6 GHP / Q3 2020 GHP / Q3 2020 7 , Biotechnology Firm Secures Success Since 2005, the team at Jennewein Biotechnologie have been leading the way in biotechnology. Family run since the beginning, the firm is guided not only by the science, but by a celebration of what an international community can create. Most people who work for the company have studied, many hold PhDs, and the majority speak English. People from around the world have been drawn to the team by their ambition and their commitment to improving people’s lives. While this goal was admirable, having a clear set of aims that were clear and simple in design was paramount to the firm’s success. After much deliberation, it was decided that the team would develop a biotechnological product that would be of benefit to many, be significant for the market and could be sold inexpensively on an industrial ton scale. Finally, it would contribute to the protection of health for all. The execution of this task was not as easy as first appeared. There were many different potential avenues which the team could have taken. The resulting choice was investigating the possibilities held within human milk oligosaccharides. The team at Jennewein Biotechnologie have transformed the way in which scientists understand the field, developing many new offerings in terms of novel production processes. Human milk oligosaccharides, or HMOs for short, are the beating heart of the work that the team at Jennewein Biotechnologie undertakes. HMOs are functional sugars, which can have numerous health benefits for adults, but especially infants. The work of Jennewein Biotechnologie is designed to support the general health of people around the world. There are around two hundred types of human milk oligosaccharides, and studies have clearly demonstrated the health benefits for both adults and infants. HMOs play a crucial role, protecting against infections, stabilising the immune system, preventing allergies and promoting a healthy microbiome. The HMOs that Jennewein Biotechnologie produce are specifically chosen because of their ability to stabilise the immune system and have an overall anti-adhesive effect. Because HMOs are chemical identical to their natural models in breast milk, it gives the team another way in which their products can play a vital role. For mothers who are unable to breastfeed, these sugars can be added to infant nutrition as a food supplement. While many replacements have been made over the years, none offers the same benefits to the infant as the HMOs developed by Jennewein Biotechnologie. The most common HMO, 2’-fucosyllactose, has become renowned for its ability to promote the development of a natural gut microbiome, having an immunoregulatory effect, and protecting against infections. It has an enormous capacity to help people, which is why the team have developed and put into practice ways of delivering this product around the world on an industrial scale. Since 2016, 2’-fucosyllactose, and other HMOs , have been supplied to well-known baby food manufacturers in the USA. The range expanded into Europe in 2017. Jennewein Biotechnologie played a key part in this development, creating a proprietary fermentation process. This system was developed entirely on the basis of in-house research, using the bacteria strain E.coliBL21. The decision to work in this way has allowed the process to be cost efficient, environmentally friendly and sustainable. The team at Jennewein Biotechnologie were the first to achieve the production of their specific HMOs at an industrial scale. It’s an achievement that is a credit to the business’s approach to research and development. This is naturally of the highest possible quality, drawing on years of experience and expertise in the field of HMOs. Creating a production process for the food market is no easy feat, and the team at Jennewein Biotechnologie have taken care to employ the highest of standards throughout the production process. 2’-fucosyllactose has had to obtain the GRAS-Status in the USA and the Novel Food in Europe to provide consumers with a guarantee of safety. The penetration of HMOs into an international market has been the clearest market yet of the team’s success, when compared to their original goals. It’s a major achievement for this company to achieve such impressive market significance. Moving forward, the team aim to explore the various other possibilities that HMOs contain. There is much more potential to be had. Currently, the R&D department is exploring a new 5-HMO-Mix, following a path that is much closer to the natural model of human breast milk. This could transform the way in which HMOs are used and seen by the general public. Rigorous testing has always been at the heart of Jennewein Biotechnologie, and the high standards that the business champions means that clinical trials have only just gone ahead for this latest product. Based in hospitals in Spain, Italy and Germany, the company started in 2018 the first “Growth and Tolerance” study, the first results received have been a categorical success. As a result, this new 5-HMO-Mix is likely to be launched as a product after the approval for the clinical trial has been given. As the team has become ever more highly regarded for its research, the team have seen the need to broaden their outlook. HMOs and the microbiome are deeply interconnected, and Jennewein Biotechnologie is ideally positioned to lead the way on this front. That is why the company has committed to the creation of a new R&D centre in Bonn, who is soon due to be open. This research could prove invaluable for the team as they seek to develop products in the healthy microbiomes sector for baby and infant food. Perhaps what is most interesting for those looking to invest in a company, is the people who are looking to buy HMOs in such high quantity. The team at Jennewein Biotechnologie have found ready buyers in the form of well-known baby food manufacturers and those who develop specific medical nutrition. As has already been mentioned, HMOs can play a crucial role in the reaction of the gut and as such, is a commodity much in demand. Interaction between manufacturers and Jennewein Biotechnologie varies enormously, with some approach the company directly, and others being approached by the sales department. For the team behind Jennewein Biotechnologie, the production of HMOs on an industrial scale to be sold internationally marks the point at which they have succeeded in reaching the targets that they originally set out to achieve. For many people, this would be success enough, but the team are still looking to new, brighter horizons. The considerable investment that they have made into HMOs has not even begun to scratch the surface of its potential. It’s a seam that is rich in possibilities, and is sure to lead the firm on a path of considerable success. Company: Jennewein Biotechnologie GmbH Contact: Dr. Bettina Gutiérrez Email:
[email protected] Website: www.jennewein-biotech.com Biotechnology Firm Secures Success Biotechnology has made truly astonishing progress over the last few years withmany businesses making huge leaps to benefit people across the world. One of these pioneering companies is Jennewein Biotechnologie, with the teammaking tremendous progress with regards to humanmilk oligosaccharides. We take a closer look to see what they’ve done, and how it could benefit Jul20207