What Are The Functions Of L-carnitine?

Although L-carnitine is classified as a non-essential amino acid, it's vitally important to the health and functioning of the human body. Under normal circumstances, the body can produce all the L-carnitine it needs by chemically synthesizing it from the dietary amino acids lysine and methionine. L-carnitine supplementation may be necessary in people with genetic disorders or diseases which either decrease the amount of L-carnitine absorbed into the body or increases the amount of L-carnitine eliminated. Consult your doctor first before starting to take L-carnitine supplements.

L-Carnitine's Role in Energy Production

L-carnitine plays a crucial role in the body's energy production mechanisms. L-carnitine is needed to transport long-chain fatty acids into a cell's mitochondria where the fatty acids take part in oxidative reactions that produce energy. Fatty acids enter the mitochondria by first being chemically bound to L-carnitine, forming ester compounds. These esters are carried into the mitochondria by special mitochondrial transport proteins. L-carnitine then binds to the short and medium-chain fatty acids that are the products of mitochondrial oxidation and facilitates their transfer from the mitochondria. All body tissues except brain cells depend upon this function of L-carnitine for energy production.

Antioxidant Properties

L-carnitine has antioxidant properties related to its role in mitochondrial energy production. The process of removing short and middle-chain fatty acids from the mitochondria reduces its oxidative environment. Reducing the oxidation stress level of the mitochondria preserves its health and the health of the cell that depends upon it for energy.

Role of L-carnitine in Cardiovascular Function

L-carnitine's antioxidant and mitochondrial fat-metabolizing functions are critical to the health and function of the cardiovascular system. L-carnitine supplementation has been shown to reduce damage to heart muscle after heart attacks. In a 1992 controlled study published in "Drugs Under Experimental and Clinical Research," researchers from Santa Chiary Hospital in Italy randomly administered L-carnitine and a placebo to 160 subjects who had been diagnosed with myocardial infarction. The researchers found that the subjects who received L-carnitine had a lower mortality rate, fewer ischemic attacks, fewer heart rhythm disorders, improved heart rate, and improved systolic and diastolic blood pressure readings.

Researchers from the University of Athens Medical School in Greece published a 2000 study in the "American Heart Journal" examining the three-year survival rate of heart failure patients who received L-carnitine supplementation. At the end of the three years, seven subjects had died: six in the group receiving placebo and one in the group receiving L-carnitine. The researchers concluded that L-carnitine significantly increased survival rates in patients with heart disease.

L-carnitine Effects on Patients With HIV

L-carnitine appears to have a role in the health of patients with Human Immunodeficiency Virus. HIV initiates a sequence of steps within CD4 T-cells which eventually leads to the death of lymphocytes, a process called apoptosis. Scientists from the University of L'Aquilla, Rome found that L-carnitine supplementation reduced the rate of lymphocyte apoptosis caused by HIV. Researchers credited this result to L-carnitine's reduction of mitochondrial oxidative stress caused by antiretroviral drugs, medications used primarily for HIV treatment.

Function in Male Infertility

L-carnitine plays an important role in the production, maturation and health of sperm. European Academy of Andrology scientists published a 2003 study in the journal "Fertility and Sterility" studying the effects of L-carnitine on the fertility of 100 infertile male subjects. They found that giving 2 grams of L-carnitine per day increases the amount of sperm and sperm movement.