# Recombinant production of structured fats that mimic human milk fat

> **NIH NIH R43** · YALI BIOSCIENCES INC · 2023 · $370,562

## Abstract

Abstract
Human breast milk is the choice nutrition for infants, and the fat component of the milk (human milk
fat, HMF) supplies the highest fraction of the infant's required dietary energy. The fats within human
breast milk are triacylglycerols (TAGs) with a unique stereoisomeric structure that facilitates efficient
nutrient absorption in the infant gut. In contrast, vegetable oils form the main source of fats in
commercial infant formulas: the composition and distribution of the fatty acids in vegetable oils are
different from those in human milk which hinders nutrient absorption in infants, and consequently their
growth. To mimic the nutritional functions of human milk fat, human milk fat substitutes (HMFS) have
been developed through enzymatic interesterification reactions in recent years. Human milk fat
substitutes (HMFS) produced by in vitro enzyme-catalysis of purified vegetable oils, have the desired
properties but are challenging to manufacture with high cost. Yali Bio aims to use its recombinant
yeast platform to provide a biomanufacturing solution for high quality HMFS that is cost-effective. We
propose to use our platform to efficiently produce structured fats that resemble human milk fat in their
physicochemical properties and generate highly productive, proprietary yeast strains accumulating fats
with a stereoisomeric composition similar to human milk fats. The approach described here should
lead to a cost-effective biomanufacturing method for recombinant production of structured fats that
mimic human milk fats.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10822765
- **Project number:** 1R43HD114503-01
- **Recipient organization:** YALI BIOSCIENCES INC
- **Principal Investigator:** Aravind Somanchi
- **Activity code:** R43 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2023
- **Award amount:** $370,562
- **Award type:** 1
- **Project period:** 2023-09-25 → 2024-08-31

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10822765

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10822765, Recombinant production of structured fats that mimic human milk fat (1R43HD114503-01). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-23 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10822765. Licensed CC0.

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