Michael Lever

..We aimed to compare plasma cortisol (a stress marker) and C-reactive protein (an inflammation marker) as statistical predictors of plasma betaine concentrations...

..Betaine insufficiency is associated with unfavourable vascular risk profiles in metabolic syndrome patients. We investigated associations between betaine insufficiency and secondary events in acute coronary syndrome patients...

..The post-methionine load test is reported to be both an independent vascular risk factor and a measure of betaine sufficiency...

..Urinary betaine excretion positively correlated with plasma homocysteine in outpatients attending a lipid disorders clinic (lipid clinic study). We aimed to confirm this in subjects with established vascular disease...

..To reconcile observing a positive correlation of betaine excretion with homocysteine in lipid disorder patients but not other study groups...

..Clinical trials of combinations of betaine and fibrate, to complement statin therapy, are needed to determine the value of these agents in reducing the residual cardiovascular disease risk...

..These patients are often treated with fibrates which alter renal function and raise plasma homocysteine concentrations. We suggest there is a connection between fibrate treatment and betaine excretion...

..We aimed to measure the relationships between plasma and urine betaine and plasma lipids, and the effects of lipid-lowering drugs on these...

..Slower HPLC methods give comparable results. Proton NMR spectrometry is another option but caution is needed to avoid confusion with trimethylamine-N-oxide...

..Betaine comes from the diet and from choline, and it is associated with vascular disease in some patient groups. Betaine supplementation lowers plasma total homocysteine...

..50), and this relationship may be stronger in patients with known vascular disease. Urinary loss of glycine betaine may contribute to hyperhomocysteinemia and the development of cardiovascular disease...

..The aim of this study was to investigate the relationship between plasma coenzyme Q(10) (CoQ(10)) and survival in patients with chronic heart failure (CHF)...

..To determine whether daily dimethylglycine supplementation affects plasma homocysteine concentrations...

..Glycine betaine (GB) is known to decrease tHcy in other clinical settings, but whether it is beneficial in chronic renal failure has not been established...

..Proline betaine (PB), a glycine betaine (GB) analogue found in citrus foods, increases urinary GB loss and plasma total homocysteine (tHcy) concentrations in rats. Its presence in human plasma is associated with increased GB excretion...

..We aimed to compare the individuality (within subject consistency) of plasma and urine betaine and N,N-dimethylglycine...

..To find whether the control of betaine metabolism differs between male and female patients and identify the effects of insulin and other hormones...

..The study shows that glycine betaine analogues have multiple effects on homocysteine metabolism (250)...

..CoQ10 depletion may also be a contributory factor for why statin intervention has not improved outcomes in CHF. There is an emerging evidence base in support of CoQ10 as an adjunctive therapy in CHF...

..To establish whether normal human subjects excrete glycine betaine at a constant rate...

..CONCLUSION: (1)H NMR spectroscopy is a convenient, rapid and economical option for the determination of betaines and related compounds in urine in a single analysis...

..Retention is reduced by increasing the water content and the buffer concentration. Capillary electrophoresis migration times are affected by the choice of buffer anion, with low pH citrate buffers favoured...

..In contrast, peripheral blood concentrations of proline betaine, which is present in the diet (and has no known metabolic or physiological role in mammals), is not controlled...

..It has sufficient sensitivity to measure choline in biological materials such as human plasma, and is suitable for processing batches of samples...

..19+/-0.03 mM with a V(max) of 17+/-0.7 nMol min(-1) mg(-1)...

..We suggest that the effect of these solutes depends on structuring the hydration water of DNA, as well as interactions with the DNA structure itself...

..Does abnormal betaine excretion persist?..

..Toxicity associated with DMT treatment raises concerns for its use in further studies. However, sub-acute administration of DMT to sheep may provide a useful model of acute alveolar damage...

..Advantages of this method include good precision, accuracy and linearity, the use of fluorescence to gain sensitivity, the small sample volume required and a relatively low sample preparation time...

..4-Methylthiazolium betaine was the only one that showed significant antibacterial activity towards Escherichia coli under hyperosmotic conditions. None of the tested betaines showed any evidence of osmoprotection or urea protection...

..The results with the automated system are consistent with the known stabilizing effects of the cosolvents and validate it as a tool to explore the development of novel cosolvents and their effects on multiple biological systems...