2023-06-12 19:11:45
Other studies suggest that these beneficial effects may be carried over to humans.
Taurine, the next anti-aging remedy? A study conducted by the American University of Columbia and published in the journal Science shows that supplementation with taurine, an amino acid found naturally in the body and popularized by energy drinks, improved the health and lifespan of worms and mice. Taurine is naturally present in the human body. It is a sulfur amino acid found at many levels in the body, abundant in the heart, retina, skeletal muscle and brain. Taurine can also be provided by food.
“Middle-aged mice supplemented with taurine had a 10% to 12% longer lifespan than those given water,” says the research coordinated by Indian biologist specializing in molecular physiology Vijay Kumar, at in which 56 scientists took part.
Among other health gains, the researchers found that taurine suppressed age-related weight gain in female mice (even in “postmenopausal” mice), increased energy expenditure as well as bone mass, improved muscle endurance and strength, reduced depressive and anxious behaviors as well as insulin resistance, and made the immune system more efficient.
At the cellular level, taurine improved many functions that typically decline with age: supplementation decreased the number of “zombie cells” (old cells that should be dying but linger and release harmful substances), increased survival after telomerase deficiency, increased the number of stem cells present in certain tissues (which can help tissues heal after injury), improved mitochondrial performance, reduced DNA damage and improved the ability of cells to sense nutrients.
Similar effects of taurine supplements were also observed in middle-aged rhesus monkeys. It remains to be determined whether such beneficial consequences of this amino acid could be found in humans. In any case, two studies suggest that this could be the case.
In the first, the researchers examined the relationship between taurine levels and around 50 health parameters in 12,000 European adults aged 60 and over. Overall, people with higher taurine levels were healthier, with fewer cases of type 2 diabetes, lower levels of obesity and inflammation, and reduced hypertension. “These associations do not establish a causal link,” the scientists clarified, “but the results are consistent with the possibility that taurine deficiency contributes to human aging.”
The second study aimed to test whether taurine levels were changed by exercise. The researchers thus measured taurine levels before and after a cohort of male athletes and sedentary people had completed intense cycling training, and found a significant increase in taurine in all groups of athletes (sprinters, runners endurance and bodybuilders) and sedentary people.
“Regardless of the individual, all had increased taurine levels after exercise, suggesting that some of the health benefits of exercise may come from an increase in this amino acid,” the study points out. Taurine takes its name from the radical “taurus” which means “bull” because it was first isolated from bull bile.
1686612091
#Taurine #intake #slows #aging #maintains #health #study