Theme：Why is vitamin B6 important for your heart and skeletal muscle?
Lecturer: ：Thanutchaporn Kumrungsee，Hiroshima University
Date and Time：10:30-11:30 a.m. March 5, 2018
Venue:：Lecture Hall of Yifu Building 

Content:：

Many studies have suggested that vitamin B6 supplementation reduces a risk of heart disease. However, the relationship of vitamin B6 intake and risk of heart disease is controversial, and the underlying mechanisms are not fully understood. Recently, we found that vitamin B6 supplementation in rats had no effect on homocysteine concentrations in the heart tissue, but markedly increased heart concentrations of imidazole dipeptides, such as carnosine, anserine, and homocarnosine. In addition, we found that vitamin B6 also played an important role in the regulation of the imidazole dipeptide homeostasis in skeletal muscle. Taken together with recent reports showing that imidazole dipeptides have crucial roles in heart and skeletal muscle such as antioxidant, pH-buffering, and ergogenic effects, we propose a novel mechanism underlying heart and muscle-protective effects of vitamin B6 through maintenance of imidazole dipeptide levels.