Editor’s Notice: This text is a reprint. It was initially revealed June 19, 2023.
In line with analysis revealed within the June 2023 concern of the journal Science,1,2
the semi-essential amino acid taurine seems to play an necessary position in longevity and wholesome growing older. Within the video above, biohacker and creator Siim Land opinions these findings.
Taurine3 has lengthy been recognized to profit mind4 and coronary heart well being.5 It’s additionally wanted for wholesome muscle perform,6 bile salt formation7 and antioxidant defenses.8 It protects your antioxidant standing by:
- Neutralizing hypochlorous acid, a neutrophil oxidant9
- Diminishing the technology of superoxide by the mitochondria10
- Minimizing oxidative stress,11 together with mitochondrial oxidative stress induced by toxins12
Taurine additionally helps rebuild broken collagen fibers13 and might help ease nervousness by rising glycine and GABA.14 Taurine is a byproduct of the sulphurous amino acids cysteine and methionine (technically a sulfonic acid), and is simply present in animal meals. Examples of taurine-rich meals embody seafood, pink meat, poultry and dairy merchandise. It’s additionally out there in complement type.
Taurine Impacts Longevity
Within the featured examine,15 a global analysis group discovered that oral supplementation with taurine elevated the wholesome lifespan of a wide range of animals. In mice, the median lifespan elevated by 10% to 12%. Life expectancy at 28 months was raised by 18% to 25%.
As reported by Science Alert:16
“Scientists have found not solely that animals age extra rapidly after they haven’t got sufficient of the amino acid taurine within the physique, however that oral taurine dietary supplements can delay growing older and improve a wholesome lifespan …
‘For the final 25 years, scientists have been looking for elements that not solely allow us to reside longer, but in addition improve well being span, the time we stay wholesome in our outdated age,’ says biologist Vijay Yadav from Columbia College, senior creator on the examine. ‘This examine means that taurine might be an elixir of life inside us that helps us reside longer and more healthy lives.’”
Taurine ranges lower by an estimated 80% over the course of the common lifetime,17 and this decline is partially associated to a lack of endogenous synthesis capability over time. Nonetheless, the quantity of taurine you get out of your food regimen additionally performs a job. Younger wholesome vegans, for instance, have roughly 20% decrease taurine ranges than their meat-eating counterparts.18
Taurine Protects Towards Hallmarks of Ageing
Animals given supplemental taurine didn’t simply reside longer, they have been additionally more healthy total. In mice, taurine improved:
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Energy, coordination and endurance |
Bone mass and bone high quality |
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Glucose homeostasis and glucose tolerance |
Age-related irritation |
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Immune perform |
Intestine well being |
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Reminiscence |
Operate of all organs |
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Mitochondrial perform and well being |
Apparently, in accordance with the authors, taurine “cured” osteoporosis. It’s not typically you see the phrase “remedy” being utilized in medical literature. Taurine additionally “suppressed ovariectomy-induced body-weight acquire in a rodent mannequin of menopause,” and diminished nervousness and depression-like habits within the mice.
Handled mice additionally had much less physique fats (roughly 10% much less at 1,000 milligrams of taurine per day) and better power ranges. In line with the authors, “Fats-pad weight divided by physique weight share was dose-dependently diminished in taurine-treated mice.” Taurine supplementation additionally improved a number of markers of growing older, together with:
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Senescence |
Intercellular communication |
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Telomere size |
Epigenetic modifications |
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Genomic stability |
Mitochondrial perform |
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Stem cell populations |
Nutrient sensing |
Taurine Results in Monkeys
Comparable results have been noticed when feeding taurine to rhesus monkeys. Fifteen-year-old monkeys (equal to 45 to 50 years outdated in people) got 250 mg per kg of body weight (equal to the 1,000 mg/kg given to mice) as soon as a day for six months. As reported by the authors:19
“Earlier than the beginning of taurine supplementation, physique weight and bone density weren’t considerably completely different within the two teams of aged monkeys. Three hours after oral feeding, serum taurine concentrations in taurine-fed monkeys have been about twice (65.4 ± 10.1 ng/ml) that in controls (35.1 ± 7.3 ng/ml).
Monkeys that obtained taurine gained 0.75 kg much less physique weight, and their fats share tended to be decrease in contrast with that of controls. In-life dual-energy x-ray absorptiometry (DEXA) evaluation after 6 months of taurine remedy confirmed that taurine elevated bone density and content material within the lumbar backbone (L1 to L4) and legs … in taurine-treated monkeys in contrast with management monkeys.
Serum markers of bone formation (osteocalcin) elevated, whereas these of resorption … decreased about 16 weeks after the beginning of remedy; these ranges have been maintained till the tip of the dosing interval.
Taurine remedy diminished fasting blood glucose concentrations by 19%. Taurine additionally diminished the serum concentrations of liver injury markers AST and alanine transaminase (ALT) by ~36 and 20%, respectively. Numbers of WBCs, monocytes, and granulocytes, which improve with age, have been decreased by ~50% in taurine-treated monkeys in contrast with management monkeys.
In keeping with the useful impact of taurine on the mitochondrial well being noticed in worms and mice, oblique markers of ROS-induced molecular injury … have been decreased by ~36, 11, and 20%, respectively, within the sera of taurine-supplemented monkeys. Thus, taurine has useful results on most examined well being parameters (physique weight, bone, glucose, liver, and immunophenotype) in nonhuman primates.”
