Astaxanthin may boost muscle endurance and fat loss

From American Website, Nutra Ingredients

By Stephen Daniells

05-Feb-2008


Astaxanthin, the carotenoid mostly associated with eye health, may enhance the burning of fat during exercise and lead to improved muscle endurance, suggests a new study with mice that needs to be repeated in humans.

Mice supplemented with astaxanthin (AstaReal 50F, BioReal) and were found to have accelerated body fat reduction or "fat-burning" when combined with exercise compared to just exercise alone, reports the study in the journal Biochemical & Biophysical Research Communications.

"Our present observations firstly demonstrated that astaxanthin could elevate fat utilization as energy substrate during exercise, at least partly, due to the antioxidant effect, which leading to improvement of endurance in prolong exercise and efficient reduction of adipose tissue with sustained exercise," wrote the researchers from Kyoto Prefectural University of Medicine, University of Shizuoka, University of Hyogo, and University of Nagoya report that.

The study adds to a small but growing body of research linking the carotenoid to potential weight management benefits.

Astaxanthin, the nutrient that gives salmon its pink colour, has been found to be a potent antioxidant, with tests suggesting that it may have a free radical fighting capacity worth 500 times that of vitamin E.

The carotenoid is produced by the Haematacoccus pluvialis algae when water supplies in its habitat dry up to protect itself against the effects of UV radiation. Research has shown it to have a similar structure to lutein and zeaxanthin, but there are indications that it has an even stronger antioxidant activity.

Research on animals and some human clinical trials have suggested that the carotenoid may help protect against cataracts and UVA damage to the skin, as well as a number of other serious conditions such as stroke.

Annual growth of the global market for astaxanthin for human use is thought to be at least 15 per cent, with current estimates valuing the market at $15-20m (€12.4-16.6m) per year.

Lead researcher Wataru Aoi reports that the carotenoid appeared to protect the function of carnitine palmitoyl transferase I (CPT I) in mitochondria. CPT I is a lipid transport enzyme found on the membrane of mitochondria and reportedly supplies lipids or "fuel" into the mitochondria for energy production.

The researchers divided mice into four groups: no exercise, no exercise plus with astaxanthin, exercise, and exercise plus astaxanthin. After four weeks the animals in the exercise groups were placed on a treadmill to test a range of physical parameters.

Aoi and co-workers report that astaxanthin supplementation "accelerated the decrease of body fat accumulation with exercise training."

Moreover, the carotenoid was found to increase the co-localisation of fatty acid translocase with carnitine palmitoyltransferase I (CPT I) in skeletal muscle. Fatty acid translocase is a glycoprotein found on the surface of the cell receives and transports long-chain fatty acids.

Finally, they also report that modifications of CPT I by hexanoyl-lysine, which occurred during exercise, where prevented by astaxanthin.

"Our results suggested that astaxanthin promoted lipid metabolism rather than glucose utilisation during exercise via CPT I activation, which led to improvement of endurance and efficient reduction of adipose tissue with training," concluded the researchers.

The study supports previous studies that show the carotenoid may have a role to play in the burgeoning weight management market. With 50 per cent of Europeans and 62 per cent of Americans classed as overweight, the food industry is waking up to the potential of products for weight loss and management. The category estimated to already be worth $7bn (€5.1bn).

Source: Biochemical & Biophysical Research Communications (Elsevier)
22 February 2008, Volume 366, Issue 4, Pages 892-897
"Astaxanthin improves muscle lipid metabolism in exercise via inhibitory effect of oxidative CPT I modification"
Authors: W. Aoi, Y. Naito, Y. Takanami, T. Ishii, Y. Kawai, S. Akagiri, Y. Kato, T. Osawa, T. Yoshikawa


If you would like to find out how to lose weight healthily and easily using some natural health foods containing astaxathin, email Angel at verityy@yahoo.com

For more info about Astaxanthin:
Astaxanthin eyed as weight loss ingredient
Astaxanthin sources revealed: super antioxidant eases arthritis pain, joint pain, sore muscles and protects against heart disease
Astaxanthin: The Little-Known Miracle Nutrient for Inflammation, Anti-Aging, Athletic Endurance and More


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Astaxanthin eyed as weight loss ingredient

From American Website, Nutra Ingredients

By Stephen Daniells

30-Apr-2007


Astaxanthin, the carotenoid mostly associated with eye health, stopped weight gain in mice fed a high-fat diet and offer an interesting alternative to the blossoming weight management market if results can be repeated in humans.

