Taurine: Unlocking the Fountain of Youth

Work done in the lab of Prof. Vijay K YADAV at National Institute of Immunology and Columbia University.

About author

Dr. Parminder Singh did his PhD in endocrinology and metabolism from the National Institute of Immunology, Delhi, INDIA. After completing his PhD, he pursued postdoctoral research at the Buck Institute for Research on Aging, where he is currently dissecting the molecular pathways affecting hypothalamic aging, especially under menopausal conditions. In addition to his research, Dr. Singh is passionate about mentoring young students and inspiring them to pursue a career in research. When he is not in the lab, he enjoys exploring natural places and engaging in lively conversations with people.

Interview

How would you explain your research outcomes to the non-scientific community?

n our recent research, a team of scientists from the National Institute of Immunology (NII), India and Columbia university, USA, investigated the effects of taurine on aging and health. Taurine is a chemical associated with various aspects of animal and human well-being, such as immunity, bone health, and nervous system function. Through measurements conducted on mice, worms and monkeys, we discovered that taurine levels decline with age. To explore the effects of taurine supplementation, we administered a taurine solution to mice everyday. The treated mice showed an increase in lifespan by approximately 12% in females and 10% in males compared to the control group. They also experienced benefits such as enhanced muscle endurance and strength. In female mice, we observed a reduction in depression and anxiety-related behaviors and a strengthened immune system. Further investigation involved providing taurine-rich food to worms and middle-aged rhesus monkeys. The taurine-fed worms demonstrated longer lifespans and overall better health, while the monkeys displayed lower body weights, denser bones, and reduced signs of liver damage. These findings suggest that taurine supplementation may positively impact aging and health. This research contributes to our understanding of interventions that can improve health outcomes and mitigate age-related health decline.

How do these findings contribute to your research area?

Identifying safe, cheap, and effective intervention to treat age related pathology is required to tackle the aging tsunami and the economic healthcare burden related to age associated diseases. This discovery highlights the potential of taurine as an alternative option that fulfills all these criteria. Having said that, it is very important to mention here that a randomized control clinical trial is required in humans to investigate the potential of taurine in human health, and we strictly do not recommend anyone to take taurine as a supplement without these studies.

“This discovery highlights the potential of taurine as an alternative option that fulfills all these criteria.”

What was the exciting moment during your research?

As I was really interested in bone biology while starting off my PhD, we hypothesized that if taurine is essential for bone health and mice lacking the transporter should exhibit low bone mass and strength. To test that we did the microCT analysis of the bone from these mice and I was really amazed to see a significantly low bone mass as well as the bone strength in taurine transporter knockout mice when compared to the aged matched wild type (WT) littermates, and supplementing taurine to the naturally aged WT mice not only improves the bone density but also improves other health aspects such as muscle function, glucose homeostasis and fat accumulation.

Where do you seek scientific inspiration from?

I think curiosity in uncovering nature’s mysteries is in itself the biggest inspiration for the majority of scientists, but having said that, getting a good mentorship and collaborative environment that I got during my PhD at National Institute of Immunology was more than enough for this scientific endeavor.

How do you intend to help Indian science improve?

The biggest contribution one can give in any research field is to pass the knowledge and skillset to the next generation of scientists. I have been mentoring master’s students since my PhD days and still try to look for opportunities to transfer my experiences at multiple platforms.

Reference

Parminder Singh et al., Taurine deficiency as a driver of aging. Science 380, eabn9257 (2023). DOI:10.1126/science.abn9257

Copy Editor

Pragya Gupta

PhD Scholar, University of Melbourne, Australia

Beside being a passionate stem cell researcher, Pragya Gupta is trained in Indian classical music, enjoys baking, inventive craftwork and learning about different cultures. She is currently doing her PhD at the University of Melbourne in Australia, where she is researching new ways to treat brain cancers.

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