A Comparative Biochemical Study Between L-Carnosine and β-Alanine in Amelioration of Hypobaric Hypoxia-Induced Skeletal Muscle Protein Loss.

Rathor, Richa, Sukanya Srivastava, and Geetha Suryakumar. A comparative biochemical study between L-carnosine and β-alanine in amelioration of hypobaric hypoxia-induced skeletal muscle protein loss. . 24:302-311, 2023. Carnosine (CAR; β-alanyl-L-histidine), a biologically active dipeptide is known for its unique pH-buffering capacity, metal chelating activity, and antioxidant and antiglycation property. β-Alanine (ALA) is a nonessential amino acid and used to enhance performance and cognitive functions. Hypobaric hypoxia (HH)-induced muscle protein loss is regulated by multifaceted signaling pathways. The present study investigated the beneficial effects of CAR and ALA against HH-associated muscle loss. Simulated HH exposure was performed in an animal decompression chamber. Gastric oral administration of CAR (50 mg·kg) and ALA (450 mg·kg) were given daily for 3 days and at the end of the treatment, hindlimb skeletal muscle tissue was excised for western blot and biochemical assays. Cosupplementation of CAR and ALA alone was able to ameliorate the hypoxia-induced inflammation, oxidative stress (FOXO), ER stress (GRP-78), and atrophic signaling (MuRF-1) in the skeletal muscles. Creatinine phospho kinase activity and apoptosis were also decreased in CAR- and ALA-supplemented rats. However, CAR showed enhanced protection in HH-induced muscle loss as CAR supplementation was able to enhance protein concentration, body weight, and decreased the protein oxidation and ALA administration was not able to restore the same. Hence, the present comprehensive study supports the fact that CAR (50 mg·kg) is more beneficial as compared with ALA (450 mg·kg) in ameliorating the hypoxia-induced skeletal muscle loss.