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Taurine and the premature
1Service de Médecine Infantile D, CHR Purpan, Toulouse, France.
Insights
Taurine is crucial for fetal and infant development, especially brain growth. Premature infants may require dietary taurine as they cannot synthesize enough, highlighting its role as an essential nutrient.
Area of Science:
- Biochemistry
- Developmental Biology
- Human Physiology
Background:
- Taurine (2-aminoethanesulfonic acid) levels significantly increase in the brain during fetal and early postnatal development.
- Human fetuses accumulate substantial amounts of taurine in late pregnancy.
- Infants, particularly premature ones, have a limited capacity to synthesize taurine, necessitating maternal or dietary provision.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the developmental importance of taurine in human fetuses and infants.
- To understand the implications of taurine synthesis limitations in neonates.
- To assess the potential essentiality of taurine as a nutrient for premature infants.
Main Methods:
- Literature review and synthesis of existing data on taurine accumulation and metabolism.
- Analysis of taurine requirements during fetal development and early infancy.
- Comparison of taurine dynamics in adults versus growing mammals.
Main Results:
- Significant taurine accretion occurs in the fetal brain during the last trimester.
- Exogenous taurine is not readily incorporated into the slowly exchangeable pool in adult mammals.
- Dietary taurine is efficiently transferred to tissues in growing mammals.
Conclusions:
- Taurine must be supplied by the mother during pregnancy and through diet post-birth, especially for premature infants.
- Premature infants require taurine for building tissue reserves due to insufficient endogenous synthesis.
- Taurine is likely an essential nutrient for premature infants, crucial for their development.
Abstract:
In the human fetus and in the early postnatal period, during development, the total body taurine content, particularly of the brain, increases markedly. It can be estimated that the human fetus accumulates approximately 50-60 mumol/24 h during the last 4 weeks of pregnancy. As there is evidence for the relative inability of infants to synthesize taurine, this nitrogen compound has to be wholly supplied by the mother during pregnancy and by diet after birth, particularly for the prematures who have to constitute appreciable reserves in their tissues. In adults (mammals and humans), it has been shown that the slowly exchangeable pool of taurine (mainly brain and muscles) cannot be increased by exogenous taurine but, in growing mammals, taurine from diet is rapidly transferred to tissues. Although no real proof yet exists, it seems probable that taurine should be considered an essential nutrient for premature infants.