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(Circulation. 2003;107:410.)
© 2003 American Heart Association, Inc.

Clinical Investigation and Reports

Taurine and Vitamin C Modify Monocyte and Endothelial Dysfunction in Young Smokers

F.M. Fennessy, MB, BCh, PhD; D.S. Moneley, MB, AFRCSI; J.H. Wang, MB, BCli, PhD; C.J. Kelly, MB, MCh; D.J. Bouchier-Hayes, MB, MCh, FRCS

From the Department of Surgery, Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland, Beaumont Hospital, Dublin, Ireland.

Correspondence to Professor D.J. Bouchier-Hayes, Department of Surgery, Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland, Beaumont Hospital, Dublin 9, Ireland. E-mail daraghm{at}e-merge.ie

Background— Endothelial dysfunction initiated by monocyte-endothelial interactions has previously been observed in many vasculopathies, including chronic cigarette smoking. Taurine, a semiessential amino acid, and vitamin C, a naturally occurring antioxidant, have previously been shown to have endothelial protective effects when exposed to proinflammatory insults. Therefore, we hypothesized that taurine and vitamin C would restore endothelial function in young smokers by modifying monocyte-endothelial interactions.

Methods and Results— Endothelial-dependent vasodilatation was assessed in vivo using duplex ultrasonography, and monocyte-endothelial interactions were assessed in vitro using endothelial cell culture (human umbilical vein endothelial cells [HUVECs]) with monocyte-conditioned medium (MCM). Endothelial-dependent vasodilatation was significantly impaired in young smokers compared with nonsmokers. Pretreatment of young smokers for 5 days with 2 g/d vitamin C and, more significantly, with 1.5 g/d taurine attenuated this response. MCM taken from smokers impaired the release of nitric oxide and increased the levels of endothelin-1 release from HUVECs. When HUVECs were cultured with MCM from smokers who had been treated with taurine, the levels of nitric oxide and endothelin-1 returned toward control levels. This was attributed to an upregulation in endothelial nitric oxide synthase expression.

Conclusions— These observations suggest that taurine supplementation has a beneficial impact on macrovascular endothelial function, and an investigation of its effect on altered endothelial function in dyslipidemic states is warranted.

Key Words: amino acids • endothelium • atherosclerosis • nitric oxide synthase • smoking

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