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Brazzein sweetener halves ice cream's blood sugar spike in fatty liver trial

Brazzein sweetener halves ice cream's blood sugar spike in fatty liver trial

New Capabilities

Protein up to 2,000 times sweeter than sugar cut post-meal glucose rises by about half in 101 adults with metabolic disease

October 10th, 2026: Clinical trial shows brazzein halves blood sugar spikes

Overview

Updated Oct 30

A protein from a West African fruit, up to 2,000 times sweeter than sugar, cut blood sugar spikes from ice cream by about half in a trial of 101 adults with fatty liver disease. The drop showed up in people with and without type 2 diabetes, and no serious side effects were reported.

Suppliers are building around the ingredient. Bestzyme's Mellia brazzein, cleared by the US Food and Drug Administration in April 2025, went into a dedicated production line in Jinan, China, in September. Rival supplier Oobli received its own FDA no-questions letter for a brazzein sweetener in September 2025. A 21-day trial in 60 healthy volunteers found no adverse effects.

Why it matters

If longer trials confirm the effect, brazzein could give people with diabetes and metabolic disease a natural way to cut sugar without artificial sweeteners.

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Key Indicators

101
Adults with MASLD in the trial
Randomized double-blind crossover trial of brazzein-sweetened ice cream
~50%
Reduction in blood sugar spikes
Post-meal glucose rises were about half as large with brazzein as with sugar
2,000x
Sweetness relative to sugar
Brazzein is up to 2,000 times sweeter than sucrose by weight
100 tons
Annual capacity of Bestzyme's Mellia line
Jinan plant capacity for recombinant brazzein, expected to double within two years
21 days
Healthy-volunteer safety trial duration
Daily recombinant brazzein was well tolerated in 60 healthy volunteers, with no adverse effects
80°C
Heat tolerance
Brazzein withstands temperatures up to 80°C, enabling use in many foods

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Organizations Involved

FR
Federal Research Center of Nutrition, Biotechnology and Food Safety
Government Research Institute
Conducted the clinical trial

Russian government research institute that ran the randomized double-blind crossover trial of brazzein-sweetened ice cream.
Clinical Nutrition ESPEN
Clinical Nutrition ESPEN
Peer-Reviewed Medical Journal
Published the brazzein trial

Peer-reviewed journal of the European Society for Clinical Nutrition and Metabolism that published the brazzein ice cream trial.
Bestzyme (GenScript)
Bestzyme (GenScript)
Company
Launched its first dedicated brazzein production line in Jinan, China, in September 2026

Biotech unit of GenScript that makes Mellia, a recombinant brazzein sweetener cleared by the US FDA in April 2025.
Oobli
Oobli
Company
Holds FDA no-questions letters for brazzein-53, brazzein-54 and monellin

Sweet-protein company that makes brazzein and monellin sweeteners by fermentation and has received US FDA no-questions letters for them.

Timeline

2023 October 2026

6 events Latest: October 10th, 2026 · 1 month ago
Tap a bar to jump to that date

  1. Clinical trial shows brazzein halves blood sugar spikes

    Latest Research

    Brazzein-sweetened ice cream cut post-meal glucose rises by about half in 101 adults with MASLD, with larger drops in type 2 diabetes participants.

  2. First dedicated brazzein production line goes online in China

    Commercial

    GenScript's Bestzyme unit completed a 53,800-square-foot Jinan plant for its Mellia brazzein with capacity above 100 tons a year. The ingredient got a US FDA no-questions letter in April 2025, and a US launch through a sparkling water brand is planned.

  3. 21-day trial finds brazzein safe in 60 healthy volunteers

    Research

    Daily recombinant brazzein was well tolerated, with no adverse changes in clinical or biochemical measures. Microbiota shifts were modest and exploratory, with no significant between-group differences in species counts or diversity.

  4. Sensory study finds brazzein ice cream matches sugar for taste

    Research

    In a double-blind crossover of 103 adults with MASLD, brazzein-sweetened ice cream met non-inferiority and equivalence vs sucrose for overall impression, with top-2 box acceptance of 96.1% vs 98.1% for sugar.

