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Clinical Studies
References
Betaine plays a critical role in the health of the cardiovascular system. Betaine reduces potentially toxic levels of homocysteine (Hcy), an amino acid found normally in the body. Homocysteine metabolism is linked to that of several vitamins, especially folic acid, B6 and B12, and deficiencies of those vitamins may cause elevated Hcy levels. In recent years studies have suggested that a high level of Hcy increases a person's chance of developing heart disease, stroke and peripheral vascular disease (reduced blood flow to the hands and feet).
Most people typically do not eat enough fruits and vegetables, which may limit their dietary intake of Betaine and the B vitamins, thereby creating a potential need for supplementation.
Betaine HCl may be beneficial in allergic rhinitis, asthma, anemia, atherosclerosis, candidiasis, diarrhoea, food allergies, gallstones, heart disease, rheumatoid arthritis and thyroid disorders.
Published Clinical Studiesclin
Betaine lowers elevated s-adenosylhomocysteine levels in hepatocytes from ethanol-fed rats.1
Barak AJ, Beckenhauer HC, Mailliard ME, Kharbanda KK, Tuma DJ.
VA Alcohol Research Center, Department of Veterans Affairs Medical Center, Omaha, NE 68105, USA. ajbarak@yahoo.com
Previous studies showed that chronic ethanol administration inhibits methionine synthase activity, resulting in impaired homocysteine remethylation to form methionine. This defect in homocysteine remethylation was shown to increase plasma homocysteine and to interfere with the production of hepatic S-adenosylmethionine (SAM) in ethanol-fed rats. These changes were shown to be reversed by the administration of betaine, an alternative methylating agent. This study was undertaken to determine additional effects of ethanol on methionine metabolism and their functional consequences. The influences of methionine loading and betaine supplementation were also evaluated. Adult Wistar rats were fed ethanol or a control Lieber-DeCarli liquid diet for 4 wk, and metabolites of the methionine cycle were measured in vitro in isolated hepatocytes under basal and methionine-supplemented conditions. S-Adenosylhomocysteine (SAH) concentrations were elevated in hepatocytes isolated from ethanol-fed rats compared with controls and in hepatocytes from both groups when supplemented with methionine. The addition of betaine to the methionine-supplemented incubation media reduced the elevated SAH levels. The decrease in the intracellular SAH:SAM ratio due to ethanol consumption inhibited the activity of the liver-specific SAM-dependent methyltransferase, phosphatidylethanolamine methyltransferase. Our data indicate that betaine, by remethylating homocysteine and removing SAH, overcomes the detrimental effects of ethanol consumption on methionine metabolism and may be effective in correcting methylation defects and treating liver diseases.
PMID: 12949375 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]
2
Carbon tetrachloride-induced nephrotoxicity and protective effect of betaine in Sprague-Dawley rats.
Ozturk F, Ucar M, Ozturk IC, Vardi N, Batcioglu K.
Department of Histology-Embryology, Inonu University Faculty of Medicine, Malatya, Turkey.
OBJECTIVES: To observe the changes in the antioxidative defense enzymes and to detect the alterations of renal microscopy after carbon tetrachloride (CCl4) administration in rats and to investigate the possible protective effects of betaine against CCl4-induced renal damage. METHODS: Thirty-two adult Sprague-Dawley rats were divided into four groups as follows: control group, betaine group, CCl4 group, and CCl4 + betaine group. CCl4 was given subcutaneously at 1 mL/kg. In the CCl4 + betaine group, rats were pretreated with betaine, then exposed to CCl4 at the same dose. Betaine group rats received concentrated betaine solution. The rats were killed and the kidneys taken for enzyme analyses and histologic examination. Glutathione peroxidase, superoxide dismutase, and catalase activities were measured in right kidney homogenates. Left kidneys were processed for light microscopic evaluation. RESULTS: In the CCl4-treated group, significant increases in kidney superoxide dismutase and catalase activities and significant decrease in glutathione peroxidase activity were observed (P <0.01). These changes were found to be normalized in the CCl4 + betaine group. Betaine did not change the enzyme activities. Exposure to CCl4 resulted in glomerular and tubular alterations in the renal cortex. These alterations were found to be prevented by betaine pretreatment. CONCLUSIONS: These results indicate that exposure to CCl4 leads to renal damage in rats and betaine exerts an improvement on nephrotoxic effects of CCl4.
PMID: 12893363 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]
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