Chrisman’s Val Prisecaru adds lead scientist to his long list of accolades
PROTECTED CONTENT
If you’re a current subscriber, log in below. If you would like to subscribe, please click the subscribe tab above.
Username and Password Help
Please enter your email and we will send your username and password to you.
As young child, Val Prisecaru always had an interest in science, math, physics and the environment around him. In 1981, at the age of six, Val and his family immigrated from Romania and moved to a suburb of Los Angeles. “It was hard to adjust at first since I couldn’t speak a word of English, but within a couple of years I was almost fluent,” Prisecaru said.
Prisecaru studied Aerospace Engineering at UCLA, then transferred to the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. “I got a Bachelor’s and Master’s Degree in Food Science and Human Nutrition from the University of Illinois,” Val told us. “I also completed most of my PhD work, but I left early to work in the private sector.”
His first job, however, had nothing to do with nutrition. “My first job was actually a project management and physics position in a start up company doing basic science research on power generation and batteries, including preliminary research into inline nuclear “warm fusion”,” Prisecaru said. “I was the COO (Chief Operating Officer) of this start up company I co-founded. It was difficult and a big learning curve, lots of managerial duties like payroll, taxes, HR and all that stuff.”
Now, Prisecaru is the Senior Director of R&D for EcoNugenics and the Functional Nutritionist at Two Roads Wellness Clinic at all of their locations throughout Central Illinois.
“EcoNugenics is a natural medicine and research company. Their main product is called PectaSol,” Val said. “It’s modified citrus pectin and it has anti-cancer, anti-heart disease, antiviral, anti-COVID and anti-inflammatory properties in general. We also have mushroom blend supplements. It’s a fantastic company that is changing the natural medicine landscape.”
In addition to those positions, Val is also a Professor and Program Director of Nutrigenomics at John Patrick University of Science and Allied Health in South Bend, Indiana.
“I also have my own telehealth nutrition coaching business. I also do occasional contract work as a precision health consultant for SelfDecode.com and bioinformatics and genetic analysis research for DataPunk Bioinformatics in Massachusetts.”
Prisecaru also has his own private practice, Atlas Genetics. “We do nutrigenomics and microbiome testing and analysis,” he said. “It’s next level stuff and our clients see many significant benefits.”
Just recently, Val received the position as Lead Scientist for Transformative Innovation at ADM in Decatur where he hopes to improve the quality of life for people all over the world using natural cutting edge food science and nutrition technologies.
“Most of my work deals with multi-omics. That is combining different fields of health and medicine, Nutrigenomics, microbiome and glycomics,” Prisecaru said. “Glycomics is the study of signaling sugars in the gut and the rest of the body.”
With all his success, Prisecaru credits his mentors who have helped him over the years.
“The best have been doctors Jim Painter and Ion Bainau, my advisors at U of I,” Prisecaru said. “Peter D’Adamo, who is a world-renown naturopathic doctor, author, long-time friend and collaborator on natural medicine.”
Though he has a lot on his plate, Val finds time to play board games and basketball, do martial arts, watch shows and movies and go hiking with his family.
Modern science is changing everyday and Prisecaru is grateful that he is a part of it. “I love learning new concepts about health and medicine and the past few years I have been actively incorporating genetics and microbiome into my knowledge base,” Val said. “I am gravitating toward what I think medicine will become in the future.”
