Taurine 2

This volume comprises the edited proceedings of the International Taurine Sympo sium held in Osaka, Japan, in June 1995, as a Satellite Symposium of the 15th Biennial of the International Society for Neurochemistry. This Taurine Symposium was the Meeting latest in a series held since 1975 at approximately two-year intervals by an informal group of international researchers. It attracted contributions from 20 countries, ranging from Armenia via Finland and Spain to the United States. Some 121 participants attended. The Symposium was organized and chaired by Junichi Azuma, University of Osaka. Other members of the Organizing Committee in Japan consisted of Kinya Kuriyama and Masao Nakagawa, both from the Kyoto Prefectural University of Medicine, and Akemichi Baba, from Osaka University. The Committee had to contend with the disaster of the Kobe earthquake, which struck on January 21. The epicenter was only around 25 miles from the meeting site, and the quake demolished the home of one Committee member. Despite this unnaturally natural handicap, the participants experienced a superbly organized meeting, one which more than maintained the high social and scientific standards established for this series. In his Welcome Message, Dr. Azuma listed a threefold objective for the Symposium: To provide a forum for the interdisciplinary exchange of information on taurine; to give an opportunity for renewing old friendships and making new friends; and to promote coopera tion among participants from around the world.

Taurine 8 represents the combined efforts of investigators on the roles of the amino acid taurine on human health and disease. The chapters covered in this book are directly derived from presentations of the contributors at the 18th International Taurine Meeting held in Marrakech, Morocco in April 2012. The purpose of this book is to disseminate current findings on taurine's contribution in several organ systems. This book covers the following topics: Taurine in Nutrition and Metabolism, the Protective Role of Taurine, and the Role of Taurine in Reproduction, Development, and Differentiation. Dr. Abdeslem El Idrissi, College of Staten Island and Dr. William L’Amoreaux, College of Staten Island, were co-chairs of the Organizing Committee for the meeting. Data presented at this meeting provided compelling evidence that taurine is not only cytoprotective in cardiomyocytes, but also is a potent GABA agonist, whereby it can facilitate vasodilation of conducting arteries. Taurine conjugates, such as taurine chloramine, may protect cells from oxidative stress via increased HO-1 expression. In adult rodents, taurine has a potent effect on plasma glucose levels, likely through the release of insulin in pancreatic beta cells. As a potential neurotransmitter, taurine is known to work via the GABAergic system, but current research presented at this meeting suggest that taurine may interact with glutamate and serotonin receptors as well. Data are also presented to demonstrate the protective roles of taurine on neurons in neuroblastoma. Perhaps the most important and exciting presentation is the role of taurine and alcohol: the combination may be lethal. Data are also presented at this meeting of the potential role taurine may have as an adjuvant treatment with cisplatin in chemotherapy.

Taurine 8 represents the combined efforts of investigators on the roles of the amino acid taurine on human health and disease. The chapters covered in this book are directly derived from presentations of the contributors at the 18th International Taurine Meeting held in Marrakech, Morocco in April 2012. The purpose of this book is to disseminate current findings on taurine's contribution in several organ systems. This book covers the following topics: Taurine in Nutrition and Metabolism, the Protective Role of Taurine, and the Role of Taurine in Reproduction, Development, and Differentiation. Dr. Abdeslem El Idrissi, College of Staten Island and Dr. William L’Amoreaux, College of Staten Island, were co-chairs of the Organizing Committee for the meeting. Data presented at this meeting provided compelling evidence that taurine is not only cytoprotective in cardiomyocytes, but also is a potent GABA agonist, whereby it can facilitate vasodilation of conducting arteries. Taurine conjugates, such as taurine chloramine, may protect cells from oxidative stress via increased HO-1 expression. In adult rodents, taurine has a potent effect on plasma glucose levels, likely through the release of insulin in pancreatic beta cells. As a potential neurotransmitter, taurine is known to work via the GABAergic system, but current research presented at this meeting suggest that taurine may interact with glutamate and serotonin receptors as well. Data are also presented to demonstrate the protective roles of taurine on neurons in neuroblastoma. Perhaps the most important and exciting presentation is the role of taurine and alcohol: the combination may be lethal. Data are also presented at this meeting of the potential role taurine may have as an adjuvant treatment with cisplatin in chemotherapy.

Mitochondria from mammalian tissues possess an elaborate system for 2+ 2+ transporting Ca across their inner membrane which consists of Ca import, 2+ via the Ca uniporter, in response to the mitochondrial membrane 2+ + potential ?? and of Ca release by an antiport system in exchange for H + 9,23 or Na (see Fig. l) . Because the uniporter is dependent upon the external 2+ 2+ 2+ 2+ Ca concentration ([Ca ]), mitochondria accumulate Ca until the [Ca ] o o 2+ decreases to the level at which the uniporter activity balances the Ca efflux. 2+ The [Ca ] at which the uniporter and efflux activities are equal is defined o the “setpoint” andcorresponds to values between 0.3-3μM. 2+ Figure 1. The Ca transport system of the inner membrane of mammalian mitochondria. U, + 2+ + + uniporter. I, Na -independent efflux mechanism or Ca /2H exchanger. D, Na -dependent 2+ + efflux mechanism or Ca /2Na exchanger. PTP, permeability transition pore. FP, 11 flavoprotein. ?? membrane potential. ? pH gradient. Adapted from .

The underlying philosophy of these two symposia on taurine remains the same as all those that have been held previously: the best way to remain current in the subject matter is to talk directly with the investigators at the forefront of the field. Thus, we brought together some 50 individuals from 11 different countries who have keen interests and active research programs in the many-faceted areas of taurine research. The meetings were held on October 8-10, 1991, in an elegant setting in a resort area at Orange Beach, Alabama, approximately 50 miles outside of Mobile on the Gulf Coast. The meetings were programmed as two separate Symposia held sequentially. The first symposia on October 8 was devoted exclusively to taurine research in the cat, primarily in the area of nutrition, and entitled "The Waltham Symposium on Taurine and Cat Nutrition". The second symposia on October 9 and 10 was open to all fields of taurine research and was entitled "International Taurine Symposium: New Dimensions on its Mechanisms of Actions". If the philosophy of these meetings was to bring both experts and novices together in a discussion and presentation of current taurine research, then the major purpose of the Proceedings is to document the current research efforts and to present an objective summary of where the taurine field stands today and where the focus will be in the future.

Proceedings of the International Taurine Symposium '97: Neurochemistry, Biochemistry, and Pharmacology held in Tucson, Arizona, July 15-19, 1997

This book gathers a selection of original articles and critical reviews presented at the 21st International Taurine Meeting, held in Shenyang, China in May 2018, which discussed and disseminated the latest findings on taurine, especially in human life. The book is divided into eight parts, which respectively address: Taurine and Metabolism, Taurine and Nutrition, Taurine and Organ Dysfunction, Taurine and Heart Health, Taurine and Anti-cancer, Taurine and Anti-oxidation / Anti-microbial, Taurine and Neuroprotection, and Taurine and Anti-inflammatory. These latest discoveries concerning the functions and advantageous effects of taurine on the health of various human body systems will not only advance the treatment of human diseases and the quality of human life, but also promote further research into the applications of taurine in human health.