From
Cell to Super-Cell... with Glutathione
Copyright
© 2002 Priya Shah
Imagine
you're a cell.
Inside
your body runs the machinery that creates life itself. But as
that machinery keeps running, day after day, you begin to get
worn out - the friction and the processes that cause damage
(here the "free-radicals" - highly destructive little entities
generated by biochemical processes, as well as pollutants, UV
radiation and other sources) start to create havoc and you begin
to lose the battle to disease, old age and ultimately death.
In fact your battle would be over much sooner were it not for
the numerous mechanisms that you and other mammalian cells evolved
over millions of years, as protection from the injury that can
result from your normal functional processes.
The
foremost among these internal protective systems is the "Glutathione
antioxidant system."
Glutathione, a small
molecule composed of three amino acids - glycine, glutamate
and cysteine - acts as your cellular Super-Mop, soaking
up "free-radicals" (with the help of the sulfur-containing portion
of the cysteine molecule), protecting your cellular membranes
and internal organs from the cascading destruction they can
cause. 
Besides
being the major antioxidant that you produce as protection from
"free-radicals," glutathione is also a very important detoxifying
agent, enabling you to get rid of undesirable toxins and pollutants.
If
you were a liver, kidney or lung cell, you would contain high
levels of glutathione, as you'd be exposed to the greatest levels
of toxins.
Glutathione
also helps you dispose of many cancer-producing chemicals, heavy
metals, drug metabolites etc. that invade the pristine recesses
of your cellular world.
And
Mother Nature (the first recycler) also designed you to use
glutathione to recycle other well-known antioxidants such as
vitamin C and vitamin E, keeping them in their active state.
If
you were a cell delegated to the immune system department, you would
require glutathione for many of the intricate steps needed to carry
out your essential immune
response functions - such as multiplying to make many clones of
yourself, to mount a full-bodied immune response, or "neutralizing"
undesirable elements of the cellular community, like cancerous or
virally infected cells.
But
your finicky cell membrane does not allow whole glutathione molecules
to cross over directly into your cellular spaces. And every time
a molecule of glutathione neutralizes a destructive free-radical
or toxin, it fatally binds with the undesirable element and is washed
out with them in the bile or the urine.
So
how do you replenish your stores and get your daily fix of glutathione?
Simple. You manufacture it in your cellular factory, from its
raw materials - glycine, glutamate and cystine (a
cysteine=cysteine dipeptide
- consisting of two molecules of cysteine
joined together).
Cystine
enters the blood with no digestion, and donates two cysteine
molecules in the cells, where they're used to create glutathione.
If
your human eats a diet high in fresh fruits and vegetables and freshly
prepared meats, you should get be getting enough glutamate and glycine.
But cystine comes mostly from eggs, milk and cheese.
And when eggs, milk and cheese are cooked or processed, the
heat breaks down the dipeptides of cystine to cysteine. While
still a valuable amino acid, it can no longer feed your glutathione
levels.
If
you can get a sufficient supply of cystine (which determines the
rate at which you can make glutathione), your arsenal is well-stocked.
If not, you and your human are at a strategic disadvantage in the
battle of "Cell v/s Free-radical Destroyers."
As
a normal, healthy cell, increasing your glutathione levels could
help you and your human maintain that strategic advantage in
the battle against free-radicals. If you're not really in your
prime, boosting your levels could tip the scales in your favor,
and help you fight the cellular damage that causes disease
and aging.
So how do you get your daily diet of glutathione precursors?
Find out in your Free Report on Glutathione
in Health and Disease
See
also:
Cysteine is the preferred
precursor for glutathione synthesis
Glutathione
- The Next Household Name
Glutathione
(GSH) - Master Antioxidant and Cellular Detoxifier
Glutathione and your Immune System - Your Lifeline to Health
Undenatured
Whey Protein - The Best Way to Raise Glutathione Levels
References:
Transport
of glutathione, as g-glutamy l-cysteinylglycyl ester, into liver
and kidney.
Puri RN, Meister A. [Proc Natl Acad Sci USA 80: 5258-60, 1983]
Glutathione monoethylester: Preparation, uptake by tissues,
and conversion to glutathione.
Anderson ME, Powric F,Puri RN, Meister.A. [Arch Biochem Biophys
239: 538-48, 1985.]
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