Writing in the journal Bioscience, Biotechnology, and Biochemistry researchers from Tokyo University of Marine Science and Technology report that female mice fed a high-fat diet supplemented with astaxanthin (AstaReal 50F, BioReal) reduced body weight gain, the build-up of fatty tissue, and improved blood fatty acid levels.

"We found that astaxanthin inhibits the elevations in body weight and adipose tissue weight caused by a high-fat diet," wrote lead author Mayuni Ikeuchi. "These results indicate that astaxanthin might be of value in preventing obesity and the metabolic syndrome in affluent societies."

Astaxanthin, the nutrient that gives salmon its pink colour, has been found to be a potent antioxidant, with tests suggesting that it may have a free radical fighting capacity worth 500 times that of vitamin E.

The carotenoid is produced by the Haematacoccus pluvialis algae when water supplies in its habitat dry up to protect itself against the effects of UV radiation. Research has shown it to have a similar structure to lutein and zeaxanthin, but there are indications that it has an even stronger antioxidant activity.

Research on animals and some human clinical trials have suggested that the carotenoid may help protect against cataracts and UVA damage to the skin, as well as a number of other serious conditions such as stroke.

Annual growth of the global market for astaxanthin for human use is thought to be at least 15 per cent, with current estimates valuing the market at $15-20m (€12.4-16.6m) per year.

The researchers assigned four-week old female ddY mice to one of five groups: one group ate a normal diet (control group) while the other four groups were assigned to a high-fat diet and supplemented with olive oil (placebo), or astaxanthin at concentrations of 1.2, 6, or 30 mg per kg of body weight for 60 days.

The group fed the high-fat diet supplemented with olive oil resulted in a significant increase in body weight, compared to the control group.

"However, feeding a high-fat diet plus astaxanthin at levels of 6 mg/kg or 30 mg/kg significantly reduced the body weight gain induced by the high-fat diet," said the researchers.

The high-dose astaxanthin group also had lower adipose tissue weight, while the lower dose astaxanthin groups did not have significantly lower adipose tissue weight than the olive oil group.

Triglyceride levels were higher in the high-fat diet supplemented with olive oil group than for the control group, but supplementation with astaxanthin at levels of 6 and 30 mg/kg resulted in triglyceride levels about 50 per cent lower than the high-fat diet supplemented with olive oil group.

"In the present study increases in the body weight and weight of adipose tissue were prevented in mice fed a high-fat diet plus astaxanthin without changing the energy intake, except in the normal diet group," wrote the researchers.

The mechanism behind such effects was related to a stimulation of fatty acid utilisation, suggested the researchers, meaning that glucose use decreases and fatty acids are metabolised preferentially as the energy source.

"Further studies are necessary to elucidate the mechanisms," they said.

With 50 per cent of Europeans and 62 per cent of Americans classed as overweight, the food industry is waking up to the potential of products for weight loss and management. The category estimated to already be worth $7bn (€5.1bn).

Source: Bioscience, Biotechnology, and BiochemistryVolume 71,Pages 60521-1 to 60521-7, doi:10.1271/bbb.60521"Effects of astaxanthin in obese mice fed a high-fat diet"Authors: M. Ikeuchi, T. Koyama, J. Takahashi, K. Yazawa


If you would like to find out how to lose weight healthily and easily using some natural health foods containing astaxathin, email Angel at verityy@yahoo.com

Other info about Astaxanthin:

Astaxanthin may boost muscle endurance and fat loss

Astaxanthin sources revealed: super antioxidant eases arthritis pain, joint pain, sore muscles and protects against heart disease

Astaxanthin: The Little-Known Miracle Nutrient for Inflammation, Anti-Aging, Athletic Endurance and More

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