Effect of a 3-month L-carnitine Supplementation and Resistance Training Program on Circulating Markers and Bone Mineral Density in Postmenopausal Women: a Randomized Controlled Trial

Overview

Journal Nutr Metab (Lond)

Publisher Biomed Central

Date 2023 Aug 2

PMID 37533033

Authors

Robert A Olek

Emilia Samborowska

Piotr Wisniewski

Pawel Wojtkiewicz

Krystian Wochna

Jacek Zielinski

Affiliations

Soon will be listed here.

Abstract

Background: Higher circulating levels of trimethylamine N-oxide (TMAO), which is a metabolite that can be produced by the gut microbiota from L-carnitine (LC), have been associated with bone mineral density (BMD). Because LC supplementation can improve bone density and microstructural properties in animal models, this study aimed to examine the effects of 12 weeks of LC supplementation on BMD and selected blood markers involved in bone metabolism of postmenopausal women participating in a resistance training (RT) program.

Methods: Twenty-seven postmenopausal women, who had not been treated for osteoporosis, with a total T-score above - 3.0 and no diet differences completed 12 weeks of RT. The participants' diets were supplemented with either 1 g of LC-L-tartrate and 3 g of leucine per day (LC group) or 4 g of leucine per day as a placebo (PLA group), in a double-blind fashion.

Results: After the intervention in the LC group, plasma total carnitine and serum decorin levels were higher than the corresponding preintervention values (p = 0.040 and p = 0.042, respectively). Moreover, plasma TMAO and serum SPARC levels were higher in the LC group than the corresponding postintervention values in the PLA group (p < 0.001 and p = 0.030, respectively). No changes in the BMD were observed after 3 months of the intervention.

Conclusions: Twelve weeks of LC supplementation during RT program increased plasma TMAO levels and appeared to affect signaling molecules, as indicated by the increase in the resting SPARC and decorin levels, with no significant modification in the BMD.

Trial Registration: Retrospectively registered at the ClinicalTrials.gov (NCT05120011).

References

Shojaa M, von Stengel S, Kohl M, Schoene D, Kemmler W . Effects of dynamic resistance exercise on bone mineral density in postmenopausal women: a systematic review and meta-analysis with special emphasis on exercise parameters. Osteoporos Int. 2020; 31(8):1427-1444. PMC: 7360540. DOI: 10.1007/s00198-020-05441-w. View

Ghanemi A, Melouane A, Yoshioka M, St-Amand J . Secreted protein acidic and rich in cysteine and bioenergetics: Extracellular matrix, adipocytes remodeling and skeletal muscle metabolism. Int J Biochem Cell Biol. 2019; 117:105627. DOI: 10.1016/j.biocel.2019.105627. View

Samulak J, Sawicka A, Hartmane D, Grinberga S, Pugovics O, Lysiak-Szydlowska W . L-Carnitine Supplementation Increases Trimethylamine-N-Oxide but not Markers of Atherosclerosis in Healthy Aged Women. Ann Nutr Metab. 2018; 74(1):11-17. DOI: 10.1159/000495037. View

Rizzoli R . Nutritional aspects of bone health. Best Pract Res Clin Endocrinol Metab. 2014; 28(6):795-808. DOI: 10.1016/j.beem.2014.08.003. View

Zhao R, Zhao M, Xu Z . The effects of differing resistance training modes on the preservation of bone mineral density in postmenopausal women: a meta-analysis. Osteoporos Int. 2015; 26(5):1605-18. DOI: 10.1007/s00198-015-3034-0. View

Mercadal L, Tezenas du Montcel S, Chonchol M, Debure A, Depreneuf H, Servais A . Effects of L-Carnitine on Mineral Metabolism in the Multicentre, Randomized, Double Blind, Placebo-Controlled CARNIDIAL Trial. Am J Nephrol. 2018; 48(5):349-356. DOI: 10.1159/000494338. View

Thomas M, Fernandez M . Trimethylamine N-Oxide (TMAO), Diet and Cardiovascular Disease. Curr Atheroscler Rep. 2021; 23(4):12. DOI: 10.1007/s11883-021-00910-x. View

Kim J, Galvao D, Newton R, Gray E, Taaffe D . Exercise-induced myokines and their effect on prostate cancer. Nat Rev Urol. 2021; 18(9):519-542. DOI: 10.1038/s41585-021-00476-y. View

Rosset E, Bradshaw A . SPARC/osteonectin in mineralized tissue. Matrix Biol. 2016; 52-54:78-87. PMC: 5327628. DOI: 10.1016/j.matbio.2016.02.001. View

10.

Hooshmand S, Balakrishnan A, Clark R, Owen K, Koo S, Arjmandi B . Dietary l-carnitine supplementation improves bone mineral density by suppressing bone turnover in aged ovariectomized rats. Phytomedicine. 2008; 15(8):595-601. DOI: 10.1016/j.phymed.2008.02.026. View

11.

Aoi W, Naito Y, Takagi T, Tanimura Y, Takanami Y, Kawai Y . A novel myokine, secreted protein acidic and rich in cysteine (SPARC), suppresses colon tumorigenesis via regular exercise. Gut. 2012; 62(6):882-9. DOI: 10.1136/gutjnl-2011-300776. View

12.

Kitsuda Y, Wada T, Noma H, Osaki M, Hagino H . Impact of high-load resistance training on bone mineral density in osteoporosis and osteopenia: a meta-analysis. J Bone Miner Metab. 2021; 39(5):787-803. DOI: 10.1007/s00774-021-01218-1. View

13.

Garnero P, Sornay-Rendu E, Munoz F, Borel O, Chapurlat R . Association of serum sclerostin with bone mineral density, bone turnover, steroid and parathyroid hormones, and fracture risk in postmenopausal women: the OFELY study. Osteoporos Int. 2012; 24(2):489-94. DOI: 10.1007/s00198-012-1978-x. View

14.

Avolio E, Mangialardi G, Slater S, Alvino V, Gu Y, Cathery W . Secreted Protein Acidic and Cysteine Rich Matricellular Protein is Enriched in the Bioactive Fraction of the Human Vascular Pericyte Secretome. Antioxid Redox Signal. 2020; 34(15):1151-1164. DOI: 10.1089/ars.2019.7969. View

15.

Zhang L, Li L, Yang M, Xu K, Boden G, Yang G . The rhPTH treatment elevates plasma secreted protein acidic and rich in cysteine levels in patients with osteoporosis. Osteoporos Int. 2012; 24(3):1107-12. DOI: 10.1007/s00198-012-1956-3. View

16.

Jalandra R, Dalal N, Yadav A, Verma D, Sharma M, Singh R . Emerging role of trimethylamine-N-oxide (TMAO) in colorectal cancer. Appl Microbiol Biotechnol. 2021; 105(20):7651-7660. DOI: 10.1007/s00253-021-11582-7. View

17.

Samborowska E, Olek R . Twenty-Four Weeks of L-Carnitine Combined with Leucine Supplementation Does Not Increase the Muscle Carnitine Content in Healthy Active Subjects. Ann Nutr Metab. 2023; 79(2):219-227. DOI: 10.1159/000529333. View

18.

Sawicka A, Renzi G, Olek R . The bright and the dark sides of L-carnitine supplementation: a systematic review. J Int Soc Sports Nutr. 2020; 17(1):49. PMC: 7507632. DOI: 10.1186/s12970-020-00377-2. View

19.

Pasqualini L, Ministrini S, Lombardini R, Bagaglia F, Paltriccia R, Pippi R . Effects of a 3-month weight-bearing and resistance exercise training on circulating osteogenic cells and bone formation markers in postmenopausal women with low bone mass. Osteoporos Int. 2019; 30(4):797-806. DOI: 10.1007/s00198-019-04908-9. View

20.

Sawicka A, Hartmane D, Lipinska P, Wojtowicz E, Lysiak-Szydlowska W, Olek R . l-Carnitine Supplementation in Older Women. A Pilot Study on Aging Skeletal Muscle Mass and Function. Nutrients. 2018; 10(2). PMC: 5852831. DOI: 10.3390/nu10020255. View