Taurine is involved in cell volume homeostasis, antioxidant defense, protein stabilization, and stress responses. High levels of intracellular taurine are maintained by a Na+-dependent taurine transporter (TAUT) in the plasma membrane. In view of the immunomodulatory and cytoprotective effects of taurine, a mouse model with a disrupted gene coding for the taurine transporter (taut-/- mice) was generated. These mice show markedly decreased taurine levels in a variety of tissues, a reduced fertility, and loss of vision due to severe retinal degeneration. In particular, the retinal involvement identifies the taurine transporter as an important factor for the development and maintenance of normal retinal functions and morphology.
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http://dx.doi.org/10.1096/fj.01-0691fje | DOI Listing |
J Exp Biol
January 2025
Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, Mount Allison University, Sackville, NB, Canada, E4L 1E4.
Upper thermal tolerance may be limited by convective oxygen transport in fish, but the mechanisms constraining heart function remain elusive. The activation of anaerobic metabolism imposes an osmotic stress on cardiomyocytes at high temperatures that must be countered to prevent swelling and cardiac dysfunction. We tested the hypothesis that cardiac taurine efflux is required to counter the osmotic impact of anaerobic end product accumulation in brook char, Salvelinus fontinalis.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFLife Sci
December 2024
Department of Nutritional Sciences, University of Vienna, Josef-Holaubek-Platz 2, 1090 Vienna, Austria. Electronic address:
Aims: Our previous findings indicate that caloric restriction (CR) stimulates the production and secretion of taurine-conjugated bile acids in mice. Subsequent processing by gut microbiota leads to increased levels of deconjugated bile acids, taurine, and various taurine conjugates in the intestine. Furthermore, we demonstrated that carbohydrate restriction and protein restriction, to a smaller extent, mirror the impact of CR in terms of hepatic production of bile acids but not their secretion.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFSci Rep
October 2024
Addiction Biology Unit, Department of Psychiatry and Neurochemistry, Institute of Neuroscience and Physiology, Sahlgrenska Academy, University of Gothenburg, Box 410, 405 30, Gothenburg, Sweden.
Ethanol-induced dopamine release in the nucleus accumbens (nAc) is associated with reward and reinforcement, and for ethanol to elevate nAc dopamine levels, a simultaneous increase in endogenous taurine is required within the same brain region. By employing in vivo microdialysis in male Wistar rats combined with pharmacological, chemogenetic and metabolic approaches, our aim with this study was to identify mechanisms underlying ethanol-induced taurine release. Our results demonstrate that the taurine elevation, elicited by either systemic or local ethanol administration, occurs both in presence and absence of action potential firing or NMDA receptor blockade.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFInt J Biochem Cell Biol
November 2024
Department of Clinical Medicine, Hangzhou City University, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, China. Electronic address:
Metabolic changes are key drivers of tumor progression. Understanding how metabolic reprogramming promotes tumor development and identifying key metabolic activities are essential for improving tumor diagnosis and treatment. Among the numerous transporters in the body, solute carriers (SLCs) are particularly significant, often overexpressed in cancer cells to meet the tumor's demand for nutrients and energy.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFTransplantation
September 2024
Service de Biochimie, Assistance Publique Hôpitaux de Paris, Hôpital Européen Georges Pompidou, Paris, France.
Background: Taurine is one of the most abundant amino acids in humans. Low taurine levels are associated with cellular senescence, mitochondrial dysfunction, DNA damage, and inflammation in mouse, all of which can be reversed by supplementation. It is unknown whether taurine metabolism is associated with kidney allograft function and survival.
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