Painful muscle cramps in liver cirrhosis and effects of oral taurine administration
Author
Yamamoto S; Ohmoto K; Ideguchi S; Yamamoto R; Mitsui Y; Shimabara M; Iguchi Y; Ohumi T; Takatori K
Address
Division of Gastroenterology (I), Kawasaki Medical School.
Source
Nippon Shokakibyo Gakkai Zasshi, 91(7):1205 9 1994 Jul
Abstract
We administered 3 g of taurine orally for four weeks to 35 patients suffering from liver cirrhosis with repeated muscle cramp (MC). Improvement of MC was noted in 22 cases (62.9%). We also determined the plasma taurine concentration in eight cases of liver cirrhosis with MC. The plasma taurine concentration before ingestion was 54.1 +/ 20.7 nmol/ml, whereas that of four weeks after ingestion was 125.1 +/ 59.1 nmol/ml, which was significantly elevated by 2.3 fold. As the concentration increased, the frequency of MC decreased, suggesting the good correlation between ingestion and the decrease in frequency of MC. In liver cirrhosis without MC the plasma taurine concentration was 81.0 +/ 16.7 nmol/ml, which was significantly higher than in liver cirrhosis
with MC. In a few cases with taurine ingestion, serial plasma taurine concentrations were detected. Plasma taurine reached the peak value during the first week of ingestion and plasma taurine levels were maintained 2 5 fold higher during ingestion.
Taurine
Taurine, a sulfur containing amino acid derived from the amino acid cystine, is a component of the bile salts produced in the liver (it was first isolated from ox bile). It is important for proper digestion of fats and absorption of fat soluble vitamins. But only a fraction of available taurine is used to make bile salts,2 while an enormous amount floats freely inside cells.
Taurine is not incorporated into proteins but remains free in the tissues, especially muscle and nerve tissues. It has a number of therapeutic uses including acting as a membrane stabilizer and reducing arrhythmias of the heart. Taurine also enhances the contractile strength of heart muscle (called a positive inotropic effect)3, and thus can help treat heart failure which is a decreased ability of the heart to pump out all the blood that flows into it. When the heart is failing, the blood backs up and forces fluid out into the tissues (edema) by osmosis. This leads to either swelling of the legs or fluid in the lungs and shortness of breath, depending on which part of the heart is more involved.
In a 1984 animal study, taurine protected against heart failure, reducing mortality by 80 percent in the taurine treated group with no diminishment of cardiac function.4 In a later animal study in 1988, taurine was shown to lower blood pressure.5 My own clinical experience confirms some of these effects of taurine, and I commonly give it to patients with heart failure and high blood pressure.
Taurine is also beneficial for the eyes enhancing the rods and cones (the pigmented epithelial cells in the retina of the eye that serve as visual receptor cells). The greatest visual acuity occurs in the macular area of the retina near where the optic nerve enters from the back of the eye. With aging, the macula commonly degenerates as rods and cones die, often causing blindness. What causes the degeneration is not clear, but it is more common in diabetics and may be the result of free radical damage from ultraviolet light or oxygen exposure.6
A review of animal studies reveals that taurine appears to protect the eyes from macular degeneration.7 In one 1975 research report, a diet deficient in taurine was associated with retinal degeneration in cats.8 Thus, taurine can be part of a comprehensive approach to macular degeneration that also includes antioxidant nutrients, minerals, flavonoids, botanicals and chelation therapy (an intravenous therapy done in a doctor's office).
Because taurine is a neuroinhibitory amino acid, it may help treat seizure disorders. Some animal studies have suggested a role for taurine in controlling seizures, but the results are not consistent. In 1977, a cat with chronic epileptic seizures was successfully treated with taurine both orally and intravenously.9 Other studies have also suggested taurine's supportive role for seizures, but some clinical trials have shown limited benefits or have not confirmed this effect of taurine. I have used
taurine, in combination with magnesium and other nutrients, in my seizure patients with some success. It seems to enhance the effects of some of their seizure medications so they can take a lower dose.
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Taurine is the most abundant free amino acid in the brain, heart, and nervous system, and it plays a role in the normal functioning of the brain, heart, gallbladder, eyes, and vascular system. It facilitates the passage of sodium, potassium, and, possibly, calcium and magnesium, ions into and
out of cells, and electrically stabalizes cell membranes. It modulates the activity the activity of cAMP, which activates important enzymes in heary muscle, and contributes to the muscle's contractibility. Taurine is an important component of bile acids which aid in the absorption of fat soluble vitamins. It aids the body's chemistry by detoxifying harmful chemicals. Dietary taurine stimulates the formation of taurocholate, a substance which increases cholesterol secretion in the bile and also improves fat metabolism in the liver. Taurine offers a wide range of nutritional support to many organ systems throughout the body; as a supplement it is most notable known for
its heart muscle support.
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