Tune Your Brain With Creatinyl Amino Acids: "Neuro-Ergogenic" New Wonder-Creatines Readily Pass the Blood Blain Barrier and Are Potential Candidates for Treatment and Prevention of Stroke.

Image 1: Photograph of acute MCA stroke.
Image taken at autopsy on 10-24-2006
[MODIFIED BACKGROUND]; photographer
Marvin 101 @ Wikipedia.org

Alpha-methylguanidino acetic acid, is an amino acid, everyone of you will be familiar with: creatine. And though this may not be the first time you will have heard of its beneficial effect on brain health, the synthesis of new forms of creatine, so called creatinyl amino acids by guanidinylation of sarcosyl peptides or creatine p-toluenesulfonate [both reactive processes in the course of which the new creatinyl amino acid is formed] appears to offer exciting new possibilities for creatine derivates in the prevention and treatment of stroke and other neurological pathologies.

In a paper, recently published in the official Journal of the European Peptide Society, Peptide Science, Burov et al. (Burov. 2011) describe the synthesis and possible use of advanced hydrophobic creatine hybrids, specifically designed to increase their ability to pass the blood brain barrier (BBB), the major obstacle for "normal" creatines to enter the brain and perform their magic, where doctors and scientists would have them do so.

Figure 1: Lifespan [in % of control] of rats in experimental model of hypoxia after intraperitoneal injection of one out of four creatinyl amino acids (calculated from data of Burov. 2011) 

In their study, the Russian scientists were able to prove the antihypoxic  (cf. figure 1) and neuroprotective activity of intraperitoneally injected creatine derivates (100–500 mg/kg) in outbred mice and male Wistar rats, respectively:

It was shown that efficacy of antihypoxic action depends on the structure of amino acid moiety. Thus, Cr-Phe-NH₂ and Cr-GABA-OEt possessed moderate activity, while Cr-Tyr-NH₂ and Cr-Gly-OEt increase life span of experimental animals about two times.

Although a final conclusion on the efficacy and usability of these new "SuperCreatines" in human beings would be premature at this point, existing human data about the beneficial effects the supplementation of plain creatine monohydrate has on cognition, mental focus and other external indicators of brain health and performance (e.g. Rae. 2003; McMorris. 2006; Sullivan. 2000)  suggest that the new creatinyl amino acids may serve as useful tools beyond the treatment of pathologies and may eventually be (ab?-)used as as "neuro-ergogenics". So, if somewhen in the near or more distant future you or kids survive a stroke or pass a test due to one of those new creatinyl amino acids, I hope you still remember that you read about them at the SuppVersity, first!