  5. Oobli receives FDA no-questions letter for brazzein-54

    Regulatory

    The FDA closed Oobli's notice on its brazzein-54 sweetener without questions, following earlier letters for brazzein-53 and monellin, the company said.

  6. Brazzein safety evaluation published

    Research

    Brazzein from engineered yeast found safe in 90-day rat study, with no adverse effects up to the highest dose tested.

Scenarios

1

Longer trials confirm brazzein's metabolic benefits

Possible Resolves by End of 2028

Discussed by: The study's own researchers, who called for longer-term studies in their published paper

The research team explicitly called for longer studies that swap sugar for brazzein across a range of commonly eaten foods. If those trials show sustained blood sugar benefits over weeks or months, brazzein could move toward broader clinical use and potentially into mainstream food products.

2

Brazzein gains regulatory approval as a sugar substitute

Possible Resolves by End of 2028

Discussed by: The 2023 safety evaluation published in the journal Food and Chemical Toxicology (via SAGE)

The safety evaluation of brazzein from engineered yeast found no adverse effects in a 90-day rat study, with a no-observed-adverse-effect level of 978-985 mg/kg body weight per day. Estimated human consumption is about 3 mg/kg per day, roughly 300 times below the no-effect level. If clinical benefits hold, regulators could approve brazzein as a food additive.

3

Effect traced mostly to recipe changes, not brazzein

Possible Resolves by End of 2027

Discussed by: The researchers themselves, who noted the sugar-free recipes differed in other ingredients

Sugar gives ice cream its bulk and viscosity, so the sugar-free recipes used different filler ingredients. A follow-up study that isolates brazzein's effect could show the blood sugar benefit comes mostly from removing sugar and adjusting the recipe, not from brazzein itself. The researchers gave credit to the whole formulation, not the protein alone.

4

Brazzein sweeteners reach US supermarket shelves in 2027

Possible Resolves by End of 2027

Discussed by: Bestzyme's September 2026 announcement of its Mellia production line

Bestzyme said its Mellia brazzein got a US FDA no-questions letter in April 2025 and that a US launch is planned through an unnamed sparkling water brand. If that product lands, brazzein would be among the first sweet proteins in mainstream US packaged food while its long-term clinical evidence base is still being built.

Historical Context

3 moments from history that rhyme with this story — and how they unfolded.

Mid-1990s

Thaumatin enters the food industry (mid-1990s)

Thaumatin, a sweet protein from the katemfe fruit of West Africa, was commercialized as a sweetener and flavor enhancer. It is at least 3,000 times sweeter than sucrose and is not a carbohydrate, making it suitable for diabetics.

Then

Food and confectionery industries adopted thaumatin as a natural sweetener and flavor enhancer.

Now

Thaumatin remains in use today, demonstrating that West African sweet proteins can find commercial markets.

Why this matters now

Thaumatin shows the path brazzein could follow: a West African fruit protein gaining regulatory approval and commercial use as a sweetener.

2023

Brazzein safety evaluation (2023)

Researchers expressed brazzein in the yeast Komagataella phaffii and ran a 90-day dietary toxicity study in rats. No adverse effects were found up to the highest dose tested, with a no-observed-adverse-effect level of 978-985 mg/kg body weight per day.

Then

The safety case for brazzein as a food additive was established.

Now

Estimated human consumption of 3 mg/kg body weight per day is roughly 300 times below the no-effect level in rats.

Why this matters now

This safety groundwork is what made the clinical trial in humans possible.

2026

Sweelin shows no blood glucose effect (2026)

A clinical trial of sweelin, a monellin-based sweet protein inspired by the serendipity berry, found it had no effect on blood glucose, insulin, or active GLP-1 levels in healthy individuals.

Then

Sweelin was positioned as a metabolically neutral sugar alternative.

Now

The results support the broader category of sweet proteins as sugar substitutes.

Why this matters now

Sweelin's results complement the brazzein trial, showing that sweet proteins generally don't raise blood sugar.

Sources

(12)
+6
ScienceAlert The Clarity SAGE Journals Wikipedia Food Chemistry (ScienceDirect) LifeMate Tech Food Production, Processing and Nutrition Exa Library Baking Business Clinical Nutrition ESPEN Bioengineer.org Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry