The idea for the study came from its leader Vijay Yadav, assistant professor of genetics and development at Columbia University Vagelos College of Physicians and Surgeons, and his previous research into osteoporosis. The latter uncovered taurine's role in building bone.
The professor's team set up a large experiment with mice, starting with close to 250 14-month-old female and male mice - who would be about 45 years old in people terms. Every day, the researchers fed half of them a bolus of taurine or a control solution.At the end of the experiment, Yadav and his team found that taurine increased the average lifespan by 12% in female mice and 10% in males.
"Taurine-fed mice acquired less body weight. They had reduced adiposity, increased energy expenditure, increased muscle strength, neuromuscular coordination, reduced anxiety, increased memory, better glucose and insulin tolerance and the immunophenotype was enhanced." The second study tested if taurine levels would respond to an intervention known to improve health - exercise. The researchers measured taurine levels before and after a variety of male athletes and sedentary individuals finished a strenuous cycling workout.“No matter the individual, all had increased taurine levels after exercise, which suggests that some of the health benefits of exercise may come from an increase in taurine,” Yadav explained.