A bacterium that combats obesity soon to be marketed
The European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) has authorised the launch of the bacterium Akkermansia muciniphila as a food supplement. This anti-obesity bacterium was discovered by a spin-off from UCLouvain.
The discovery of this promising bacterium for obese people was the result of joint research between Wageningen University (Netherlands) and UCLouvain. Together, they created the spin-off A-Mansia, which will be responsible for marketing this food supplement. It will be administered "probably in the form of a capsule or a tablet, that remains to be determined," says Prof. Cani of UCLouvain.
This intestinal bacterium aims to restore the intestine's barrier function by reducing inflammatory markers in the liver, insulin resistance or hypercholesterolemia, which provides better control of fat storage, glucose metabolism and energy expenditure over the course of the treatment.
"Belgium will undoubtedly be one of the first countries to benefit," explains Michael Oredsson, A-Mansia's CEO. "We still have to define to which other countries we will offer this 'novel food' (food for which there is no long history of consumption), from the second half of 2022," he says.
Having already received approval from the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) to market its discovery, the Belgian spin-off is still waiting for approval from the US agency before tackling the global market.