The study highlights taurine as a biomarker for aging

The study highlights taurine as a biomarker for aging

Research in animals and humans has suggested that low levels of taurine may be a driver of aging, which has led to debate about whether taurine is an aging biomarker. A comprehensive study using longitudinal data from humans, monkeys and mice now shows that blood taurine levels do not decline consistently with age and that taurine levels vary more based on factors unique to each person than on aging.

These results lead the study's authors - Maria Fernandez and colleagues - to conclude that "the effectiveness of taurine supplementation for delaying aging or general treatment of aging conditions may be context-dependent." The micronutrient taurine is one of the most abundant amino acids in animals and is known for its wide-ranging biological roles and potential health benefits. Some recent studies, including a June 2023 research article published inSciencehave shown that blood taurine levels decrease with age in the organisms studied and that taurine supplementation can delay this process and improve healthy lifespan. These and other findings have also led to discussions about whether taurine levels could potentially provide a blood-based biomarker of aging.

To qualify as a true biomarker of aging, taurine must reliably change with age across diverse populations and over time, as demonstrated over time by longitudinal data. According to Fernandez and colleagues in their new paper, previous studies—mainly based on cross-sectional data—have provided conflicting findings about how blood taurine levels change with age.

Building on this past work, Fernandezet al.Conducted comprehensive longitudinal and cross-sectional analyzes of taurine levels in three different large human cohorts, rhesus macaques and mice across a wide age range. They found that circulating taurine concentrations are either stable or increase with age in healthy individuals, and that variations in taurine levels were influenced more by individual differences, diet, sex, and species than by aging itself. The results also showed that associations between taurine and functional indicators of health, such as muscle strength and body weight, varied across contexts and species. The results did not consistently support a causal relationship between declining taurine and aging. Based on these results Fernandezet al.Conclude that taurine is not a reliable biomarker of aging and that its potential as an anti-aging therapy is context-specific rather than universal.

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