Taurine feeding

TAKE K, BISWAS B K, YOSHIDA A, SAKOGUCHI K, IKEUE Y and BISWAS A (2010) Needs Of taurine, feeding stimulant and lecithin in enzyme treated fish-meal diet for juvenile Pacific bluefin tuna. Aquaculture 2010. Baton Rouge, CA World Aquaculture Society, 386. 

HF Erbersdobler, HG Greulich, E Trautwein. Determination of taurine in foods and feeds using an amino acid analyzer. J Chromatogr 254 332-334, 1983. 

Feeding experimental animals on high taurine diets results in increased urinary excretion, but has Utde or no effect on endogenous synthesis. 

Changes in gait and reflexes indicates malfunctions of the cerebellum (Sturman et al, 1985). (The cerebellum is the part of the brain used to control the coordination of movements of the extremities.) Apparently, taurine serves some unique functions in the nervous system. These findings have prompted food companies to include taurine in their infant formulas and in solutions intended for parenteral feeding. However, whether humans can benefit from taurine in the diet is not clear. 

The microsomal 12a-hydroxylase seems to be influenced by the flux of bile acids through the liver in a similar way as cholesterol 7a-hydroxylase. Biliary drainage in rats leads to a 2-fold stimulation of 12a-hydroxylase [44] perhaps due to reduced intake of food [252]. However, it was shown later that 12a-hydroxylation of 7a-hydroxy-4-cholesten-3-one was inhibited by feeding rats different taurine-conjugated bile acids at the 1% level [110]. Ahlberg et al. showed that the microsomal 12a-hydroxylase in human liver was inhibited by about 50% after treatment for 8 weeks with chenodeoxycholic acid, 15 mg/kg body weight [HI]. The increased ratio between cholic acid and chenodeoxycholic acid observed after treatment with cholestyramine is also consistent with an inhibitory effect of reabsorbed bile acids on the 12a-hydroxylase [219]. 

Tracer experiments126 with Na235S04 added to the diet of chicken have revealed that sodium sulphate improves growth, feed efficiency, and is capable of stimulating normal feather development even when the sulphur amino-acid content in the diet is too low to support optimal growth. About 20% of sulphur from Na235S04 retained by chickens was found to be incorporated into body taurine. 

Table 1. Feeding stimulants for several carnivorous fish species. All amino acids are L unless otherwise noted. Bet = betaine, Tau = taurine.

A.S. Truswell, S. McVeigh, W.D. Mitchell, and B. Bronte-Stewart, Effect in man of feeding taurine on bile acid conjugation and serum cholesterol levels, J. Atherosclerosis Res. 5s526 (1965). 

This evidence for the relative inability of man to synthesize taurine and the pattern of deficiency of taurine in the plasma cmd urine led us to an examination of the milk of various species, as well as of some currently available commercial formulas. Taurine is a major constituent of the free amino acid pool of milk in a number of species (Rassin et al, 1978). Human milk contains a considerable amo mt of taurine whereas bovine milk, from which most of the formulas are prepared, contains only minimal amounts of taurine (Gaull et al., 1977) The lack of tatarine in the casein-predominant formulas in this study of preterm infant feeding reflected the lack of taurine in the bovine milk from which the formulas were prepared. 

Rassin, D. K., Jarvenpaa, A.-L., Raiha, N. C. R., and Gaull, G. E., 1979, Breast feeding versus formula feeding in full-term infants Effects on taurine and cholesterol Pediat. Res. 13 k06. 

The discovery of the decarboxylation of cysteine sulphinate to hypotaurine, which Is then oxidized to taurine, led to the proposition that this pathway represents the main biosynthetic route for taurine in animal tissues (57, 58). The finding of consistent amounts of hypotaurine in organs and body fluids after injection or feeding... 

An interesting finding was reported by Herrmann (1959) who found that taurine added to the diet in hypercholesteremic rats significantly lowered serum, liver, and aorta cholesterol while glycine produced no effect. Sjovall (1959) reported that feeding of 1.5 gm taurine per day to normal subjects increased the proportion of taurine conjugate in bile, whereas glycine did... 

In a few studies it has been demonstrated that taurine supplementation improves retinal development in premature babies receiving parenteral nutrition. Human data on the efficacy of taurine supplementation in so-called energy drinks are very limited. In the absence of taurine supplementation in children taurine concentrations drop, suggesting its conditional indispensability also in the postneonatal period. This has led to the addition of taurine to standard feeding formulas for infants and growing children. 

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