title: Creatine improves health and survival of mice.
abstract: The supplementation of creatine (Cr) has a marked neuroprotective effect in mouse models of neurodegenerative diseases. This has been assigned to the known bioenergetic, anti-apoptotic, anti-excitotoxic, and anti-oxidant properties of Cr. As aging and neurodegeneration share pathophysiological pathways, we investigated the effect of oral Cr supplementation on aging in 162 aged C57Bl/6J mice. Outcome variables included "healthy" life span, neurobehavioral phenotyping, as well as morphology, biochemistry, and expression profiling from brain. The median healthy life span of Cr-fed mice was 9% higher than in control mice, and they performed significantly better in neurobehavioral tests. In brains of Cr-treated mice, there was a trend towards a reduction of reactive oxygen species and significantly lower accumulation of the "aging pigment" lipofuscin. Expression profiling showed an upregulation of genes implicated in neuronal growth, neuroprotection, and learning. These data show that Cr improves health and longevity in mice. Cr may be a promising food supplement to promote healthy human aging.
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurology, University of Munich, Klinikum Grosshadern, Marchioninistr. 15, Munich D-81377, Germany.
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Bender
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Beckers
authors.forename: I
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Schneider
authors.forename: S M
authors.initials: SM
authors.lastname: Hölter
authors.forename: T
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Haack
authors.forename: T
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Ruthsatz
authors.forename: D M
authors.initials: DM
authors.lastname: Vogt-Weisenhorn
authors.forename: L
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Becker
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Genius
authors.forename: D
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Rujescu
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Irmler
authors.forename: T
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Mijalski
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Mader
authors.forename: L
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Quintanilla-Martinez
authors.forename: H
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Fuchs
authors.forename: V
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Gailus-Durner
authors.forename: M Hrabé
authors.initials: MH
authors.lastname: de Angelis
authors.forename: W
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Wurst
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Schmidt
authors.forename: T
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Klopstock
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001522:Behavior, Animal / Q000187:drug effects / Q000502:physiology*; D003071:Cognition / Q000187:drug effects / Q000502:physiology*; D003401:Creatine / Q000008:administration & dosage*; D019587:Dietary Supplements; D006304:Health Status; D051379:Mice; D008810:Mice, Inbred C57BL; D008815:Mice, Inbred Strains; D013534:Survival; D015996:Survival Rate
chemical_list: D003401:Creatine