A Perspective of Soy Isoflavones on Analytical, Biological, and Chemical Attributes

This review covers key aspects of soybean ( Glycine max ), with a particular focus on its isoflavone content and biological properties. Soybeans maintain their position as both a nutraceutical and a pharmaceutical crop, with a broad range of dietary items used worldwide, including soy milk, fermented soy products, and various dietary supplements. This review primarily focuses on diverse extraction and isolation techniques for isoflavones used to obtain bioactive compounds from soybean seeds, thereby providing a comprehensive overview for advanced research. Soybeans are an excellent dietary source of protein, fibre, and various secondary metabolites, among which the most important are isoflavones. Isoflavones from soybean have been a privileged class of secondary metabolites, and genistein has been extensively studied for its anticancer potential. Here, we compile key articles reporting the derivatization of genistein to demonstrate its therapeutic potential. In addition, we have also included the biosynthesis of various soy isoflavones, the metabolism of key isoflavones, and the total synthesis of genistein, daidzein, and glycitein. Overall, this article will serve as a summary of the key research findings to date, help identify the research gap, and provide inspiration for future advanced research.