Cysteine

[Guest guest]

Jaquelyn,

What Dr. Waring at the University of Birmingham measures is the plasma

cysteine to plasma sulfate. Sulfate is certainly not an amino acid, but I

wonder if it might show up anyway on the Great Smokies test? (Sometimes

these tests include other markers that are useful to measure at the same

time...)

If the plasma cysteine to sulfate ratio is too high, then you have a

patient that looks a lot like the norm that Dr. Waring has found in

autism. You may have a patient who is failing to convert cysteine to

sulfate due to some hindrance of the enzymes along that pathway, or whose

system just can't keep pace with an overly toxic environment.

Dr. Waring has found that both cysteine dioxygenase and sulfite oxidase are

almost completely shut off by tumor necrosis factor in GI cells and

neurons. I don't think she hasn't tested it yet in other types of cells,

but it makes sense in most organs for this to happen.

When you are infected, your immune cells want to have little hindrance to

movement, and sulfated GAGs provide a hindrance. Shutting down sulfate

would temporarily produce undersulfated GAGs, which would later return to

their usual degree of sulfation when the infection is over and TNF is no

longer around. But apparently the liver preserves taurine production

(important for bile), and the spleen and kidneys preserve the conversion of

cysteine to glutathione during infection. (see below) Of course, a lot of

cysteine gets incorporated into protein, too, especially acute phase

proteins during infection. But if cysteine is high in plasma, you probably

have plenty for that purpose.

Macrophages should be chewing up released GAGs during infection, and I

would expect that would tweak up the sulfate levels in plasma at first,

though I have never seen this spelled out exactly in the literature. That

may mean that if infection was the cause of elevated cysteine, that

depressed sulfate levels in plasma might mean that it has been a while

since the infection started. In that case, you might also want to figure

out if the patient has some sort of chronic infection or elevated TNF and

try to treat that, so that you can get the enzymes cysteine dioxygenase and

sulfite oxidase back to work.

It would be good to look at taurine, too, for it is also made via cysteine

dioxygenase, but sulfate is preferred to taurine if cysteine is low.

Also, further down the path, if sulfite is elevated, that suggests a

problem with sulfite oxidase, the enzyme which changes sulfite into

sulfate. Elevated sulfite can suggest molybdenum deficiency, and a fairly

decent proportion of autistic children in a study by Dr. Waring responded

very well to molybdenum. You just don't want to overdo it, because

molybdate competes with sulfate in a lot of places.

Glutathione may not be such a great oral supplement for it is thought it

might break down before it can function in its detoxicating role, and it

does not provide sulfate directly. The feedback mechanisms are unclear,

but perhaps supplementing sulfate and taurine might spare cysteine to be

more available to make glutathione.

Some of the sulfate problems in these children, especially if mercury is

implicated, may be caused by blockage of sulfate transport, for in vitro

studies have found that both types of sulfate transport become thoroughly

blocked by inorganic mercury. In those children, it may help to give them

sulfate in GAG form, ie., glucosamine sulfate or chondroitin sulfate, for

cells have a way to endocytose those molecules that is not dependent on

sulfate transporters. The skin's rapid shedding may make it less likely to

maintain a blockage from mercury, so its transporters may be freed more

rapidly than a lot of organs. Epsom salts solution applied to the skin

seems to work very well, probably better than any oral supplement.

But generally if cysteine is high, that's probably not the right time to

give NAC or high sulfur foods. You need to supplement farther down the

pathway with something that contains sulfate and/or taurine. Cysteine

itself is toxic to neurons.

Hope this non-medical advice suits the doctor! Be sure to read the

abstracts below.

Best wishes,

J Nutr 1998 Jan;128(1):97-105

Metabolism of cysteine is modified during the acute phase of sepsis in rats.

Malmezat T, Breuille D, Pouyet C, Mirand PP, Obled C

Laboratoire d'Etude du Metabolisme Azote, INRA Clermont-Ferrand Theix, 63122

Saint Genes Champanelle, France.