Taurine Deficiency Related With Persistent Illness
In people, knowledge recommend individuals with decrease blood ranges of taurine have elevated threat of a number of power and/or degenerative illnesses, together with:20,21,22
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Weight problems |
Diabetes |
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Insulin resistance |
Liver illness |
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Hypertension |
Systemic irritation |
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Retinal degeneration |
Coronary heart illness |
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Immune dysfunction |
Muscle losing |
Taurine within the Therapy of Coronary heart Illness and Stroke
Importantly, sufferers affected by coronary heart failure are usually poor in taurine, which is regarded as associated to its capability to enhance mitochondrial perform and power metabolism. Restoring taurine ranges in these sufferers has been proven to enhance the contractile perform of their hearts.23
Stroke victims may additionally profit from taurine. As defined in a 2013 paper titled “Neuroprotective Mechanisms of Taurine Towards Ischemic Stroke”:24
“Taurine, an endogenous amino acid, reveals a plethora of physiological features. It reveals antioxidative properties, stabilizes membrane, features as an osmoregulator, modulates ionic actions, reduces the extent of pro-inflammators, regulates intracellular calcium focus; all of which contributes to its neuroprotective impact …
Ischemic stroke (cerebral ischemia) is because of a partial or full discount in blood move to the mind … Inadequate oxygen and glucose provide in cerebral ischemia results in unsustainable mobile homeostasis which initiates cell harm.
Mobile harm progresses on account of excitotoxicity, ionic imbalance, oxidative and nitrosative stresses, endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress and mitochondrial disturbances, finally leading to programmed cell dying and necrosis …
Because of the a number of pathophysiological mechanisms noticed in ischemic stroke/cerebral ischemia, present remedies stay principally ineffective other than thrombolytic remedy which makes use of thrombolytic recombinant tissue plasminogen activators (rt-PA) comparable to alteplase. This remedy permits solely a 3-4.5 h window for efficient remedy.
It subsequently turns into crucial to develop different compounds which might be multipotential in addressing the various pathological mechanisms in ischemic stroke/cerebral ischemia …
Taurine is ready to cross the blood-brain barrier and shows a plethora of features within the central nervous system (CNS) … Though taurine just isn’t definitively categorised as a neurotransmitter it fulfills many of the essential standards …
It modulates neurotransmission by eliciting inhibitory neuronal transmission by way of GABAA receptors, glycine receptors and putative taurine receptors …The elemental pathophysiological mechanisms concerned in ischemic stroke are glutamate excitotoxicity, calcium imbalance and oxidative stress which individually or collectively ends in cell dying.
Subsequently, taurine’s position as an inducer of inhibitory neurotransmission, an anti-oxidant, neuromodulator, regulator of calcium homeostasis and neuroprotector, probably makes it a perfect therapeutic agent for ischemic stroke.”
Taurine Concerned in Huge Number of Protecting Processes
Taurine may additionally be an necessary assist within the remedy of neurodegenerative illnesses comparable to Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s. The rationale for it is because taurine deficiency is related to endoplasmic reticulum stress,25 a significant contributor to prion illnesses. Taurine can also be regarded as necessary for correct protein folding.26
Disturbingly, the SARS-CoV-2 spike protein — launched by pure an infection or the mRNA COVID jabs — can move by way of the blood-brain-barrier and trigger injury leading to all the pieces from mind fog and dementia to Creutzfeldt-Jakob illness (human mad-cow illness),27,28,29 so taurine may additionally be invaluable within the remedy of COVID, long-COVID and/or post-jab accidents.
Earlier animal analysis30 on mice missing the taurine transporter additionally suggests taurine is concerned in all kinds of biologically protecting processes, as these mice ended up creating multiorgan dysfunction. This too helps the notion that taurine is a key participant in longevity and wholesome lifespan.
Taurine Is Necessary From Cradle to Grave
As famous by the authors of the featured Science examine, taurine seems to have an effect on all established hallmarks of growing older, making it a veritable fountain of youth:31
“Though we don’t but know the preliminary occasions that taurine elicits, we offer proof for the suppressed taurinylation of mitochondrial tRNAs throughout growing older in mitochondrial dysfunction, a outstanding characteristic of growing older.
It’s also doable that different taurine-derived biomolecules in addition to τm5U-tRNA could straight or not directly have an effect on mitochondrial homeostasis or different growing older options.
Certainly, taurine contributes to the manufacturing of a number of different biomolecules, relying on the cell sort or varieties that have an effect on, or can probably have an effect on, growing older … We suggest {that a} mixture of taurine and taurine-derived biomolecules could delay growing older by affecting varied growing older hallmarks in distinct cells and tissues …
[D]uring adolescence, taurine seems to be important for homeostasis in a number of organ methods, and its deficiency throughout growth could compromise these features postnatally.
In keeping with this speculation, organisms have a three- to fourfold increased taurine focus in embryonic tissues than in grownup tissues; furthermore, taurine deficiency throughout growth results in progress retardation, blindness, and osteoporosis, and its supplementation throughout gestation elevated bone mass postnatally …
It’s doable that developmental or postnatal modifications in taurine metabolism may have an effect on the speed of growing older throughout late life, and adjusting this endogenous equipment may prolong wholesome life span.”
As talked about earlier, taurine is present in animal meals comparable to seafood, pink meat, poultry and dairy merchandise, and it’s at all times finest to get your vitamins out of your food regimen.
For those who’re a vegan, nonetheless, it’s possible you’ll wish to think about a high-quality taurine complement, as you’re not getting any from the meals you eat. Whereas your physique can synthesize some taurine, it’s not going to be adequate in the long term, particularly as you become older and your physique’s capability to synthesize it diminishes.
