Project title: “Glycomacropeptide (GMP) derived from cheese whey: treating obesity by manipulating satiety hormones and the gut microbiota”
Funding began March 2020
Denise Ney
Professor | Nutritional Sciences
UW–Madison
A major part of Denise Ney’s research career has been the development of medical foods for peoplewith the rare genetic disorder, phenylketonuria (PKU). Ney and her collaborators discovered added benefits of GMP, which is derived from cheese whey, during her PKU research.
Ney created a value-added protein supplement to treat obesity and prevent related health problems in humans. Obesity affects one in three adults and contributes to inflammation, diabetes, cardiovascular disease and premature death. GMP is a 64 amino acid glycophosphopeptide isolated from cheese whey.
Initial pilot studies in humans and mice indicated that GMP had anti-obesity properties, especially in females. GMP reduced hunger hormones and inflammatory cytokines, increased fat oxidation and functioned as a prebiotic to alter the gut microbiota.
With funding from the Dairy Innovation Hub, Ney and her collaborator Karen Hansen, evaluated the effect of GMP on satiety hormones, glucose homeostasis and the gut microbiota in 13 obese, postmenopausal women in a crossover study. The goals were to obtain additional data supporting GMP as a weight loss supplement, leading to future research. The tangible outcome is the creation of a novel GMP protein supplement from sweet cheese whey that treats obesity. This product is currently seeking a buyer and has been patented by WARF.
Findings
This study was published in July 2023 in the Journal of Nutrition. In addition to Denise Ney, Karen Hansen, Sangita Murali, Ibrahim Z. Chaves and Garret Suen are co-authors on the paper.
The team found that Ingestion of GMP supplements reduced Streptococcus and increased amylin concentrations, improved glucose homeostasis, and altered the fecal microbiome. GMP can be a helpful nutritional supplement in obese postmenopausal women at risk for metabolic syndrome. Further investigation is warranted.
This paper is published in a free, open access format. Go to sciencedirect.com and enter “Denise Ney” in the author search function.
Read more about those involved in this work:
STUDENT PERSPECTIVE
Ibrahim Zuniga-Chaves
PARTICIPANT PERSPECTIVE
Study participant feels compelled to contribute to science, solutions