Department of Biochemistry, Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine, National University of Singapore (NUS), Singapore.
National University of Singapore Graduate School for Integrative Sciences and Engineering, Singapore, Singapore.
FEBS Lett. 2018 Oct;592(20):3357-3366. doi: 10.1002/1873-3468.13123. Epub 2018 Jun 15.
Ergothioneine is a thiol/thione molecule synthesised only by some fungi and bacteria. Nonetheless, it is avidly taken up from the diet by humans and other animals through a transporter, OCTN1, and accumulates to high levels in certain tissues. Ergothioneine is not rapidly metabolised, or excreted in urine and is present in many, if not all, human tissues and body fluids. Ergothioneine has powerful antioxidant and cytoprotective properties in vitro and there is evidence that the body may concentrate it at sites of tissue injury by raising OCTN1 levels. Decreased blood and/or plasma levels of ergothioneine have been observed in some diseases, suggesting that a deficiency could be relevant to the disease onset or progression. This brief Review explores the possible roles of ergothioneine in human health and disease.
麦硫因是一种硫醇/硫酮分子，仅由一些真菌和细菌合成。然而，它通过转运蛋白 OCTN1 被人类和其他动物从饮食中大量摄取，并在某些组织中积累到很高的水平。麦硫因代谢缓慢，不会迅速在尿液中排出，存在于许多（如果不是全部）人体组织和体液中。麦硫因具有强大的抗氧化和细胞保护作用，有证据表明，机体可能通过提高 OCTN1 水平将其集中在组织损伤部位。在一些疾病中观察到血液和/或血浆中麦硫因水平降低，这表明缺乏可能与疾病的发生或进展有关。这篇简要综述探讨了麦硫因在人类健康和疾病中的可能作用。
