BoobyBiome
Giving infants a healthier start in life by boosting their gut microbiome
The challenge
“Breast is best” is a phrase commonly used to describe the benefits of breastfeeding. Breast milk contains a diverse population of bacteria that are essential for a newborn’s gut microbiome, which contributes greatly to their overall physical, immune and cognitive health and development.
However, for a multitude of reasons, breastfeeding can present challenges meaning that infants can be deprived of the beneficial bacteria found in breast milk that play an important role in establishing a healthy microbiome. Ultimately, this means that they need extra support with establishing good microbes in their gut.
Breastfeeding difficulties such as pain and poor latch, and health complications, including mastitis and other infections that require antibiotics, are all factors that can impact access to essential breast milk bacteria.
This is why CPI collaborated with BoobyBiome, a startup translating cutting-edge breast milk research into innovative products for improving infant health.
The company approached us for support with its groundbreaking product – a next-generation supplement for babies, containing probiotic microbes isolated from breast milk and prebiotic fibres to support bacterial growth.
“CPI was an excellent partner, aiding in demonstrating the manufacturing feasibility of our top bacterial candidates and distinguishing between strains in co-cultures. Their facilities in Darlington were impressive, facilitating rapid data generation. We’re now collaborating with CPI again to complete our preclinical program and prepare for the launch of our symbiotic supplement. I am excited to see this hard work translate into improved health for the next generation of infants!”
How CPI helped
- Developed, optimised and scaled the bacterial fermentation process for product manufacture.
- Contributed microbiome therapeutics expertise.
- Provided access to state-of-the-art equipment, including high throughput bioreactor systems for process development and molecular analytical characterisation methods.
- Conducted a feasibility study on co-culturing multiple species of bacteria at scale.
Achievements
- Optimised the culture conditions for individual strains of aerobic and anaerobic bacteria.
- Developed methods to co-culture a consortium of bacteria, establishing a robust and efficient manufacturing process for a multi-strain probiotic product.
- Developed an analytical toolbox for product characterisation.
- Demonstrated the scalability and robustness of the manufacturing process at the 10L scale.
Impact
BoobyBiome’s innovative probiotic supplement, informed by breast milk microbiome research, represents a significant leap forward in promoting infant wellbeing.
CPI collaborated with BoobyBiome to optimise bacterial growth conditions and establish scalable methods for producing the supplement. This groundbreaking solution holds immense promise for infant health and has now been shown to be both scalable and manufacturable, accelerating this product to supermarkets and hospitals in the near future.
Easily added to formula or breast milk, the supplement will boost the gut health of newborn babies. By supporting early immune system development, through a robust gut microbiome, the supplement will provide both short and long-term health benefits throughout infancy and childhood.
Our work with BoobyBiome will be key to making the supplement commercially viable so that it can reach the babies that need it the most. It will also pave the way for more research in this important and under-studied area. By enabling the success of this unique and necessary product, we can help give infants and our future generations a better start in life, one tiny gut microbiome at a time.
