Carnosine: The Great Anti-ager
By Mary Ackerley, MD (H)
Tucson Green Times – November 2009
Carnosine is an important small protein, or dipeptide, with some incredible healing properties. Discovered in Russia more than a hundred years ago, it has long been used by athletes to improve their performance, because carnosine enables the heart muscle to contract more efficiently through enhancement of calcium response in heart cells. Carnosine however has many other exciting properties. It supports healthy cell function in two ways – by inhibiting processes that form a junk coating around proteins, and by protecting against free radical damage as an antioxidant. Carnosine has also been called a longevity nutrient since laboratory studies on tissues indicate that it can delay old age and promote cellular rejuvenation in cultured human fibroblasts. It is found in relatively high concentrations in several body tissues—most notably in brain, nerve tissue, heart muscles and skeletal muscle. It also has neuroprotective properties and appears quite useful for autism, seizures and Alzheimer’s.
Autism Carnosine has been shown to be useful in children with autism for improving speech, socialization and behavior. In a study with carnosine, children were randomly placed on either active carnosine or a placebo. Participants in the clinical trial who were given L-Carnosine experienced significant improvements compared to those taking a placebo in the following areas:
- receptive and expressive language;
- auditory processing socialization; and
- awareness of surroundings and fine motor planning.
Improvements were observed through eight weeks of treatment, with a 90 percent success rate. Within a month, parents reported an overall improvement that more than doubled through the length of the experiment.
Although the mechanism of carnosine’s action in autism is not well understood, a reasonable hypothesis is that it modulates neurotransmission in frontal lobe function. The frontal lobes control emotions, seizure activity, language and abstract reasoning. This would mean that carnosine both enhances brain frontal lobe function and acts as a neuro protector. Carnosine has also been shown to protect against certain types of seizures. It is important to note that carnosine is one of the few nutrients that has been shown to be effective in autism through a double-blind placebo controlled study, in that neither the doctor nor the patients knew who was receiving the placebo. In science, this is the gold standard for proving the effectiveness of a treatment. Carnosine may also be useful for dyslexia and Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD).
Alzheimer’s Currently available pharmaceutical medications prescribed for Alzheimer’s disease do nothing to combat the damage caused by amyloid plaque and oxidative stress, two key factors in the development of this devastating illness. Experimental studies, however, suggest that carnosine can help protect against both.
Treatment with carnosine has been found to reduce or completely prevent cell damage caused by beta amyloid plaque, the substance found in the brain of Alzheimer’s disease patients. Beta amyloid can interact with certain receptors causing damage to the nerves and arteries of the brain. Carnosine blocks and inactivates beta amyloid, so it protects neural tissues against dementia. Alzheimer’s is perhaps the disease aging adults most fear, and it seems that carnosine is one of the very few substances demonstrated to be helpful in protecting the brain from this degeneration it causes.
Carnosine also protects brains cells by fighting toxins formed from processes involving polyunsaturated fats. One theory of Alzheimer’s development holds that the distorted blood vessels seen in the disease are the primary cause of Alzheimer’s, since they impair delivery of nutrients to the brain. An experiment on rat brains showed that carnosine prevented this damage. Carnosine also has the unique ability to bind with copper, zinc and other metals, and to remove them from the body. Carnosine may also affect metal ion transfer of zinc and copper in the deep frontal cortex. The inappropriate balance of copper and zinc in the brain may contribute to Alzheimer’s. This may be an important function of carnosine in preventing and slowing down Alzheimer’s and other degenerative brain disorders.
Carnosine and Aging Laboratory research on cell life indicates that L-Carnosine has the ability to rejuvenate cells approaching old age, restoring normal appearance and extending cellular life span. Some studies found it could actually recover old cells to approximately 90 percent of their original youthful state. This appears to be done mainly through glycalation and antioxidation. The class of nutrients which can protect against free radical damage are called antioxidants.
Antioxidant Carnosine is a free-radical scavenger, which means it can mop up and neutralize free radicals in the body. Free radicals have been associated with many diseases, including cancer, Alzheimer’s, arthritis, diabetes and atherosclerosis. Many feel that aging itself is a free radical process. Oxidative stress causes breaks and other aberrations in the chromosome that accumulate with age. A fascinating experiment shows the effects of antioxidants on oxidative damage to chromosomes. This study exposed chromosomes to 90 percent oxygen. Cells cultured without any antioxidant exhibited 133 chromosomal aberrations per 100 cells. Carnosine reduced this level of damage by two-thirds, to only 44 chromosomal aberrations per 100 cells.
Surprisingly, carnosine was the only antioxidant to significantly protect chromosomes from oxidative damage from 90 percent oxygen exposure. Carnosine has been shown to work most effectively in this capacity when combined with Vitamin E – carnosine reaches the parts of body that contain water, while Vitamin E reaches the fatty parts.
Glycalation and Carbonylation Sugar can mix inappropriately with proteins and create a junk coating (similar to “engine buildup”) in a process called glycalation. Carbon groups can cause similar damage in a process called carbonylation. L-Carnosine is believed to help by binding to receptor sites where damage normally occurs, preventing further damage and reversing damage that has already occurred. When damaged proteins accumulate and cross-link in the skin, it causes loss of elasticity and wrinkles. Thus carnosine has the ability to actually restore youthful skin by reversing glycalation. Cataracts are also believed to result from the gradual accumulation of damaged tissues. Carnosine eye drops have been shown to restore 100 percent of vision cases of primary senile cataract and 80 percent in cases of mature senile cataracts.
Heart Disease The theory that carnosine may be a useful adjunct in both preventing and treating heart disease has been borne out in animal research as well. In two studies using dogs, researchers showed that changes induced by glycalation led to decreased heart function in aging dogs by contributing to collagen cross-linking. When this happens, heart blood vessels, as well as the heart muscle itself, lose elasticity and become less efficient. When old dogs received an glycalation inhibitor such as carnosine, they demonstrated a marked decrease in heart muscle stiffness as well as improved overall cardiac function.
Other conditions in which carnosine has been shown to be useful include wound healing, gastric ulcers, hearing loss due to auditory nerve damage, Parkinson’s and stroke prevention and treatment. Eye conditions besides cataracts in which carnosine is effective include corneal disease, glaucoma and increased intraocular pressure. It is useful for diabetics since carnosine is effective in protecting the nerves, eyes (cataracts), arteries and kidneys against sugar-related damage. Carnosine has also been found to inhibit diabetic nephropathy by protecting the nerve cells. Diabetics therefore potentially could benefit from carnosine supplements for peripheral neuropathy.
Carnosine’s remarkable spectrum of health benefits makes this versatile nutrient an essential component of any anti-aging program. It is not hard to see why carnosine is one of the most widely studied nutrients available. Carnosine is found in both fish and animal protein. However because body stores of carnosine decline precipitously with age, you may want to supplement with carnosine. The usual dosages are 200 to 500 milligrams once a day. Carnosine is a non-toxic and safe substance. Hyperactive autistic patients may show signs of over stimulation, including increased irritability, hyperactivity, or insomnia, when given higher doses of L-Carnosine. Other side effects seem to be negligible.
Author: Mary Ackerley, MD, MDH, is a classically trained psychiatrist and homeopathic physician in private practice in Tucson.
