A deficiency of taurine—a nutrient produced in the body and found in many foods—is a driver of aging in animals. That's a key finding of a new study led by Columbia University researchers, involving dozens of aging researchers around the world. It was published June 8 in the journal Science.
"This study suggests that taurine could be an elixir of life within us that helps us live longer and healthier lives," says the study’s leader, Vijay Yadav, PhD, assistant professor of genetics & development at Columbia University Vagelos College of Physicians and Surgeons.
In mice and monkeys, supplementing with taurine increased lifespan
Experts found that at age 2 (60 in human years), mice supplemented with taurine for one year were healthier than untreated mice in almost every way.
They saw similar health effects in middle-aged rhesus monkeys, which were given daily taurine supplements for six months. Taurine prevented weight gain, reduced fasting blood glucose and markers of liver damage, increased bone density in the spine and legs, and improved the health of their immune systems.
Promising anti-aging strategy for humans
The researchers don't know yet if taurine supplements will improve health or increase longevity in humans, but two experiments they conducted suggest taurine has potential. “Taurine abundance goes down with age, so restoring taurine to a youthful level in old age may be a promising anti-aging strategy.”
Other potential anti-aging drugs—including metformin, rapamycin, and NAD analogs—are also being considered for testing in clinical trials.
Foods high in taurine
According to WebMD, turkey (dark meat) has the highest taurine content of any animal meat. Other foods with high taurine include tuna (dark meat), tilapia fish (dark meat), octopus, chicken (dark meat), seaweed, and beef. Sources for this data include the American Heart Association, Harvard Medical School, and Frontiers in Physiology.
Citation: Singh, P., Gollapalli, K., Mangiola, S., Schranner, D., Yusuf, M. A., Chamoli, M., Shi, S. L., Bastos, B. L., Nair, T., Riermeier, A., Vayndorf, E. M., Wu, J. Z., Nilakhe, A., Nguyen, C. Q., Muir, M., Kiflezghi, M. G., Foulger, A., Junker, A., Devine, J., Yadav, V. K. (2023). Taurine deficiency as a driver of aging. Science. https://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/science.abn9257
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