Browsing by Subject "Taurine"

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    Energy drink consumption: a rising public health issue
    (IMR Press, 2022) Kaur, Amandeep; Yousuf, Hamza; Ramgobin-Marshall, Devyani; Jain, Rahul; Jain, Rohit; Medicine, School of Medicine
    Energy drink (ED) consumption has become a growing public health issue over the past few decades. Despite claims of being safe and beneficial, EDs have been linked to particularly fatal outcomes associated with the cardiovascular system which include atrial and ventricular arrhythmias, myocardial infarctions, cardiomyopathies, and sudden cardiac death. Large quantities of caffeine, taurine, sugars, and B-vitamins may be contributing to these outcomes by increasing the heart rate, blood pressure (BP), and contractility of the heart in addition to prolonging the QTc. There is still a substantial amount of unknown information on EDs that warrants more research and a dire need for age regulations, transparency of ingredients, clear labeling of adverse effects, and most importantly, education of consumers.
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    Impact of acamprosate on plasma amyloid-β precursor protein in youth: a pilot analysis in fragile X syndrome-associated and idiopathic autism spectrum disorder suggests a pharmacodynamic protein marker
    (Elsevier, 2014-12) Erickson, Craig A.; Ray, Balmiki; Maloney, Bryan; Wink, Logan K.; Bowers, Katherine; Schaefer, Tori L.; McDougle, Christopher J.; Sokol, Deborah K.; Lahiri, Debomoy K.; Department of Psychiatry, IU School of Medicine
    BACKGROUND: Understanding of the pathophysiology of autism spectrum disorder (ASD) remains limited. Brain overgrowth has been hypothesized to be associated with the development of ASD. A derivative of amyloid-β precursor protein (APP), secreted APPα (sAPPα), has neuroproliferative effects and has been shown to be elevated in the plasma of persons with ASD compared to control subjects. Reduction in sAPPα holds promise as a novel molecular target of treatment in ASD. Research into the neurochemistry of ASD has repeatedly implicated excessive glutamatergic and deficient GABAergic neurotransmission in the disorder. With this in mind, acamprosate, a novel modulator of glutamate and GABA function, has been studied in ASD. No data is available on the impact of glutamate or GABA modulation on sAPPα function. METHODS: Plasma APP derivative levels pre- and post-treatment with acamprosate were determined in two pilot studies involving youth with idiopathic and fragile X syndrome (FXS)-associated ASD. We additionally compared baseline APP derivative levels between youth with FXS-associated or idiopathic ASD. RESULTS: Acamprosate use was associated with a significant reduction in plasma sAPP(total) and sAPPα levels but no change occurred in Aβ40 or Aβ42 levels in 15 youth with ASD (mean age: 11.1 years). Youth with FXS-associated ASD (n = 12) showed increased sAPPα processing compared to age-, gender- and IQ-match youth with idiopathic ASD (n = 11). CONCLUSIONS: Plasma APP derivative analysis holds promise as a potential biomarker for use in ASD targeted treatment. Reduction in sAPP (total) and sAPPα may be a novel pharmacodynamic property of acamprosate. Future study is required to address limitations of the current study to determine if baseline APP derivative analysis may predict subgroups of persons with idiopathic or FXS-associated ASD who may respond best to acamprosate or to potentially other modulators of glutamate and/or GABA neurotransmission.
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    Taurine, an osteocyte metabolite, protects against oxidative stress-induced cell death and decreases inhibitors of the Wnt/β-catenin signaling pathway
    (Elsevier, 2020-08) Prideaux, M.; Kitase, Y.; Kimble, M.; O’Connell, T.M.; Bonewald, L.F.; Anatomy and Cell Biology, School of Medicine
    Taurine has been shown to have positive effects on bone mass, which are thought to be due in part to its cytoprotective effects on osteoblasts and here we show that taurine also protects osteocytes against cell death due to reactive oxygen species. Using the IDG-SW3 cell line, the expression of the taurine uptake transporter Taut/Slc6a6 is increased during osteoblast to osteocyte differentiation. Taurine had no effect on genes associated with osteoblast to osteocyte differentiation such as Dmp1, Phex or osteocalcin, even at high doses, but a slight yet significant inhibition of alkaline phosphatase was observed at the highest dose (50 mM). No effect was seen on the osteoclast regulatory genes Rankl and Opg, however the wnt antagonist Sost/sclerostin was potently and dose-dependently downregulated in response to taurine supplementation. Taurine also significantly inhibited Dkk1 mRNA expression, but only at 50 mM. Interestingly, osteocytes were found to also be able to synthesize taurine intracellularly, potentially as a self-protective mechanism, but do not secrete the metabolite. A highly significant increase in the expression of cysteine dioxygenase (Cdo), a key enzyme necessary for the production of taurine, was observed with osteoblast to osteocyte differentiation along with a decrease in methionine, the precursor of taurine. For the first time, we describe the synthesis of taurine by osteocytes, potentially to preserve viability and to regulate bone formation through inhibition of sclerostin.