Scientists say they have found a way to make a rare sugar that behaves almost exactly like table sugar, but with far fewer health drawbacks. The breakthrough could make the sweetener cheap and abundant enough for everyday foods.

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Researchers describe the advance as a potential turning point in how sugar alternatives are produced.

A production leap

According to Science Daily, engineers at Tufts University have developed a biosynthetic method that converts ordinary glucose into tagatose with exceptional efficiency.

By using genetically engineered bacteria, the team achieved yields as high as 95%, far above existing industrial methods.

“There are established processes to produce tagatose, but they are inefficient and expensive,” said Nik Nair, an associate professor of chemical and biological engineering at Tufts.

The findings were published in Cell Reports Physical Science.

How it works

The researchers modified Escherichia coli bacteria to function as microscopic factories. A key step was inserting a newly identified enzyme from slime mold, galactose-1-phosphate-selective phosphatase.

This enzyme allows the bacteria to generate galactose directly from glucose. Another enzyme, arabinose isomerase, then converts the galactose into tagatose.

Nair said this approach reverses a natural metabolic pathway, making the process both faster and more economical than earlier techniques that relied on scarce galactose.

Why tagatose matters

Tagatose occurs naturally but only in tiny amounts. It forms in dairy products when lactose breaks down and appears in trace levels in fruits such as apples and oranges, usually making up less than 0.2% of total sugars.

Despite its rarity, tagatose closely matches sucrose in taste, delivering about 92% of sugar’s sweetness while containing roughly 60% fewer calories.

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It has also been classified by the US Food and Drug Administration as “generally recognized as safe,” allowing its use in consumer foods.

Health profile

Only part of tagatose is absorbed in the small intestine, with much of it fermented by gut bacteria. As a result, studies show it has a much smaller impact on blood glucose and insulin levels than conventional sugar.

Researchers say it may also limit the growth of cavity-causing oral bacteria and support healthier gut microbes.

Cooking and future uses

Unlike high-intensity sweeteners, tagatose acts as a bulk sweetener. It browns when heated and closely replicates sugar’s texture and mouthfeel in cooking and baking.

Nair said the same biosynthetic strategy could be adapted to produce other rare sugars, potentially reshaping the sweetener industry.