The effect of
taurine supplementation on the absorption of a fat meal was evaluated in patients with
cystic fibrosis. In a cross-over design study, five patients with
cystic fibrosis (12.1 +/- 2.6 years of age) and three control subjects received either placebo or
taurine (30 mg/kg/d) for two 1-week periods, a month apart, followed by a fat meal test. Blood samples were drawn 0, 1, 2, 3, 5, 8 hours after the meal. Four patients with
cystic fibrosis and severe
steatorrhea despite appropriate
enzyme therapy showed a significant (P less than .05) improvement in the absorption of
triglycerides, total
fatty acids, and
linoleic acid while receiving
taurine supplements. Three control subjects and one child with
cystic fibrosis and mild
steatorrhea receiving
enzyme therapy did not experience such an effect. The difference in
triglyceride absorption, when calculated as the area under the curve, receiving and not receiving
taurine was significantly (P less than .05) correlated with the degree of
steatorrhea. Furthermore, in contrast to control subjects, the
fatty acid composition of
chylomicrons in these four study patients showed important discrepancies with that of the fat meal and was corrected, in part, by
taurine supplementation. These results suggest that
taurine supplementation could be a useful adjunct in the management of patients with
cystic fibrosis with ongoing fat malabsorption and essential
fatty acid deficiency.