l-Carnosine

Antioxidant dipeptide for cell protection

* l-Carnosine (beta-alanyl-L-histidine) occurs naturally in  the body's muscle and nervous tissues and is formed by the amino  acids alanine and histidine. Levels of this dipeptide can decline  with age. It is a water-soluble antioxidant with free-radical  scavenging activity and is believed to promote cell health and  cell longevity. In vitro, l-carnosine maintains healthy advanced  glycation end-product, or AGE, activity. These end-products are  formed when aldehydes (such as aldose and ketose sugars) and  lipid peroxidation by-products bind to proteins. l-Carnosine  plays a role in maintaining DNA integrity. l-Carnosine may also  support superoxide dismutase activity. In addition, l-carnosine  may help to maintain healthy peptide metabolism in the brain  and its membrane-stabilizing properties support healthy lactate  dehydrogenase activity of cardiovascular cells. The concentration  of l-carnosine in muscle may prove to be an important factor