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What are the possible applications for the supplemental use of the amino acid taurine in humans?

Introduction

Taurine, or 2-aminoethanesulfonic acid, is a non-protein amino acid that is formed from the metabolism of L-cysteine and it is the principal free intracellular amino acid in the tissues of human beings and other animal species.  It is present in high concentrations in the brain, smooth and skeletal muscle, myocardium, platelets and meutrophils and is thought to help maintain cell membranes, regulate heartbeat and affect the release of neurotransmitters in the brain.

Research into taurine and its possible applications as a supplement was greatly stimulated when it was discovered that it is an essential nutrient for cats and that its deficiency in cats can cause degradation of the retina, abnormalities in platelet function, as well as dilated cardiomyopathy.  Following the discovery of the effects of taurine deficiency in cats, it was also observed that infants fed baby formula lacking adequate amounts of taurine had lower plasma levels than infants who were breast-fed.  Consequently, taurine is now a common addition to most infant formulas.

This essay provides a brief insight into some of the potential applications of taurine and aims to illustrate whether varying the concentration of taurine in the body, through the use of taurine supplements, can invoke beneficial physiological responses.

Taurine Supplements and the Heart

Taurine makes up more than 50 percent of the heart's total amino acid concentration and plays a key role in regulating the contraction of the heart muscle.  It also helps to regulate blood pressure and platelet aggregation.

Studies have shown that taurine supplements may be useful in the treatment of congestive heart failure.  For example, in one double-blind trial 58 people with congestive heart failure took either a placebo or a 2g taurine supplement three times per day for four weeks. The groups were then switched.  It was evident that during taurine treatment there was a significant reduction in breathlessness, heart palpitations, fluid accumulation and heart failure severity.  Given this significant discovery, a further trial was conducted in order to compare the efficacy of taurine with that of another supplement commonly used to treat congestive heart failure, coenzyme Q. Taurine was found to be more effective. In a further study on 24 subjects it was found that the administration of 2g of taurine, twice a day, resulted in a clinical improvement in 19 of the subjects. The improvement was confirmed by roentgenographic data.

A widespread cause of cardiovascular disease is secondary iron overload and hereditary hemochromatosis.  In these conditions iron is deposited in tissues of the heart and results in increased free radical production, causing oxidative damage to the heart.  Given the known potent antioxidant properties of taurine, the potential use of taurine supplements in reversing the oxidative damage caused by iron overload was investigated. Researchers injected two groups of mice with iron to create iron overload.  Two weeks before receiving the iron the mice received either taurine or a placebo in their drinking water.  This was continued until the end of the study.  It was observed that mice that were injected with iron exhibited signs of heart failure and increased mortality.  Cardiac function, heart rate, blood pressure and overall mortality were improved in the iron-overloaded mice who received taurine.  Oxidative stress was also reduced in the mice subjected to taurine.  When the hearts of the mice were examined, those that received taurine were found to have reduced myocardial iron levels compared to the mice that received iron without taurine.

Taurine supplements have also been shown to reduce hypertension in rats and have been shown to reverse successfully taurine depletion and the associated increased duration of action potentials and QT intervals in rats.

Taurine and Cystic Fibrosis

Most cystic fibrosis patients cannot properly absorb dietary fats because of pancreatic insufficiency, which leads to the inadequate hydrolysis of lipids.  A study of the effects of taurine on 22 paediatric cystic fibrosis patients found that taurine supplementation caused an increase in weight in 50 percent of the subjects and increased height in forty percent. Steatorrhea improved significantly in six patients but bile acid malabsorption improved only in the patients with high degree of steatorrhea.  These results suggest that taurine supplementation can be a useful additional form of therapy in cystic fibrosis patients with fat malabsorption.  However, it should be noted that only some, not all, investigators have reported improvement in fat digestion among people with cystic fibrosis when subjects were supplemented with 30mg taurine per 2.2 pounds of body weight daily. Greater improvement was seen in people with the worst maldigestion.

Taurine and Viral Hepatitis

There is some evidence that taurine may be helpful in the treatment of viral hepatitis, an often dangerous infection that causes inflammation of the liver. In one particular double-blind study, 63 people with viral hepatitis were given either 12g of taurine daily or a placebo.  Blood tests revealed that the group that was administered taurine experienced significant improvements in liver function when compared to the placebo group.  However, it is worth pointing out that taurine did not have any positive effects on patients with chronic hepatitis.

Taurine and Diabetes

Taurine supplementation is proving to be beneficial for individuals with Type 2 diabetes since many sufferers of the condition have low levels of the amino acid, as well as low insulin levels.  Studies have shown that taurine supplementation is a successful means of reversing this taurine deficiency and helps to improve the symptoms of diabetes.  For example, experiments have shown that taurine is able to reduce the impact of diabetes on the retina, lens and peripheral nerve as well as improving mortality in diabetic rats. Furthermore, taurine was able to prevent the destruction of kidney cells caused by high blood glucose levels. It is also worth noting here that taurine supplementation has been shown to help prevent kidney damage caused by excessive salt ingestion. The majority of studies suggest that taurine supplementation could be useful in the treatment of Type 1 diabetes and in the prevention of insulin resistance.

Benefits of Taurine for Anaemia and Post-Operative Recovery

Since taurine facilitates the transport of iron from the blood stream to the tissues, taurine supplementation can also improve the symptoms of anaemia since the passage of oxygen to tissue cells is enhanced by the improved iron transportation. As a result, taurine is often given to patients shortly before operations in order to prevent potential surgery-related problems such as anaemia resulting from excessive blood loss and kidney damage due to the restriction of fluids following an operation.  In addition, researchers have also discovered that taurine supplementation prior to an operation assisted the post-operative wound healing process by speeding up the recovery time of wounds and strengthening the skin around the wound.  This seems to be linked to the discovery that taurine increases the production of collagen (a fibrous protein found extensively in the connective tissue of skin).

Conclusion

From the preceding discussion it is clear that taurine has many apparent and potential benefits for human beings.  These benefits range from the use of taurine to treat certain cardiovascular conditions to its application in reducing complications associated with diabetes, cystic fibrosis, and other prevalent conditions.  Although some of the promising results have followed from experiments on animals there are positive signs that taurine has many useful applications for human health as well.  Indeed, many of the experiments referred to above were conducted on human subjects and the positive impact of taurine on human subjects is widely reported.  As a result, potentially new applications for taurine in human health are constantly being investigated.  For example, studies are ongoing in the hope that taurine could eventually be used to reverse liver damage caused by excessive alcohol consumption following initial indications that taurine supplements may help to reverse, or even prevent, the build up of liver fat.  The promising effect on human beings has meant that research into the effects of taurine supplementation continues at an exciting pace and promises much.

REFERENCES

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