The “pantryome” concept was proposed by Dr. Jeremy Burton, chair in human Microbiome and probiotics, Lawson Health Research Institute, University of Western Ontario. It is based on the idea of community sharing of nutritional metabolites produced by the microbiome. In other words, individual bacteria that lack some nutrients can access what they need from this shared pool of metabolites and can, in return, give excess metabolites back to the pool for other microorganisms to use.
This concept has important implications when thinking about health, wellness and disease in considering the microbial community as a whole and not just an individual bacterium.
Riboflavin seems to play a very important role for the pantryome, Dr. Robert Steinert, principal scientist at dsm-firmenich, told NutraIngredients during the recent IPA World Congress + Probiota in Copenhagen.
Riboflavin (vitamin B2) is a precursor for flavin mononucleotide (FMN) and flavin adenine dinucleotide (FAD), which contribute significantly to a wide array of metabolic processes, plus it is involved in the detoxification of inhibitory molecules to reduce reactive oxygen species (ROS), which fosters microbiome resilience.
Humiome
Anyone can take vitamin B2 (riboflavin) as a food supplement, but to influence the pantryome, it needs to get to the large intestine, Dr. Steinert said.
“That’s the key to our new concept [called Humiome],” he explained. “Usually, riboflavin and other B vitamins are very efficiently absorbed in the upper small intestine. They wouldn’t reach the colon and the microbiome, so we have been working on a so-called colon targeted delivery technology, building out of two layers, which allows the delivery, the very specific delivery of riboflavin to the colonic microbiome.”
dsm-firmenich conducted in vitro experiments screening a range of different vitamins to test their impact on the gut and found that consistently gut diversity was enriched through riboflavin in vitro and in vivo.
This was followed by clinical studies using the first versions of the colon target delivery systems, Dr. Steinert said.
dsm-firmenich developed an IP-protected Microbiome Targeted Technology (MTT), a dual-action colon-targeted delivery system featuring an innovative two-layer natural coating. The first coating protects the riboflavin core from the harsh, acidic environment of the stomach and small intestine. The outer layer withstands digestive enzymes and low pH, while the inner layer remains intact until it reaches the colon. Once it arrives in the colon, the inner coating dissolves and releases the riboflavin.
This reportedly ensures 90% of the riboflavin reaches the lower intestine and colon with 10% absorbed by the small intestine, unlike conventional vitamins where about 98% is efficiently absorbed in the upper small intestine at recommended daily doses.
Humiome riboflavin was launched in 2024, and the success of the ingredient could be viewed as a proof-of-concept. There is potential to apply the same technology to other B vitamins.
“We are now looking into B3, but we explore also other vitamins,” Dr. Steinert said.
Watch the video for the full interview
To watch our interview with Dr. Jeremy Burton, please click HERE.