Lactose (Lac) Production Service
As an important source of energy, lactose (Lac) plays a normal role in their growth and development. With a strong continuous and stable supply capacity, CD BioGlyco provides you with a sufficient inventory of Lac and strong after-sales support.
Structure of Lac
Lac is a disaccharide in which D-glucose and D-galactose are combined by β-1, 4 bonds, also known as 1, 4-galactoside glucose, which is a reducing sugar. It is an invaluable source of energy for young mammals, accounting for approximately 40% of total daily energy intake in exclusively breastfed human infants.
At present, commercial Lac is mainly extracted from whey protein, a by-product of cheese and casein production, through crystallization. Lac currently is mainly derived from bovine whey, and Lac derived from goat whey has gradually come out in recent years. Milk sugar and goat Lac have the same chemical structure and composition. The annual production of Lac in the world reaches 6 million tons. The structure of lac has two configurations: α-lactose and β-lactose. These two configurations have nothing to do with the source of Lac, and will not affect the function of Lac. In the application of pharmaceutical products, the pharmacopoeias of the United States, Europe, and Japan do not require Lac isomerism, but the United States and Japan require the labeling of the isomer purity of anhydrous Lac.
Applications of Lac in Multiple Fields
Health effects on life activities
As an important source of energy, especially for infants whose only source of nutrition is breast milk, Lac plays a normal role in their growth and development. At the same time, Lac also helps the absorption of minerals and regulates intestinal flora balance.
A fermentation substrate in yogurt production
After being utilized by lactic acid bacteria, lactic acid is produced, which can play a significant role in stabilizing the properties of yogurt.
Food Manufacturing
Lac reacts with amino compounds such as protein, peptide, or amino acids under heating conditions during the production and processing of milk powder as reducing sugar, thus giving food caramel or brown color and unique aroma. This technology is widely used in the production of Weihua cake, baked food, and flavoring products.
A common pharmaceutical excipient
As fillers and binders, it not only makes the pharmaceuticals more fluid but also plays a role in bonding when producing tablets.
Manufactured materials
Lac is used as a raw material to be converted into food ingredients such as lactitol (4-β-D galactopyranose-D-sorbitol), lactic acid, and lactulose.
Key Technologies
The production of high-purity Lac is a sophisticated process that leverages both chemical and enzymatic methods, often as part of a multi-step chemoenzymatic workflow. While our service is centered on Lac production from whey, it is important to note that the same advanced chemical and enzymatic techniques are critical for synthesizing complex human milk oligosaccharides (HMOs) where Lac serves as the base. Enzymatic synthesis, in particular, offers unparalleled specificity and mild reaction conditions, making it a preferred approach for creating complex glycans. Enzymes like β-galactosidases, which catalyze transgalactosylation reactions, are key to building these intricate structures. We utilize these cutting-edge technologies and deep expertise to ensure the highest possible yield and purity of your final product.
Lac Production Service at CD BioGlyco
CD BioGlyco has accumulated a variety of Production Solutions for Lac. The most commonly used method of Lac production is crystallization extraction. A large amount of by-product whey solution will be obtained after casein is removed by rennet precipitation in the production of cheese, while Lac is extracted from whey. Its production process includes three steps: form nuclei, crystal growth, and crystallization.
- Form zero-sized nuclei
The Lac molecule first forms zero-sized nuclei, a Lac crystallization.
- Crystal growth
Under the driving of supersaturation pressure, Lac molecules aggregate around the zero-sized nuclei and increase.
- Crystallization
The speed of the crystallization process is mainly affected by factors such as the crystallization agent, crystallization process, and impurities.
During crystallization, we precisely control temperature, pH, and concentration to form high-purity Lac crystals. The resulting Lac crystal slurry is then separated from the mother liquor using advanced centrifuges for optimal dehydration and initial purification. To achieve pharmaceutical-grade purity, the Lac crystals are re-dissolved and subjected to multiple purification steps, including activated carbon to adsorb impurities such as riboflavin and peptides. Additionally, we perform additional washing steps with cold water to remove residual contaminants, ensuring the highest purity of the final product. The final product undergoes rigorous quality control, such as high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC), to verify purity and composition.
Our services extend beyond simple Lac production; we also utilize our expertise in chemical and enzymatic synthesis to produce more complex HMO molecules. Leveraging our advanced synthetic capabilities, we help you produce the precise sugar structures required for your application.
Workflow
Publication Data
Journal: Journal of Mammary Gland Biology and Neoplasia
IF: 3.6
Published: 2021
Results: This article outlines Lac's cross-species variability, its link to milk volume and fat, and its role in oligosaccharide synthesis. It then covers Lac synthesis requirements: plasma glucose as the main precursor, key genes/proteins, and Golgi-localized synthesis steps. Also addressed are Lac synthesis timing—starting mid-late gestation (lactogenesis I) and accelerating post-partum (lactogenesis II) via hormonal shifts—and related gene/protein expression changes. Finally, it highlights Lac's importance and unresolved questions (e.g., in vivo LS regulation, LALBA glycosylation function).
Fig.1 A schematic representation of the biochemical and cellular requirements for Lac synthesis. (Sadovnikova, et al., 2021)
Advantages
Profound Technical Expertise
With many years of experience in glycoscience, our team of specialists possesses the profound technical knowledge required to troubleshoot challenges and optimize every step of the production process.
Guaranteed Ultra-high Purity
We have perfected our multi-stage purification process, which includes advanced crystallization and chromatography, to deliver Lac products with exceptional purity levels.
Scalable Production Capacity
Our facilities are equipped to handle projects of all sizes, from pilot-scale batches for research and development to large-scale, kilogram-plus production for commercial applications.
Frequently Asked Questions
Customer Review
"The material quality from CD BioGlyco's team exceeded our expectations for our new direct compression formulation. The consistency in the Particle Size Distribution was absolutely critical for our process validation, and their team delivered perfect batch-to-batch reliability, which has dramatically streamlined our production."
— Dr. A. K., Head of Formulation
"We required an ultra-high-purity lactose with specific low-end trace elements for a novel cell culture medium. The standard pharmaceutical-grade simply wasn't clean enough. CD BioGlyco tailored their purification protocol and provided us with a truly superior product that eliminated our previous batch variability issues."
— P.S., Senior Scientist
"Our infant nutrition product relies on a consistent, high-quality lactose supply. CD BioGlyco's commitment to process efficiency and their robust quality control meant we could secure a scalable, cost-effective, and consistently pure source."
— M.W., Procurement Director
Associated Services
Leveraging our advanced chemical and enzymatic capabilities, we synthesize a wide range of HMOs for research and commercial use.
Accurately analyze the glycan structures of your products with our state-of-the-art mass spectrometry and chromatography platforms.
Modify existing glycans or develop novel ones with our comprehensive modification services, including glycosylation, sulfation, and methylation.
CD BioGlyco keeps up with the forefront of the world's pharmaceutical technology and provides clients with timely and accurate one-stop lactose customization services. If you have any further queries, please contact us directly for more detailed information.
Reference
- Sadovnikova, A.; et al. A comparative review of the cell biology, biochemistry, and genetics of lactose synthesis. Journal of Mammary Gland Biology and Neoplasia. 2021, 26(2): 181-196. (Open Access)
