Taurine

Taurine, also known as β-aminoethanesulfonic acid, was first isolated from taurine, hence the name. The pure product is colorless or white oblique crystal, odorless. Taurine is chemically stable, insoluble in organic solvents such as ether, etc. It is a non-protein amino acid containing sulfur and exists in the free state in the body, not participating in protein biosynthesis in the body. Although taurine is not involved in protein synthesis, it is closely related to the metabolism of cystine and cysteine. The activity of cysteine sulfite carboxylase (CSAD), which synthesizes taurine in human body, is low, and it mainly relies on the intake of taurine in food to meet the body's needs

Distribution of metabolism

Taurine is widely distributed in animal tissues and cells, especially in marine animals, mammalian tissues and cells also contain high levels of taurine, especially in nerves, muscles and glands, and is the most abundant free amino acid in the body. The total amount of taurine in human body is about 12-18 grams, of which 15-66mg exists in blood plasma and more than 75% exists in skeletal muscle, and the ratio of cardiac muscle cells to serum taurine concentration is 200:1.

The body can ingest or synthesize taurine from the diet, and animal food is the main source of dietary taurine, especially marine animals. In vivo synthesis is derived from sulfur-containing amino acids (cysteine, methionine, etc.) through a series of enzymatic reactions, but its own synthesis capacity is low. Taurine has a small molecular weight (125.1), is non-antigenic, and is easily absorbed by all routes of administration. Taurine is mainly excreted from the kidney, and the kidney regulates its excretion according to the dietary taurine content to maintain the relative stability of taurine content in the body.