In vivo cysteine metabolism during the inflammatory state has been studied

minimally. We investigated cysteine metabolism (i.e. taurine, sulfate and

glutathione formation) using a single dose of [35S] cysteine in septic rats

that

had been injected with live Escherichia coli into the tail vein and in control,

pair-fed rats. Cysteine metabolites were separated by ion exchange

chromatography, and radioactivity was counted in the different fractions.

Radioactivity incorporated in tissue proteins was also measured after protein

precipitation. [35S]Sulfate production was significantly lower in septic rats

than in pair-fed rats. [35S]Taurine contents were significantly lower only in

kidneys, spleen and gastrointestinal tract of septic rats. The higher

production

of [35S] taurine in the livers (the major site of taurine production) of septic

rats could have a protective effect against oxidation. Glutathione

concentrations were also significantly greater in liver, spleen, kidneys and

gastrocnemius muscle of septic rats, presumably in order to combat oxidative

stress induced by sepsis. [35S]Cysteine incorporation in glutathione was

significantly higher in spleen and kidneys but not in liver of septic rats

compared to pair-fed rats. This could be explained by the fact that, in

liver, a

greater amount of labeled glutathione had been utilized for host defense, or by

a high level in glutathione turnover. Finally, [35S]cysteine incorporation into

protein, in septic rats, was significantly greater than in pair-fed rats in

spleen, lung and particulary in whole plasma proteins other than albumin, which

mainly represent the acute-phase proteins. These data suggest an increased

requirement for cysteine during sepsis in rats.

PMID: 9430609, UI: 98092506

J Nutr Sci Vitaminol (Tokyo) 1993 Oct;39(5):507-16

Metabolic fate of cysteine sulfur in growing rats at various dietary protein

levels.

Tanaka H, Takahashi K, Ogura M

Department of Agricultural Chemistry, Faculty of Agriculture, Utsunomiya

University, Japan.

The metabolic fate of L-[35S]cysteine was investigated in growing rats fed on

diets containing graded levels of protein calorie percentages (0, 5, 10,

15, and

30 PC%) by use of purified whole egg protein at 4,100 kcal of metabolizable

energy per kilogram of diet. Incorporation of radioactivity into body protein

during the 12 h period after intraperitoneal injection of 35S-cysteine was

about

70% of the dose in the 0 to 15 PC% group, but it decreased significantly in the

30 PC% group, showing a break point at around 15 PC% in the diet. A

considerable

amount of the radioactivity was recovered in the carcass soluble fraction in

which the label in the taurine fraction gradually increased with increasing

dietary protein levels from 0 to 30 PC%. Urinary excretion of total 35S during

the 12 h period was depressed in the lower PC% groups, but it increased in the

30 PC% group, about 23% of the dose being recovered. More than 50% of the

urinary radioactivity was present in the inorganic sulfate fraction, but less

than 10% was in the taurine fraction. These results indicate that cysteine

sulfur is preferentially utilized for body protein synthesis, especially in

dietary protein depletion, and that the oxidation of cysteine sulfur to taurine

and inorganic sulfate is elevated with higher PC% in the diet. The response

pattern of cysteine sulfur metabolism to dietary protein intake resembled that

of cysteine carbon metabolism which was previously reported.

PMID: 8120674, UI: 94165843

At 2/26/2001 -080008:30 AM, you wrote:

>To Andy or others: Do you know whether the Plasma Amino Acid

>Panel from Great Smokies will give us enough information re cysteine

>to help us determine whether the child can benefit from NAC,

>glutathione, high sulfur foods etc? Thanks, Jaquelyn

[Guest guest]

The comprehensive liver detoxification test measures both plasma

cysteine and plasma sulfate. Both can be ordered independently from

Great Smokies labs too.

500-1000 mcg a day of molybdenum is definitely not going to interfere

with sulfate transport or use, but will increase it's production.

Andy

> >To Andy or others: Do you know whether the Plasma Amino Acid

> >Panel from Great Smokies will give us enough information re

cysteine

> >to help us determine whether t

[Guest guest]

It definitely does not.

It is very frustrating that this important amino is not tested on the

amino panel, but in a separate test. I am sure you can order it from

the same plasma tube as is used for the amino panel, but the amino

panel does not tell you what you need to know.

