) to get some research done into the matter and to get a definitive answer."Glutamine is responsible for increased protein synthesis , unfortunatley , glutamine is a very unstable amino acid. ALL glutamine whether ingested as a protein or free amino acid, is metabolised by the stomach and never enters th bloodstream. This creates the glutamine paradox . More glutamine puts our muscles in anabolic overdrive, but we cant effectively use supplements due to the instability of glutamine."
Dr. Dennis Sparkman||155.239.74.201||reg|| Z||000001||nobu||12-25-2000||09:15 AM||||to tell you the truth, this article makes sence to me; although many people swear by this stuff, i was one that did not notice a difference whether on or off, but iguess i was just convincing myself that it was working because it did for everybody else. mmmmmm, very interesting.||216.154.51.54||reg|| Z||000002||danielson||12-25-2000||02:39 PM||||would the same apply to glucoseamine sulphate. This is a glucose joined to the glutamine, and then made into a salt with the addition of the sulphate ion. Would this increase the stability of the amino acid enough for the absorbtion of it into the bloodstream.
Glucoseamine has been used to treat arthritus in dogs and other animals with sucess. this suggests that it can be absorbed. Obviously i can't be certain, the GMC (general medical council) or for that matter anyone else hasn't said dick on the matter publically at least. Is this doctor guy famous. ONE doctor said that MSM stopped him ever getting a cold for like over 10 years! and thats bollocks!
Would substances that have the same site of action in the body and brain (i.e. GABA's) still be susceptible to the metabolisation that occurs in the stomach. My knowledge of digestion is only that of a first year student, but enzymes have a very high degree of specificity.
They can catalyse other reactions but genereally they have a very specific site of action. metabolism constists of catabolism and anabolism (breaking down a substance and then synthesisng from it). Why would glutamine (an amino acid, therefore in it's most basic form) be broken down? breaking it down anyfurther would be leaving carboxyll groups and nitrogen containing organic groups. Enzymes generally break down big things into absorbable things (i.e. polypeptides-->peptides-->amino acids). If glutamine is an amino acid why would this happen? If temperature is what degrades it, how does it remain in the human body, its a very common amino acids in people. I cannot thinik of many other things that might cause its degradation, other than pH (amino acids are zwitter ions so would act as a buffer-whilst useless against the stomachs pH wouldn't they stay in their ionised form?) and some other chemical present in human stomachs that degrades the amino acid (can't think of any!)
Also as the article is writen in 1994, that leaves over 6 years for a doctor (or current affairs program ) to get some research done into the matter and to get a definitive answer.
Please don't take this as a flame, i don't do that sort of thing I am just pointing out what i would see as discrepancies in this statement (as no scientifioc paper behind it). I would love to get some debate in the matter, as i'm sure there are a lot of weaknesses in my argument as well (i'm only a first year medic, gimme a break). If there are any scientists, doctors (DR. ATLAS WE NEED YOU HELP!!), or people that know a bit about this matter please relpy. This is an excellent thread (well done BigAndy), because if i'm wrong, i'm spending money on stuff with the anabolic quality of sheeps sperm so it would be good to get an answer! So reply!! (oh yeah sorry about the length of the thread!)||195.44.201.90||reg||
Z||000003||BackDoc||12-28-2000||07:57 PM||||I agree. I think the body is way too efficient to allow that much of an amino acid into the bloodstream and here's my rationale.
There are immunoglobulins lining the gastrointestinal tract. The function of these Ig's is to prevent rapid transfer of protein structures from entering the bloodstream. The reason for this is quite convenient: if we could absorb high levels of proteins into our bloodstream readily, then we would die very early in life from massive septicemia. Bacteria and some viruses are nothing but complex forms of proteins...and these things can kill a person if they invade too quickly. The immunoglobulins prevent rapid uptake of proteins to keep us from becoming septic. The only physical way to bypass this is either by injecting protein into the bloodstream (not a good idea!) or by physically forcing the protein into the bloodstream via the GI tract. Injecting it raises the risk of renal shutdown or infection/autoimmune response from unaltered protenemia. Forcing protein from the GI into the bloodstream has been done before with the addition of a substance called Lysophosphatidylcholine. The problem with it is that it creates microscopic holes to develop in the GI tract, thereby allowing a portal of entry into the bloodstream. This can create ulceration, which can lead to the passage of unwanted proteins into the body or GI bleeding...both of which may have a fatal outcome.
I am a firm believer in glutamine supplementation...however, not for bodybuilding purposes. Let me tell you my brief story of why I now use glutamine:
2 years ago I was diagnosed with a rare and sometimes fatal form of cancer. I underwent multiple surgeries and 8 months of aggressive chemotherapy and radiation. The side effects were quite bad. However, the worst side effect came about as a result of taking 4500 rads of radiation to the abdominal area (nearly the lifetime maximum dose to the abdominal area). About 3 months after the end of my radiation treatments, I began to have excruciating abdominal pain that would be equivalent to getting kicked in the stomach as hard as someone could. The pain caused muscle spasms so hard that after a long episode, my abdomen would be bruised from the contractions of my abs. I tried every drug my doctors could prescribe without any reduction in pain. They told me it was the result of radiation induced muscle spasms of the small arterioles in my intestines that were causing a reduction of oxygen to reach my intestines. I dealt with the pain as best I could but was quickly losing my objectivity as I could not do very much activity for fear of the pain. A colleague of mine recommended taking glutamine since it is used by the intestinal lining for growth. Within 2 days of taking glutamine my stomach pain disappeared. I've taken glutamine every day since.
