Quantitative brain proton MR spectroscopy based on measurement of the relaxation time T1of water

Hydrogen-rich water and caffeine for alertness and brain metabolism in sleep-deprived habitual coffee drinkers

The main aim of this randomized-controlled cross-over interventional trial was to assess the acute effects of taking a single dose of hydrogen-rich water (HRW), and compare it with caffeine, HRW plus caffeine, and control water, for alertness, brain metabolism, brain and oxygen saturation, and self-reported adverse events in healthy men and women who were habitual coffee drinkers and were sleep-deprived for 24 hr. Sixteen apparently healthy young adults (8 men and 8 women; age 24.0 ± 3.5 years) were allocated in a cross-over design to receive a single-dose drink of HRW (8 ppm), caffeine (50 mg), HRW plus caffeine, or control drink (tap water) in the morning after 24-hr sleep deprivation and 12-hr fasting. The primary and secondary outcomes were assessed at baseline (pre-intervention) and 15-min follow-up. Significantly less time was needed to complete trail-making test after both HRW and HRW plus caffeine compared with the control drink (p < .05). The number of errors in the symbol digit modalities test was significantly lower after drinking HRW or caffeine than control drink (p < .05). Both HRW and caffeine significantly increased the choline-to-creatine ratio in several brain regions (frontal white and gray matter), while HRW and the combination intervention also affected brain metabolism in the paracentral brain. No participants reported any side effects from any intervention. The attention enhancement driven by HRW appears along with changes in brain metabolism. Being generally recognized as a safe intervention, hydrogen could be thus recommended as a novel intervention that upholds attention in stressed conditions, with its metabolic footprint likely different from caffeine.

Guanidinoacetic acid versus creatine for improved brain and muscle creatine levels: a superiority pilot trial in healthy men

In this randomized, double-blind, crossover trial, we evaluated whether 4-week supplementation with guanidinoacetic acid (GAA) is superior to creatine in facilitating creatine levels in healthy men (n = 5). GAA (3.0 g/day) resulted in a more powerful rise (up to 16.2%) in tissue creatine levels in vastus medialis muscle, middle-cerebellar peduncle, and paracentral grey matter, as compared with creatine (P < 0.05). These results indicate that GAA as a preferred alternative to creatine for improved bioenergetics in energy-demanding tissues.

Dietary guanidinoacetic acid increases brain creatine levels in healthy men

OBJECTIVE

Guanidinoacetic acid (GAA) is an experimental dietary additive that might act as a creatine source in tissues with high-energy requirements. In this case study, we evaluated brain levels of creatine in white matter, gray matter, cerebellum, and thalamus during 8 wk oral GAA administration in five healthy men and monitored the prevalence and severity of side effects of the intervention.

METHODS

Volunteers were supplemented daily with 36 mg/kg body weight (BW) of GAA for the first 4 wk of the intervention; afterward GAA dosage was titrated ≤60 mg/kg BW of GAA daily. At baseline, 4, and 8 wk, the participants underwent brain magnetic resonance spectroscopy, clinical chemistry studies, and open-ended questionnaire for side-effect prevalence and severity.

RESULTS

Brain creatine levels increased in similar fashion in cerebellum, and white and gray matter after GAA supplementation, with an initial increase of 10.7% reported after 4 wk, and additional upsurge (7.7%) from the weeks 4 to 8 follow-up (P < 0.05). Thalamus creatine levels decreased after 4 wk for 6.5% (P = 0.02), and increased nonsignificantly after 8 wk for 8% (P = 0.09). GAA induced an increase in N-acetylaspartate levels at 8-wk follow-up in all brain areas evaluated (P < 0.05). No participants reported any neurologic adverse event (e.g., seizures, tingling, convulsions) during the intervention.

CONCLUSIONS

Supplemental GAA led to a region-dependent increase of the creatine pool in the human brain. This might be relevant for restoring cellular bioenergetics in disorders characterized by low brain creatine and functional enzymatic machinery for creatine synthesis, including neurodegenerative diseases, brain tumors, or cerebrovascular disease.