The ingredient, called PreBix, is a corn-derived form of oligosaccharide manufactured by Chinese company Life Bridge International. The ingredient is differentiated from its competitors in the functional carbohydrate space by its specific form and the evidence of efficaciousness specific to that form, said Edward Lee, president of AIDP.
“The ingredient itself is a form of oligosaccharide called a xylooligosaccharide, or XOS,” Lee told NutraIngredients-USA. “It is in a group polysaccharides called xylans, and is derived from corn cobs.”
Xylans are common constients of plant cell walls based on xylose, a pentose sugar. Lee said research has shown that XOS strongly fosters the growth of bifidobacteria, one of the main groups of beneficial bacteria in the human gut.
“There is already a published study by UCLA that is an in vitro study what friendly bacteria can be proliferated by XOS. It shows at what concentrations and different levels the different bacteria proliferate. It shows that XOS can pretty much proliferate all the bifidobacterium species, and that’s more than 30 species,” he said.
Small dosage
Lee said the work done on XOS shows that the prebiotic can be used in very small dosages, which is a benefit vis-a-vis some of the other ingredients in the space.
“Some of these prebiotics can cause bloating so you don’t want to take a large dose. The effective dose of XOS is very small, as low as 1.4 grams per day,” Lee said. That also translates into a low cost in use, he said.
Like other functional carbohydrates, XOS has a sweet taste, meaning it can substitute for some of the sweetener in a product. And its stability makes it easy to work with, he said.
“First of all it is a saccharide so it has a sweet taste so it can be added to food or any other formulas that might require sugar so you can cut the sugar usage. And it is a heat stable saccharide so it could be used in cereal or in nutrition bars. It can even be used in syrup.
“We have a powder form that would be suitable for tablets and capsules,” he said.
Lee said that the bifidobacterium-XOS connection means that formulators could consider using the ingredient in concert with other prebiotics to achieve a full spectrum approach to gut health.
“Research has shown that fructooligosaccharides are better for proliferating lactobacteria. They are not very good bifidobacteria proliferators. XOS strongly proliferates bifidobacteria, so they kind of complement each other. Each has some strong points,” he said.
Market history
Lee said the ingredient has been on the Asian markets for a number of years and has a strong track record. That goes with the greater awareness of gut health in general and the specific benefits of prebiotics in those markets. The US market is a late comer, but Lee believes that the time for prebiotics here has arrived.
“Probitocis had been popular for years in Japan and the US has been sort of a late comer. I feel like prebiotics are following the same trend. It’s growing in Europe and Japan and the US is lagging a bit on this. But I think in the next few years prebiotics will really take off in the US,” he said.
AIDP plans to formally launch the ingredient, which the company said has self-affirmed GRAS status and has a Non GMO Verified certification, at at the upcoming Natural Products Expo West trade show at booth No. 183.