That's just my story that I hope will be food for thought.
Take care!||63.38.64.65||reg|| Z||000004||BigAndy||01-03-2001||01:18 PM||||bump||155.239.74.230||reg|| Z||000005||seyone||01-06-2001||01:40 AM||xsey1x@aol.com||good post, bump worthy||172.162.83.56||reg|| Z||000006||BSmooth||02-19-2001||12:32 AM||bsmooov@hotmail.com||BUMP...
I want to resurrect this thread. I also have not noticed shit from taking Glutamine. Anyone got more info on whether or not it really works?||65.2.153.18||reg||
Z||000007||danielson||02-19-2001||08:44 AM||||There are several types of connective tissues. Cartilage,
tendons, ligaments, intervertebral discs, pads between joints, and cellular
membranes all are comprised of connective tissue. All connective tissues
have two common components, chief of which is collagen. One third of your
bodyís total protein volume is comprised of collagen, making it the most
common protein in the body. The other component is proteoglycans (PGs). PGs
form the ìframeworkî for collagenous tissue. These huge structural
ìmacromoleculesî are comprised mainly of glycosaminoglycans (GAGs) -- long
chains of modified sugars. The principal sugar in PGs is called hyaluronic
acid, of which 50 percent is comprised of glucosamine. The principal amino
acids forming collagen are proline, glycine and lysine. Collagen and PGs
must somehow ìget togetherî during the production of new connective tissue.
Of the multitude of biochemical reactions which must take place during the
synthesis of connective tissue, there is one critical ìrate-limitingî step,
which once reached guarantees that new connective tissue is being
successfully synthesized. That rate-limiting step is the conversion of
glucose to glucosamine. Glucosamine, then, is the single most important
substance in the synthesis of connective tissue. Over thirty years of
research has gone into understanding how glucosamine acts as the precursor
of GAG synthesis. Scientists have long known that simply ingesting purified
glucosamine from connective tissue allows the body to by-pass the critical
rate-limiting step of converting glucose to glucosamine. Here are some of
the findings from these studies: Glucosamine is 95% absorbed intact through
the gut wall; Thirty percent of all orally administered glucosamine is
retained (stored) for later use by the body in synthesizing more connective
tissue; In human clinical trials, glucosamine sulfate, given orally in
doses of 750-1500 milligrams daily was observed to initiate a reversal of
degenerative osteoarthritis of the knee after two months. Normalization of
cartilage was documented by taking biopsies of the tissue and scrutinizing
them with an electron microscope; Of greater concern to athletes,
glucosamine aids in feeding your injured connective tissues the most
critical precursor for rebuilding the collagenous matrix which forms
connective tissue; Glucosamine is the preferred substance in synthesizing
PGs -- your connective tissueís framework; In vitro research demonstrated
that glucosamine increases the production of GAGs (the most important
molecules in your PGs) by 170 percent. Glucosamine as a supplement clearly
aids in connective tissue synthesis. All athletes need such a substance, as
the repair and growth of connective tissue is never-ending. Glucose (blood
sugar) -- A simple sugar, the breakdown product of carbohydrates that
becomes the raw material for energy production inside cells.
err..i got this from a website...and glucoseamine is glutamine joined to a glucose (thats what i take anyhow) so assume (hopefully) it does the same thing.||195.44.202.87||reg|| Z||000008||danielson||02-19-2001||08:47 AM||||just to add a little :- http://www.gnc.com/wellness/natpharm/Supp/Glutamine-F.htm
The amino acid glutamine appears to play a role in muscle function and and in the immune system.104 Intense exercise lowers blood levels of glutamine, which can remain indefinitely low with overtraining.105 Glutamine supplementation raises levels of growth hormone at an intake of 2 grams per day,106 and intravenous glutamine is better than other amino acids at helping replenish muscle glycogen after exercise.107 However, glutamine supplementation (30 mg per 2.2 pounds body weight) has not improved performance of short-term, high-intensity exercise by trained athletes,108 and no studies on endurance performance have been done. Although the effects of glutamine supplementation on immune function after exercise have been inconsistent,109 110 a double blind study giving athletes glutamine (2.5 grams after exercise and again two hours later) reported 81% without subsequent infection compared with 49% in the placebo group.111
[This message has been edited by danielson (edited February 19, 2001).]||195.44.202.87||reg|| Z||000009||danielson||02-20-2001||06:42 PM||||bump for anyone who wanted to read and critique this.||195.44.209.134||reg|| Z||000010||riskybiz007||02-20-2001||10:33 PM||riskybiz007@hotmail.com||Glutamine has always been controversial... I buy it with a bit of hope, but in the back of my mind i'm wondering if this expensive crap is helping or not.||152.163.204.193||reg||