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Joe, Don, Karen and other listmates:
 
 
I'd like to share a quote about epilepsy from Leon Chaitow's book, Amino
Acids in Therapy:
 
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It is noted by other researchers that taurine is found in the developing
brain in concentrations up to four times that in the adult brain. (4 )
Since taurine acts as a supressor of neuronal activity in the
developing brain, during the phase when other regulatory systems are
not fully developed, it is thought that deficiency of taurine, at this
stage, might contribute towards, or predispose the individual to,
epilepsy.  Taurine has been shown in human trials to have an
anticonvulsive effect . (5) Its apparent role is is that it normalizes the
balance of other amino acids, which in epilepsy are thoroughly
disordered. In epilepsy serum levels of over half the amino acids are
lowered,(6) whilst serum levels of taurine are high and cerebro-spinal
fluid levels are low.  Serum zinc has  been found to be low in
epileptics, and since low serum zinc results in plasma and urine
levels of taurine rising this may be part of taurine's association with
epilepsy.
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My daughter Grace's amino acid profile from Doctor's Data Laboratory also
noted:
 
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[Taurine] scavenges excess hypochlorite ion in leukocytes and allows
chemical oxidation of foreign substances and microbes to occur.  It helps
control the flux of electrolyte minerals (Mg, Ca, K, Na) at the plasma
membrane of cells...Taurine has a strong influence on neurotransmitter
activity, expecially that of gamma-aminobutric acid, "GABA", and
insufficient taurine is linked to some types of seizures.
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Now, you might be asking, what does this have to do with CD?  I'm not sure,
but I find it interesting that the sulphation problems that have been
discussed related to the other type of gluten intolerance may mean there are
underlying problems with the sulphur aminos, of which taurine is one.
Abnormalities in the sulphur aminos seem to be related to problems with
immunity, and I understand celiac to be an immune problem.
 
My daughter's plasma taurine levels were high (18.48 when the normal low is
3.35 and normal high is 11), but she hasn't had any epilepsy, but she does
have gluten intolerance, and twelve of her plasma aminos were higher than
normal ranges, and none of the plasma aminos were low.  Her cystine and
cystine levels in urine were abnormally low, and they are both sulphur aminos.
 
Other problems associated with taurine abnormalities seem to run in my family.
 
Have any diagnosed celiacs had an amino acid profile run on urine and plasma?
 
Hope this info will be useful to someone.
 
Susan Owens