People with cirrhosis may suffer from a condition called hepatic encephalopathy which manifests in its mildest form as mental slowing and impaired reaction times in driving and operating machinery, and may lead untreated to deep coma in some individuals. The cause is not fully understood, but it is thought to be related to an inability of the damaged liver to filter out toxins in the blood, such as ammonia, which then accumulate in the brain and causes altered function and varying degrees of brain swelling.
These people also suffer from muscle loss, which is associated with poor outcome. L-ornithine L-aspartate (LOLA) is a licensed drug in Germany for many years and has been shown to kick-start the liver to eliminate ammonia in the form of urea. Experimental studies have suggested that it also promotes the incorporation of ammonia into muscle in the form of glutamine, thereby potentially reducing muscle loss.
- LOLA – L-ornithine L-aspartate (LOLA) is a mixture of endogenous amino acids with the demonstrated capacity to increase ammonia removal by residual hepatocytes and skeletal muscle of patients with cirrhosis. Recent reports suggest that LOLA has, in addition to its established role as an ammonia scavenger, a direct protective effect on the liver per se.
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- Research: LINK 1 | See PDF
- PDF | Hepatoprotection by LOLA(L-Ornithine & L-Aspartate) in Non-Alcoholic Fatty Liver Disease
- Magic Beans – Proline, Lysine, Vitamin C, Hawthorn(epicatechin).
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A non-essential and nonprotein amino acid, ornithine is critical for the production of the body’s proteins, enzymes and muscle tissue. Ornithine plays a central role in the urea cycle and is important for the disposal of excess nitrogen (ammonia). Ornithine is the starting point for the synthesis of many polyamines such as putrescine and spermine. Ornithine supplements are claimed to enhance the release of growth hormone and to burn excess body fat. Ornithine is necessary for proper immune function and good liver function.
Ornithine is a naturally occurring amino acid found in meat, fish, dairy and eggs. Ornithine is one of the key reactants in the urea cycle that is responsible for 80% of the nitrogen excretion in the body. Ornithine enhances liver function and helps detoxify harmful substances.
Absorbed from the small intestine via a sodium-dependent active transport process.
Ornithine undergoes extensive metabolism in the liver to L-arginine, polyamines, and proline, and several other metabolites.
L-Ornithine is metabolised to L-arginine. L-arginine stimulates the pituitary release of growth hormone. Burns or other injuries affect the state of L-arginine in tissues throughout the body. As De novo synthesis of L-arginine during these conditions is usually not sufficient for normal immune function, nor for normal protein synthesis, L-ornithine may have immunomodulatory and wound-healing activities under these conditions (by virtue of its metabolism to L-arginine).
L-ornithine, also known as (S)-2, 5-diaminopentanoic acid or ornithine is a member of the class of compounds known as L-alpha-amino acids. L-alpha-amino acids are alpha amino acids which have the L-configuration of the alpha-carbon atom. L-ornithine is soluble (in water) and a moderately acidic compound. It has been claimed that ornithine improves athletic performance, has anabolic effects, has wound-healing effects, and is immuno-enhancing. L-ornithine is abundant in a number of food items such as wild rices, brazil nuts, common oregano, and common grapes. L-ornithine can be found throughout most human tissues; and in most biofluids, some of which include blood, urine, cerebrospinal fluid (CSF), sweat, saliva, and feces. Within the cell, L-ornithine is located in the mitochondria and the cytoplasm. L-ornithine exists in all living species, from bacteria to humans.