Acetyl L-Carntine vs. L-Carnitine
The Essential Difference Between the Carnitines
Do you lack energy, or feel tired and physically or mentally unprepared to take on the tasks of the day? This is not unusual, especially as we age, and today’s topic may help explain some of the reasons for this energy deficit.
Two natural compounds produced by our tissues, L-carnitine and acetyl-L-carnitine (ALC), are similar in that both have identical chemical core structures. However, one (ALC) contains an extra component, an acetic acid bound to the core molecule (in what is known as an ester linkage). It turns out that this extra chemical piece makes a significant difference in how this molecule behaves in our body relative to its non-acetylated cousin, L-carnitine. These differences are described below, but first a brief summary of how these molecules normally function in our body.
L-carnitine functions as a vehicle to ferry fat constituents (fatty acids) across a membrane barrier into the cell’s energy-producing machine, the mitochondria, where the fat is converted to energy. Equally important, L-carnitine works in the reverse direction, too. It ferries toxic products produced during fat metabolism out of the mitochondria. This latter step helps maintain the mitochondria as clean-burning, energy-efficient machines.
We are all aware of the fact that as we age, our energy level diminishes. This decrease in energy parallels a decrease in the plasma level of L-carnitine. L-carnitine also decreases under conditions of stress, both psychological and physical. Consequently, it is described as a conditionally essential nutrient. This simply means that when our bodies cannot produce enough of it to meet demand, we need to increase the intake of this nutrient.
Acetyl-L-carnitine is just as active as L-carnitine in transporting fatty acids into the mitochondria. However, as described below, that extra acetyl group confers additional properties to this form of L-carnitine, which make it superior to its non-acetylated cousin. Both compounds increase energy Acetyl L-Carnitine or ALC Physical Energy Fat Metabolism Brain Protection Neurotransmission
Experiments with rats show a dramatic decrease (between 50-70%) in the activity level of old rats as compared to the young animal. Old rats, too, get tired with age! This decrease, as mentioned above, parallels a decrease in the amount of L-carnitine present in the animal’s tissues and blood.
This observation led researchers to investigate whether the old energy-deficient animals could be transformed into more energetic, youthful animals by feeding them a diet enriched with L-carnitine. Supplying L-carnitine to the diet increased the ambulatory activity of the old rats almost two-fold. The experiment was repeated with ALC, and it too increased the animals’ activity level to about an equal degree. So both compounds worked equally well in improving the old rats’ energy levels. ALC protects the brain
One of the two cousins, ALC, stands out with respect to its effects on the brain and nervous system. First, ALC is more effectively transported into the central nervous system. It more readily traverses the blood-brain barrier