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Engineered plants provide a photosynthetic platform for the production of diverse human milk oligosaccharides.

Collin R BarnumBruna PavianiGarret CoutureChad MasarwehYe ChenYu-Ping HuangKasey MarkelDavid A MillsCarlito B LebrillaDaniela BarileMinliang YangPatrick M Shih
Published in: Nature food (2024)
Human milk oligosaccharides (HMOs) are a diverse class of carbohydrates which support the health and development of infants. The vast health benefits of HMOs have made them a commercial target for microbial production; however, producing the approximately 200 structurally diverse HMOs at scale has proved difficult. Here we produce a diversity of HMOs by leveraging the robust carbohydrate anabolism of plants. This diversity includes high-value and complex HMOs, such as lacto-N-fucopentaose I. HMOs produced in transgenic plants provided strong bifidogenic properties, indicating their ability to serve as a prebiotic supplement with potential applications in adult and infant health. Technoeconomic analyses demonstrate that producing HMOs in plants provides a path to the large-scale production of specific HMOs at lower prices than microbial production platforms. Our work demonstrates the promise in leveraging plants for the low-cost and sustainable production of HMOs.
Keyphrases
  • human milk
  • public health
  • healthcare
  • low birth weight
  • low cost
  • mental health
  • microbial community
  • health information
  • human health
  • high throughput
  • preterm birth
  • artificial intelligence