight, Valio highlighted OPO as a structural triglyceride that is vital for infants’ nutrient absorption, healthy growth and gut well-being. The company pointed out that healthy fats like OPO are also the source of close to half the energy content of human breast milk. 

At scale, Yali Bio’s precision fermentation bioreactor technology could offer a viable source of non-human OPO, which would, in turn, allow more early-life nutrition manufacturers to use the essential nutrient in their products. 

This is vital, as according to the WHO, most of the world’s 130 million infants born each year are fed formula at least some of the time. 

Fonterra notes that despite the decreasing birth rates in China, the world’s second-largest nation, there is a growing interest in advanced early-life nutrition. Formulas containing OPO as a source are also gaining popularity.

Company expansion 
As part of its ambition to transition into a business capable of serving multiple markets in the food and nutrition industry, Yali Bio recently hired Dr. Lorin DeBonte as its new senior vice president of Innovation. Before joining Yali Bio, DeBonte was an R&D Leader and an R&D corporate fellow at Cargill. 

“With his highly accomplished career commercializing edible fats and lipids at Cargill, Dr. DeBonte will lead our innovation team and continue to develop our core competencies in ingredient innovation and applications, as well as our pipeline of partnerships,” Dr. Lu comments. 

“I am excited to join Yali Bio and to leverage our precision fermentation platform to create the next generation of fat and lipid ingredients,” DeBonte concludes. “Our platform will help the food and nutrition industry meet consumer expectations in sustainable sourcing, plant-derived foods, and wellness.”

By Milana Nikolova