the effect of saline water and dietary betaine on growth performance of 576 male broiler chicks from 11 to 42 days of age, and on carcass composition (percentages of carcass, sartorial, breast, liver, abdominal fat and heart) of a sub sample of 96 birds was studied in a crd experiment. three dose levels of sodium chloride (0, 1000 and 2000 mg/l) and 4 levels of betaine (0.000, 0.075, 0.150 and ...

The time course of betaine accumulation and activities of enzymes involved in betaine metabolism were studied in developing rats. In study 1, pups weaned on a nonpurified diet had a transient increase in liver and kidney betaine content followed by a decline after approximately 42-56 d. In study 2, dams and, following weaning, pups were fed an AIN-93G (betaine-free) or an AIN-93G betaine-supple...

BACKGROUND 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. OBJECTIVE We compared the acute effects of dietary and supplementary betaine and choline on plasma betaine and homocysteine under standard conditions and after a methionine load. DESIGN In a randomized crossover...

Although it is known that cephalopods and other marine molluscs accumulate organic osmolytes to prevent cellular water loss in the high salinity of seawater, very few studies on molluscs, and no studies on cephalopods have been performed to characterize the underlying transport processes. We used [H] betaine to quantify the uptake of betaine into giant fiber lobe motor neurons of the squid Loll...

BACKGROUND Low plasma betaine has been associated with unfavorable plasma lipid profiles and cardiovascular risk. In some studies raised plasma betaine after supplementation is associated with elevations in plasma lipids. We aimed to measure the relationships between plasma and urine betaine and plasma lipids, and the effects of lipid-lowering drugs on these. METHODOLOGY Fasting plasma sample...

Betaine supplementation has been shown to alleviate altered glucose and lipid metabolism in mice fed a high-fat diet or a high-sucrose diet. We investigated the beneficial effects of betaine in diabetic db/db mice. Alleviation of endoplasmic reticulum (ER) and oxidative stress was also examined in the livers and brains of db/db mice fed a betaine-supplemented diet. Male C57BL/KsJ-db/db mice wer...

The present review summarises the potential nutritional and physiological functions of betaine as a feed additive in relation to performance criteria in livestock production. Betaine, the trimethyl derivative of the amino acid glycine, is a metabolite of plant and animal tissues. In plants, betaine is particularly synthesised and accumulated as an osmoprotectant against salt and temperature str...

Methanogenic Archaea are found in a wide range of environments and use several strategies to adjust to changes in extracellular solute concentrations. One methanogenic archaeon, Methanosarcina thermophila TM-1, can adapt to various osmotic conditions by synthesis of alpha-glutamate and a newly discovered compatible solute, Ne-acetyl-beta-lysine, or by accumulation of glycine betaine (betaine) a...

Betaine is the substrate of the liver- and kidney-specific betaine-homocysteine (Hcy) methyltransferase (BHMT), an alternate pathway for Hcy remethylation. We hypothesized that BHMT is a major pathway for homocysteine removal in cases of hyperhomocysteinaemia (HHcy). Therefore, we measured betaine in plasma and tissues from patients and animal models of HHcy of genetic and acquired cause. Plasm...