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L-TRYPTOPHAN BENEFITS

KEY BENEFITS OF L-TRYPTOPHAN

    • Supports mood
    • Supports healthy aging
    • Supports prosocial behaviors
    • Supports healthy sleep
    • Supports cell energy generation

ABOUT L-TRYPTOPHAN

Among other amino acids, tryptophan is essential. You must obtain it from your diet since the body cannot synthesize it.

 

The body can generate NAD+ molecules from L-tryptophan, which has been known for decades.

Because L-tryptophan is not derived from one of the older or newer vitamins B3, it is the only way to build NAD+.

 

L-tryptophan accomplishes this via de novo synthesis pathway, which creates niacin molecules via a group of biological reactions (many other important molecules are also created through this pathway).

 

It is this pathway that uses the majority of L-tryptophan in the morning-as much as 95%. Exercise performance can be improved by taking L-tryptophan before working out, likely because it helps to produce cellular energy.

 

L-tryptophan is still mostly metabolized through the de novo pathway during the night, but a larger portion is metabolized via another pathway: 5-hydroxytryptophan (5-HTP)* serotonin* melatonin. Sleep-wake cycles and body clock functions at night are regulated by this alternate pathway.

 

It may be because of this alternate pathway that low-to-moderate doses of L-tryptophan promote prosocial behaviors such as cooperation, empathy, and getting along with others.

Using this pathway, L-tryptophan supports healthier sleep cycles since it produces the neurohormone melatonin.

 

Extra L-tryptophan can be used by the body for the next 12-16 hours where it is most needed.

It is generally believed that giving extra L-tryptophan with breakfast supports both mood during the day (presumably via melatonin support) and nightly sleep (presumably via serotonin support).

 

A little extra L-tryptophan in the morning also helps support the body's body clock, allowing many of its daytime functions to get underway in the morning.

 

Prosocial behaviors may be supported by L-tryptophan supplementation. It may be possible to promote healthier sleep cycles with low-to-modest doses of L-tryptophan during the evening.

L-TRYPTOPHAN FULL BENEFITS

NAD(P) synthesis

 

  • L-tryptophan is a substrate in the de novo NAD+ synthesis pathway via the kynurenine pathway (KP)[1]
  • NAD+ can be converted to the coenzyme NADP+ by the enzyme NAD kinase[2]
  • NAD(H) and NADP(H) are key molecules in essential redox pathways of cellular metabolism and energy production[3]
  • NAD(H) is essential for the production of ATP through the citric acid cycle and oxidative phosphorylation[3]
  • NADP(H) is essential in many anabolic metabolic reactions, including DNA and RNA synthesis[3]
  • NADP(H) is a cofactor for some cytochrome P450 enzymes that detoxify xenobiotics[4]
  • NADPH also acts as a cofactor for glutathione reductase, the enzyme used to maintain reduced glutathione (GSH) levels[3]
  • NAD(H) and NADP(H) are essential for healthy aging[3]

 

Brain function

 

  • L-tryptophan is a precursor for serotonin (a neurotransmitter) and melatonin (a neurohormone) synthesis [6]
  • Substrate for serotonin synthesis [7,8]
  • Substrate for melatonin synthesis [9]
  • Supports sleep [1,10–17]

 

Social Cognition

 

  • Promotes social behaviors [18,19]
  • Supports prosocial interactions [19–24]
  • Promotes charitable behaviors [25]

 

Mood

 

    • Supports emotional processing and mental energy [26]
    • Supports a positive mental-emotional bias [12,27–29]
    • Supports a calm mood [12,27,30]
    • Supports healthy functional connectivity between the default mode network and emotion-related brain regions [31]

 

Exercise performance (ergogenic effect)

 

    • Supports power output [32,33]
    • Delays time to exertion [32,33]

 

Complementary ingredients

 

    • Nicotinic acid (niacin) and nicotinamide (niacinamide) as substrates for NAD synthesis.

L-TRYPTOPHAN CAN BE FOUND IN:

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REFERENCES

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[3]G. Magni, A. Amici, M. Emanuelli, G. Orsomando, N. Raffaelli, S. Ruggieri, Cell. Mol. Life Sci. 61 (2004) 19–34.

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[8]J.D. Fernstrom, J. Nutr. Biochem. 1 (1990) 508–517.

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[11]C.F. George, T.W. Millar, P.J. Hanly, M.H. Kryger, Sleep 12 (1989) 345–353.

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[21]A. Nantel-Vivier, R.O. Pihl, S.N. Young, S. Parent, S.A. Bélanger, R. Sutton, M.-E. Dubois, R.E. Tremblay, J.R. Séguin, PLoS One 6 (2011) e20304.

[22]K. Hogenelst, R.A. Schoevers, M. Aan Het Rot, Int. J. Neuropsychopharmacol. 18 (2015).

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[24]H. Cerit, R.J. Schuur, E.R.A. de Bruijn, W. Van der Does, Front. Psychol. 6 (2015) 1012.

[25]L. Steenbergen, R. Sellaro, L.S. Colzato, Front. Psychol. 5 (2014) 1451.

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[33]R. Segura, J.L. Ventura, Int. J. Sports Med. 9 (1988) 301–305.