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HomePosts Tagged "Ayana Bio"
Allied Industry, Company News, Funding, R&D

Funding will support Ayana Bio’s research examining the neuroprotective benefits of saffron for Huntington’s disease and other neurological and age-related diseases

Ayana Bio, the plant cell technology company dedicated to creating sustainable bioactives for consumer products, has received a grant from the National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health (NCCIH), part of the National Institutes of Health (NIH), to support Ayana Bio’s research into the production of saffron’s neuroprotective bioactives through plant cell cultivation.  

Clinical studies demonstrate saffron’s beneficial effects across a range of neurological and age-related diseases, such as depression, anxiety and Alzheimer’s disease. Saffron’s neurological effects are also proven to aid in weight loss by increasing satiety, making it a powerful health ingredient with interconnected benefits.

The $300 thousand NIH grant will fund Ayana Bio’s research to identify which complex of saffron bioactives can consistently demonstrate the highest neuroprotective benefits, specifically for Huntington’s disease. The company will use its high-throughput synthetic biology capabilities of sequencing, multi-omics technology, and analytical chemistry to explore and select the best plant cell lines. The research will also address how plant cell cultivation can enhance the production of saffron’s bioactive by running a pre-clinical study on a C. elegans model of Huntington’s disease. Identifying a standardized complex of bioactives that can be produced consistently will allow researchers to study saffron’s health benefits more effectively for a range of diseases.

Plant cell cultivation is a means to create plant materials without growing plants in the ground. Saffron cells will be grown in temperature-controlled, stainless steel tanks that create a reliable source of real saffron – and its beneficial bioactive complex – bypassing the quality issues that come from the constraints of conventional agriculture. Traditional saffron production requires up to 170,000 flowers to produce just one kilo of saffron, making it a prohibitively expensive health and wellness ingredient. Challenges associated with growing saffron are amplified by the worsening effects of climate change, which drive crop failures in the already constrained supply chain.

Funding will support Ayana Bio's research examining the neuroprotective

Agrotech, Company News, Sustainability

Ayana Bio’s lemon balm and echinacea are non-GMO plant powders with standardised hallmark bioactive compositions

Ayana Bio, the plant cell technology company announced the first-ever launch of plant cell-cultivated lemon balm and echinacea health and wellness ingredients, starting with the U.S. market. These products have the bioactive composition of conventionally grown botanicals and can directly replace lemon balm and echinacea in dietary supplement formulations for sleep, mood and immune support.  

Ayana Bio’s products are produced using plant cell cultivation technology, a means to create plant materials without growing plants in the ground. The process begins by identifying the best plant cell lines—similar to traditional plant breeding. These plant cells are propagated from authenticated plants and are assessed to identify the ideal line for important characteristics like bioactive potency, composition and stability. Ayana Bio further optimises the conditions and nutrients the plant cells need to grow and multiply. Unlike some plants that take years to grow and mature in the ground, plant cells are fully propagated and harvested as an ingredient in just a few weeks.

Ayana Bio’s lemon balm and echinacea are non-GMO plant powders with standardised hallmark bioactive compositions. These bioactive-rich ingredients were created as alternatives to overcome the supply challenges of agriculturally derived lemon balm and echinacea. Lemon balm supports sleep and mood, and echinacea offers immune benefits, but both can face harvesting issues like adulteration, pesticides, contamination, inconsistent quality, seasonal weather variation, infection and limitation of active metabolites.

“The dietary supplement industry is in desperate need of bioactive that are traceable and more sustainable,” said Frank Jaksch, chief executive officer of Ayana Bio. “Bringing plant cell-derived health and wellness ingredients to these markets will help CPGs access the full spectrum of the bioactive characteristic of these plants without the supply chain challenges. Consumers are seeking out products for healthier lifestyles and a healthier planet.”

Plant cell cultivation avoids traditional production challenges while yielding the identical molecular composition and the same health and wellness benefits as agricultural counterparts – and can be tailored to even higher concentrations of bioactive. These plant cell-derived ingredients are DNA-fingerprint certified and clean label, with standardised phytocomplex, increased bioavailability, full traceability and a neutral taste and colour.

“Agricultural limitations have long been a hurdle in harvesting our most beneficial ingredients,” said Effendi Leonard, chief technology officer of Ayana Bio. “Plant cell technology is creating a sustainable future of standardised botanical ingredients as CPG companies partner with innovative companies to incorporate clean label bioactive across their product lines. We’re proud to be the first to commercialise the products of this technology for health and wellness in these key markets.”

Ayana Bio's lemon balm and echinacea are non-GMO