According to the study, the amino acid taurine could be employed in anti-aging therapies.
Our cells create potentially toxic byproducts identified as “no cost radicals” when they break down the oxygen we breathe and the meals we consume each day in order to exist. Some of these molecules execute critical biological functions, but if there are also a lot of of them, internal cellular structures can be broken, impairing the cells’ capability to function and top to chronic illness. We get in touch with this course of action oxidative tension.
Our bodies have a outstanding arsenal of antioxidant enzymes that enable preserve a healthful balance of reactive oxygen species, but as we age, these manage mechanisms decline. A current study published in the journal Nutrition suggests that supplementing the eating plan with the amino acid taurine could be a realistic method to solving this challenge.
The study published in the study was carried out at the University of Sao Paulo (USP) in Brazil. 24 female volunteers aged 55 to 70 participated in it. They had been randomly divided into two groups. A single group consumed 3 500 mg taurine capsules per day for 16 weeks (1.five g per day). A further group received tablets that basically contained cornstarch (placebo). Neither the volunteers nor the researchers had been conscious of which group every participant belonged to.
Oxidative tension markers had been analyzed in blood samples taken just before and right after the intervention. A single of the most intriguing findings was a almost 20% raise in levels of the antioxidant enzyme superoxide dismutase (SOD) in the taurine group, compared to a three.five% lower in the manage group. SOD, the scientists clarify, protects cells from the dangerous reactions of the superoxide radical.
“Stopping the make-up of no cost radicals that naturally happens with aging most likely prevents cardiovascular illness, diabetes and higher blood stress, amongst other chronic situations,” stated Ellen de Freitas. Freitas is a professor at the College of Physical Education and Sports of Ribeirao Preto (EEFERP-USP) and principal investigator for a project supported by FAPESP.
According to Freitas, extremely handful of research on the effects of taurine in the context of aging can be located in the scientific literature. “This study was a very first step, aimed at investigating the excellent dose and attainable side effects, none of which had been observed in any of the participants,” she stated.
Anti-aging therapy
Taurine is a nutrient located in specific foods, such as fish, shellfish, chicken, turkey and beef. In addition, it is naturally created in some tissues of the human physique, in particular the liver, and is critical for the functioning of the central nervous program, immunity, vision and fertility.
The Freitas group studied the antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties of taurine for at least ten years, initially in higher-efficiency athletes and later in obese humans, with every day doses ranging from three g to six g. “The final results showed that oxidative tension in these folks can be controlled when their eating plan is supplemented with this amino acid.” We then decided to test the method in the context of aging. “This was extremely new, so we began with a extremely low security dose,” Freitas stated.
The original strategy was to appear at the effects of taurine supplementation in mixture with exercising, as properly as each therapies separately. Physical activity is believed to be one particular of the most important strategies to regulate the levels of oxidizing substances and antioxidants in the physique, and the suitable quantity is believed to raise the rewards of taurine. Nevertheless, due to the pandemic and the truth that the volunteers had been in a group at higher threat for complications of COVID-19, the researchers decided to proceed exclusively with the nutritional element of the study, which can be monitored remotely.
In addition to SOD, two other markers of oxidative tension had been analyzed: the antioxidant enzyme glutathione reductase (GR), which substantially decreased in each groups, and malondialdehyde (MDA), which enhanced by 23% in the manage group and decreased by four% in to the group with taurine supplementation. .
“These final results had been modest, but we think that a greater dose of taurine could create stronger proof for its rewards,” Freitas stated.
To Gabriela Abud, the very first author of the report and at the moment a Ph.D. candidate at the Ribeirao Preto Health-related College (FMRP-USP), modifications in the volunteers’ eating plan in the very first months of the pandemic due to isolation could have impacted the final results of the biochemical evaluation.
“In addition to markers of oxidative tension, we analyzed the levels of minerals such as selenium, zinc, magnesium and calcium, which are critical for the functioning of these enzymes,” Abud explained. “Selenium, for instance, is a cofactor for glutathione peroxidase.” [which indirectly helps eliminate hydrogen peroxide from the organism] and was lowered in each groups.”
For Freitas, taurine supplementation is just the “icing on the cake” and can’t operate wonders on its personal. “A healthful life-style with a balanced eating plan and typical exercising is vital for an anti-aging impact,” she stated.
In the subsequent study, the group plans to enroll obese ladies aged 60-75 with sarcopenia, a gradual loss of muscle mass that can be exacerbated by chronic inflammation. “These persons face an acute threat of creating complications.” We will supply physical coaching linked with taurine supplementation of three g per day and observe attainable modifications due to these interventions,” stated Freitas.
It is critical to note that the rewards and dangers of adding taurine to the eating plan are nonetheless getting researched. Dietary supplements must not be taken without having healthcare supervision.
Reference: “Taurine as a attainable anti-aging therapy: a controlled clinical trial of the antioxidant activity of taurine in ladies aged 55 to 70 years” by M.Sc. Gabriela Ferreira Abud, Ph.D. Flavia Giolo De Carvalho, Ph.D. Gabriela Batitucci, Ph.D. Sofia Germano Traviezo B.Sc., Carlos Roberto Bueno Jr. Ph.D., Fernando Barbosa Jr. Ph.D., Julio Sergio Marquini Ph.D. and Dr. Ellen Kristinid Freitas, June 11, 2022. Nutrition.
DOI: ten.1016/j.nut.2022.111706