par Nutrimuscle-Conseils » 6 Fév 2021 13:12
Amino Acids and Hypertension in Adults
Eleonora Poggiogalle, Nutrients. 2019 Jul; 11(7): 1459.
Accumulating evidence suggests a potential role of dietary protein among nutritional factors interfering with the regulation of blood pressure. Dietary protein source (plant versus animal protein), and especially, protein composition in terms of amino acids has been postulated to interfere with mechanisms underlying the development of hypertension. Recently, mounting interest has been directed at amino acids in hypertension focusing on habitual dietary intake and their circulating levels regardless of single amino acid dietary supplementation. The aim of the present review was to summarize epidemiological evidence concerning the connection between amino acids and hypertension. Due to the large variability in methodologies used for assessing amino acid levels and heterogeneity in the results obtained, it was not possible to draw robust conclusions. Indeed, some classes of amino acids or individual amino acids showed non-causative association with blood pressure as well as the incidence of hypertension, but the evidence was far from being conclusive. Further research should be prompted for a thorough understanding of amino acid effects and synergistic actions of different amino acid classes on blood pressure regulation.
In the INTERMAP study [21], dietary intake of glycine (expressed as a percentage of total protein and based on 24 h dietary recall) was positively associated with both systolic and diastolic blood pressure. Conversely, in a Greek study, plasma glycine levels—clustering with glutamine, serine, asparagine, threonine, lysine, histidine, and proline in the principal component analysis—showed a negative relationship with systolic blood pressure [16]. Also, in another study, the principal component analysis pattern encompassing glycine, sulfur amino acids, and alanine, tended to be associated to a diminished risk of hypertension [23]. An inverse correlation was observed between systolic blood pressure and sulfur amino acids in plasma, but not in cerebrospinal fluid, in a small Japanese cohort [17]. Stamler et al. [21] postulated that dietary glycine intake was positively associated with blood pressure, as glycine is abundant in animal-derived protein and meat consumption may be a dietary factor for elevated blood pressure. Conversely, the opposite findings may be supported by the important role played by glycine in reducing oxidative stress, favoring nitric oxide action; moreover, glycine is involved in the synthesis of structural protein, such as elastin; alterations in elastin formation have been connected to impaired elastic properties of vessels, a remarkable aspect in the pathogenesis of hypertension [45].