Andy

> To Andy or others: Do you know whether the Plasma Amino Acid

> Panel from Great Smokies will give us enough information re cysteine

> to help us determine whether the child can benefit from NAC,

> glutathione, high sulfur foods etc? Thanks, Jaque

[Guest guest]

>It is very frustrating that this important amino is not tested on the

>amino panel, but in a separate test. I am sure you can order it from

>the same plasma tube as is used for the amino panel, but the amino

>panel does not tell you what you need to know.

Cyst(e)ine is listed on the second page of my son's recent amino acid

test report from Great Smokies. I am curious why cysteine on

the amino acid report is not the same test as the cysteine reported on

the liver detox profile? My son's cysteine was low on both his amino

acid test and the liver detox test.

Dave

[Guest guest]

> >It is very frustrating that this important amino is not tested on

the

> >amino panel, but in a separate test. I am sure you can order it

from

> >the same plasma tube as is used for the amino panel, but the amino

> >panel does not tell you what you need to know.

>

> Cyst(e)ine is listed on the second page of my son's recent amino

acid

> test report from Great Smokies. I am curious why cysteine on

> the amino acid report is not the same test as the cysteine reported

on

> the liver detox profile?

I believe that on the amino panel, cyst(e)ine means cystine +

cysteine. This sum is dominated by cystine, the dimer. What you want

to know is cysteine, the monomer. Thus you need a test for cysteine

alone, not a test for both combined.

> My son's cysteine was low on both his amino

> acid test and the liver detox test.

Low and low is more common than high and high, but I have seen cases

where cysteine is either high or low and the amino panel shows

cyst(e)ine as normal.

> D

[Guest guest]

> To Andy and the List,

>

> If I wanted to increase Cysteine levels in my son is it ok to

> supplement with cysteine

Yes, this works fine. As does cystine.

>or do I want to supp. with glutathione or

> msm or what? Does this explain why my son will grab and eat raw

> onions, is he trying to increase his sulphur himself?

Yes. You can get lots more sulfur into him through diet than through

supplements.

>I checked out

> the appendix in Andy's book for sulphur foods and the only one he

> eats or will eat is onions, and then raw is fine for him.

Beans are mis-listed. Try beans, they are sulfury. Maybe hommos made

with lots of onion juice in it.

>

> I have just started chelation, my sons hair element test did not

> indicate mineral transport problems but I have decided to chelate

> because his last exposure to mercury would have been 5 years ago. I

> understand that cycteine has one thiol group and grabs mercury

> loosly and then bounces it around, does cycteine only grab body

> mercury or does it reach into the brain and grab that also?

>

> I have been trying to read the archives but I'm getting more

> confused. Help

> Thanks Pat

[Guest guest]

Has anybody used cysteine supplements?---------------------------------------------------------------PMCID: PMC1569588Oxidative stress and ageing: is ageing a cysteine deficiency syndrome?Wulf Dröge*AbstractReactive

oxygen species (ROS) are constantly produced in biological tissues and

play a role in various signalling pathways. Abnormally high ROS

concentrations cause oxidative stress associated with tissue damage and

dysregulation of physiological signals. There is growing evidence that

oxidative stress increases with age. It has also been shown that the

life span of worms, flies and mice can be significantly increased by

mutations which impede the insulin receptor signalling cascade.

Molecular studies revealed that the insulin-independent basal

activity of the insulin receptor is increased by ROS and downregulated

by certain antioxidants. Complementary clinical studies confirmed that

supplementation of the glutathione precursor cysteine decreases insulin

responsiveness in the fasted state. In several clinical trials,

cysteine supplementation improved skeletal muscle functions, decreased

the body fat/lean body mass ratio, decreased plasma levels of the

inflammatory cytokine tumour necrosis factor α (TNF-α), improved immune

functions, and increased plasma albumin levels. As all these parameters

degenerate with age, these findings suggest: (i) that loss of youth,

health and quality of life may be partly explained by a deficit in

cysteine and (ii) that the dietary consumption of cysteine is generally

suboptimal and everybody is likely to have a cysteine deficiency sooner or later.__________________________________________________Correo Espacio para todos tus mensajes, antivirus y antispam ¡gratis! Regístrate ya - http://correo..mx/

[Guest guest]

Thanks carlos. Good question. I have not heard of people taking cysteine supplements.

