Download Vitamin-similar substances

Vitamin-similar substances
Choline is a water-soluble essential nutrient. It is
usually grouped within the B-complex vitamins.
Choline generally refers to the various quaternary
ammonium salts containing the N,N,Ntrimethylethanolammonium cation.
These naturally-occuring ammonium salts are found
in the lipids that make up cell membranes and in the
neurotransmitter acetylcholine. Adequate intakes
(AI) for this micronutrient of between 425 to 550
milligrams daily, for adults, have been established
by the Food.
4-Aminobenzoic acid
• 4-Aminobenzoic acid (also known as paraaminobenzoic acid or PABA) is an organic
compound with the formula
H2NC6H4CO2H. PABA is a white
crystalline substance that is only slightly
soluble in water. It consists of a benzene
ring substituted with an amino group and a
carboxyl group.
Lipoic acid
• Lipoic acid is an organosulfur compound, one
enantiomer of which is an essential cofactor for
many enzyme complexes. This yellow solid is a
carboxylic acid and features a cyclic disulfide, or
ditholane ring, functional group. The Renantiomer is biosynthesized and used as a
cofactor. It is essential for aerobic life and is a
common and sometimes controversial dietary
supplement. It is usually called "lipoic acid," but
this is not the form it takes in life. dihydrolipoic
acid is the reduced form which is mostly how the
sulfurs exist intracellularly.
• "Lipoate" is the conjugate base of lipoic acid, and this is
the form carboxylic acids take at physiological
conditions. So free lipoic acid inside the cell could
correctly be called dihydrolipoate. Most intracellular
lipoic acid is not free, because it is made and attached to
the enzyme complexes that use it. As a cofactor it is
covalently bound via an amide bond to a specific lysine
residue of lipoyl domains. One of the most visible roles
of lipoic acid is as a cofactor in aerobic metabolism,
specifically the pyruvate dehydrogenase complex.
Lipoate participates in transfer of acyl or methylamine
groups in 2-oxoacid dehydrogenases (2-OADH)
• Alpha-lipoic acid is a vitamin-like chemical called an
antioxidant. Yeast, liver, kidney, spinach, broccoli, and
potatoes are good sources of alpha-lipoic acid. It is also
made in the laboratory for use as medicine.
• Alpha-lipoic acid is used for diabetes and nerve-related
symptoms of diabetes including burning, pain, and
numbness in the legs and arms. High doses of alphalipoic acid are approved in Germany for the treatment of
these symptoms.
• Alpha-lipoic acid is also used to treat eye-related
disorders, such as damage to the retina, cataracts,
glaucoma, and an eye disease.
Ubiquinone
• Ubiquinone is another name for CoQ10, a potent antioxidant
naturally produced by the body and important to cell functioning
and development. Ubiquinone naturally decreases with aging, and
it is used in cosmetics and personal care products (in a wide
variety of formulas) as an anti-aging ingredient that replaces some
of the natural antioxidant produced by the body, whether ingested
or applied topically. When applied topically, Ubiquinone is
thought to penetrate the skin easily, and reduce free radical
damage via its antioxidant properties.
• Ubiquinone, as CoQ10, is also considered effective in treating a
large number of internal diseases, including Parkinson's disease.
Patients suffering from a wide variety of health effects and
conditions may have a low level of natural CoQ10, or
Ubiquinone; it is often taken as a supplement to assist in
rebuilding cells.
Carnitine
• In animals, the biosynthesis of carnitine
occurs primarily in the liver and kidneys
from the amino acids lysine and methionine.
Vitamin C (ascorbic acid) is essential to the
synthesis of carnitine.
During growth or pregnancy,
the requirement of carnitine
might exceed its natural
production
• The carnitines exert a substantial
antioxidant action, thereby providing a
protective effect against lipid peroxidation
of phospholipid membranes and against
oxidative stress induced at the myocardial
and endothelial cell level.
Orotic Acid
• Vitamin B13 is not really recognized as a
vitamin, since it is manufactured by the body by
intestinal flora. It is primarily used for
metabolization of folic acid and vitamin B12. It
assists the absorption of essential nutrients
especially calcium and magnesium and helps the
production of genetic material. It may be
beneficial after a heart attack and has been used
in conditions such as multiple sclerosis and
chronic hepatitis. It is also reported to prevent
liver-related complications and premature aging.