Oligosaccharide to Prevent Necrotizing Enterocolitis

Patent Status

Background

Necrotizing enterocolitis (NEC) is one of the most frequent and fatal intestinal disorders of preterm infants. Nearly 10 percent of very-low-birth-weight infants develop it, and over a quarter of NEC infants will die from this disorder. The survivors are often faced with long-term neurological impairment. Formula-fed infants are at a 6-10-fold higher risk to develop NEC; several molecules in human milk are thought to be associated with NEC protection and yet despite improvements in formula composition, formula-fed infants remain at a 6- to 10-fold higher risk than breast-fed infants. Identifying the protective component in human milk could lead to the development of better options to diagnose, treat, and perhaps even prevent, this disorder.

Technology Description

A researcher at UC San Diego has identified a bioactive human milk oligosaccharide lacking from infant formula that inhibit key events in necrotizing enterocolitis pathogenesis.

State Of Development

Acquired in vivo data showing that human milk oligosaccharides (HMO) significantly reduce NEC in an animal disease model. Specifically, rats receiving formula without a specific HMO developed NEC with an average pathology score of 1.98. The pathology score was significantly reduced when supplemented with HMO in the range of 0.1 and 10 mg/mL, resembling the HMO concentration in rat and human milk, respectively. None of the rats that received HMO had a pathology score that was higher than the average score of rats that received formula without HMO. Breast-fed pups were not significantly different from rats that received HMO with their formula.

Related Materials

• Bode L. Human Milk Oligosaccharides: Prebiotics and Beyond. Nutr Rev. 2009 Nov;67 Suppl 2:S183-91 (background review of subject).