26/08/2025
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What is lunasin and what makes it a revolutionary health ingredient?
The current conventional wisdom in the drug industry and in the biomedical research community is that aging and chronic disease formation are caused by accumulation of changes to DNA sequences or within genes themselves through mutations. As a result, preventive strategies using supplements involved in reducing mutation rates (ex. antioxidants), and therapeutic drugs are developed to counteract the impact of genes found mutated and/or disrupted in disease conditions.
The science of epigenetics, the study of how gene expressions are regulated, is currently revolutionizing aging biology, medicine, and healthcare. Breakthroughs in epigenetics are now revealing that the underlying cause of aging and chronic disease formation is NOT changes to DNA but rather the disruptions to the packaging of the DNA that regulates how genes are turned on and off, as well as how much and how little (like a thermostat for the cell). Changes to the DNA that cause mutations and genomic instability occur only because the epigenome allows them to occur.
Lunasin was discovered by Dr. Alfredo Galvez in 1996 at the height of the Human Genome Sequencing Project when epigenetics research is practically non-existent and epigenetics is considered a fringe science. Lunasin is the first biological agent identified to have an epigenetic mechanism of action that can specifically modify gene expression. Dr. Galvez was able to demonstrate that lunasin can bind to the packaging material of DNA and turn off expression of cancer-causing genes in cells that were exposed to chemical carcinogens and viral oncogenes. As a result, these cells die instead of becoming cancer cells.
Lunasin has been shown in research experiments to have numerous health effects. It was first discovered as a cancer preventive agent, preventing normal cells from becoming cancerous, which has been confirmed independently by other researchers. Lunasin was identified as the active ingredient in soy protein responsible for the FDA approved health claim that consuming soy protein can reduce bad cholesterol and lower the risk for cardiovascular disease. Other research institutions have shown that lunasin has antioxidant properties, is a potent anti-inflammatory agent and can improve immune functions in the body.
The reason why lunasin has multiple health effects is because of its novel epigenetic mechanism of action. It can bind to histones, the packaging material of DNA, and can turn on expression of genes important to cellular health and turn off expression of bad genes that can cause damage to the cell. As a result, lunasin can affect multiple genes and multiple pathways in different cells to help our bodies function optimally. This is unlike the effect of drugs that target mainly single genes or physiological pathways affecting specific health problems.
What also makes lunasin special is that it was discovered in soybean seeds, a common food source. And since it is found to have an important role in seed development, it is also found in seeds of other plants although in some cases, it is broken down and cannot be detected in mature seeds. Since lunasin is not a drug but an ingredient in a generally recognized as safe (GRAS) food, we are able to extract bioactive lunasin (lunasin that is still potent even when digested) from soy powders to produce lunasin-enriched soy concentrate and incorporate into soy protein products that have been in the market for more than 14 years. There have been no reported adverse events associated with the use of lunasin-containing products which makes them safe for human consumption.
Since lunasin-containing products have been in the market, there have been numerous anecdotal results from consumers about the health benefits of lunasin that confirm the findings from experiments in research institutions around the world. We are gathering these anecdotal evidence as potential case studies to convince private and government funding agencies to help fund human clinical trials and validate the health benefits of lunasin.
