How Ārepa and the Biotechnologies Group at Callaghan Innovation are extracting a brain-boosting bioactive - sarmentosin - from blackcurrant waste-streams.
At a glance
- Ārepa, a brain-food technology company, is developing a novel sarmentosin isolate from blackcurrant by-products.
- Callaghan Innovation’s Biotechnologies Group is leading the extraction, scale-up, and commercial validation of the high-value compound.
- This initiative recovers value from blackcurrant pomace while adding a regulatory-pathway-ready nutraceutical to Ārepa’s product pipeline.
With Callaghan Innovation’s continued R&D support, we’re building the capability to bring this beneficial bioactive compound to the world. While our focus is on how to extract the sarmentosin compound from our blackcurrants, we're also actively looking at how we can reduce food waste and processing by-products. These motivations combine in this ongoing project.
Angus Brown, Co-founder, Ārepa
From pomace to pilot-scale production
Blackcurrants are known for their high antioxidant content and are widely used in juice concentrates. However, many beneficial bioactive compounds remain trapped in the pomace - skins, seeds, and pulp left behind during processing.
Among them is sarmentosin, a naturally occurring monoamine oxidase-B (MAO-B) inhibitor with clinically validated mood, cognition, and resilience-enhancing properties. MAO breaks down neurotransmitters like serotonin, dopamine, and norepinephrine, often referred to as "happy hormones". By inhibiting MAO, sarmentosin may help increase the levels of these neurotransmitters, improving mood and mental performance, as shown in trials.
Ārepa partnered with the Biotechnologies Group to bridge the gap between small-scale sarmentosin isolation and a pilot-scale production system. This scale-up process is crucial to making naturally scarce compounds viable for use in supplements and other health-related products.
The experts behind the extract
The Biotechnologies Group is working closely with Ārepa to purify, scale, and validate the commercial production of sarmentosin. Early-stage work has successfully scaled extraction up to 50 litre trials, a major step toward establishing a pilot-scale production system capable of supplying global partners and Ārepa’s own brain-health products.
This is exactly the kind of end-to-end challenge we love - taking a promising compound, proving its bioactive profile, supporting extraction and scale-up, then building the pathway to bring it to market.
Dawn Scott, Team Lead, Lipids and Natural Products, Callaghan Innovation
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