The system is designed to analyze the composition of breast milk and produce a human-milk-based fortifier matched more closely to an individual baby's nutritional needs.
The researchers hope it could eventually be used in neonatal units and human milk banks.
The PreciousHMFstudy project brings together the Gdańsk University of Technology in northern Poland, Swiss biotechnology company Babylat AG and Polish medical technology company Prems.
The project is worth PLN 4.42 million (EUR 1 million, USD 1.2 million), of which PLN 3.62 million comes from the Swiss-Polish Cooperation Programme. Poland's National Centre for Research and Development (NCBR) is overseeing the funding program.
Premature babies, particularly those born with very low birth weight, need high levels of protein and energy to grow. The composition of a mother's milk changes over time, however, and may not always meet those requirements without additional fortification.
Most neonatal intensive care units currently use fortifiers derived from cow's milk. The system under development would instead allow hospitals to produce a concentrate from human milk, using milk from the baby's mother or a donor.
Babylat is developing a device called the Enricher, which removes water from human milk while retaining proteins and fats. Its creator, Dr. Zina Yudina, said her original idea was to produce a simple, one-step device that would also reduce the volume of milk needed for storage.
Prems is developing a rapid analyzer to measure the composition of human milk. Researchers at the Gdańsk University of Technology, led by Prof. Edyta Malinowska, are testing the Enricher, establishing repeatable processing parameters and assessing the composition, quality and biological properties of the resulting fortifier.
The aim is to combine the analyzer and Enricher so clinicians can determine what a premature baby needs and adjust the milk accordingly rather than rely on a standardized supplement.
The researchers plan to take the technology through clinical testing and ultimately into commercial production.
"My dream is that in the future such an approach could be used in neonatal units and human milk banks," Malinowska said.
(rt/gs)
Source: PAP