What is Sialic Acid (N-Acetylneuraminic Acid)?
Sialic acid, also called sialic acid, are a class of -keto acid sugars with nine carbon backbone. The term “sialic acid” (from the Greek for saliva, σίαλον – sĂalon) was first introduced by the Swedish biochemist Gunnar Blix in 1952. The most common member of this group is N-acetylneuraminic acid (N-acetyl-d-neuraminic acid , Neu5Ac or NANA) found in animals and some prokaryotes.
Sialic acids are widely found in animal tissues and related forms are found to a lesser extent in other organisms, such as in some microalgae, bacteria and archaea. Sialic acids are commonly part of glycoproteins, glycolipids or gangliosides, where they decorate the ends of sugar chains on the surface of cells or soluble proteins. However, sialic acids have also been observed in Drosophila embryos and other insects. In general, plants do not appear to contain or exhibit sialic acids.
In humans, the brain has the highest sialic acid content, with these acids playing an important role in neural transmission and ganglioside structure in synaptogenesis. More than 50 types of sialic acid are known, all of which can be obtained from a molecule of neuraminic acid by replacing the amino group with one of its hydroxyl groups. In general, the amino group carries an acetyl or a glycolyl group, but other modifications have been described. These modifications, along with linkages, have been shown to be tissue-specific and developmentally regulated expressions, so some are only found on certain types of glycoconjugates in specific cells. The hydroxyl substituents can vary considerably; acetyl, lactyl, methyl, sulfate and phosphate groups have been found.
In May 2017, N-acetyl-d-neuraminic acid (Sialic acid) was approved for registration as ‘Authorized Novel Food’ in both China and Europe (by the European Food Safety Authority, EFSA). As a result, sialic acid can be used in baby food, pasta, dairy products and food supplements, among other things
External Resources
Next Valley is legally not allowed to make statements about properties and uses of Sialic Acid (Sialic Acid) if they have not been approved as a health claim by the European Commission.
For more information, we refer you to external sources.
- The Sialic Acid wiki at Wikipedia
Dose
The optimal dose varies from person to person, but a good guideline is between 100 and 300 mg. Use of Sialic Acid (N-Acetylneuraminic Acid) as a dietary supplement in children under 10 years of age is not recommended.
Side effects
There are no known side effects of using Sialic Acid. If you do experience side effects due to the use of Sialic Acid, reduce your dose.