I believe this is the full text of this paper.

http://www.pubmedcentral.nih.gov/articlerender.fcgi?tool=pubmed & pubmedid=16321806

Rodney.

>> Has anybody used cysteine supplements?> > ---------------------------------------------------------------> PMCID: PMC1569588> Oxidative stress and ageing: is ageing a cysteine deficiency syndrome?Wulf Dröge*> > > AbstractReactive> oxygen species (ROS) are constantly produced in biological tissues and> play a role in various signalling pathways. Abnormally high ROS> concentrations cause oxidative stress associated with tissue damage and> dysregulation of physiological signals. There is growing evidence that> oxidative stress increases with age. It has also been shown that the> life span of worms, flies and mice can be significantly increased by> mutations which impede the insulin receptor signalling cascade.> Molecular studies revealed that the insulin-independent basal> activity of the insulin receptor is increased by ROS and downregulated> by certain antioxidants. Complementary clinical studies confirmed that> supplementation of the glutathione precursor cysteine decreases insulin> responsiveness in the fasted state. In several clinical trials,> cysteine supplementation improved skeletal muscle functions, decreased> the body fat/lean body mass ratio, decreased plasma levels of the> inflammatory cytokine tumour necrosis factor α (TNF-α), improved immune> functions, and increased plasma albumin levels. As all these parameters> degenerate with age, these findings suggest: (i) that loss of youth,> health and quality of life may be partly explained by a deficit in> cysteine and (ii) that the dietary consumption of cysteine is generally> suboptimal and everybody is likely to have a cysteine deficiency sooner or later.> > > __________________________________________________> Correo > Espacio para todos tus mensajes, antivirus y antispam ¡gratis! > Regístrate ya - http://correo..mx/>

[Guest guest]

Seems a plain 'ole cysteine supplement is a rare bird.

I see only L-cysteine and N-Acetyl Cysteine. Are we

talking about the former?

Thanks,

-

[ ] Re: Cysteine

Thanks carlos. Good question. I have not heard of people taking cysteine

supplements.

I believe this is the full text of this paper.

http://www.pubmedcentral.nih.gov/articlerender.fcgi?tool=pubmed & pubmedid=1632180\

6

Rodney.

--- In , Tenorio <tenoriocarlos1@...>

wrote:

>

> Has anybody used cysteine supplements?

>

> ---------------------------------------------------------------

> PMCID: PMC1569588

> Oxidative stress and ageing: is ageing a cysteine deficiency syndrome?Wulf

> Dröge*

[...]

[Guest guest]

The supplements mentioned in the paper are N-Acetyl Cysteine and undenaturated whey protein.Regards--- El mar 16-sep-08, <truepatriot@...> escribió:De:: <truepatriot@...>Asunto: Re: [ ] Re: CysteineA: Fecha: martes, 16 septiembre, 2008, 1:02 am

Seems a plain 'ole cysteine supplement is a rare bird.

I see only L-cysteine and N-Acetyl Cysteine. Are we

talking about the former?

Thanks,

-

[ ] Re: Cysteine

Thanks carlos. Good question. I have not heard of people taking cysteine

supplements.

I believe this is the full text of this paper.

http://www.pubmedce ntral.nih. gov/articlerende r.fcgi?tool= pubmed & pubmedid= 16321806

Rodney.

--- In , Tenorio <tenoriocarlos1@ ...>

wrote:

>

> Has anybody used cysteine supplements?

>

> ------------ --------- --------- --------- --------- --------- -

> PMCID: PMC1569588

> Oxidative stress and ageing: is ageing a cysteine deficiency syndrome?Wulf

> Dröge*

[...]

__________________________________________________Correo Espacio para todos tus mensajes, antivirus y antispam ¡gratis! Regístrate ya - http://correo..mx/