It has been deprived of its designation as a vitamin, but useful functions it probably has nevertheless: orotic acid, formerly known as vitamin B13, is little known and has not been researched for a long time. Orotic acid (Acidum oroticum) is formed as an intermediate product in the human metabolism of nucleic acids, namely from the amino acids asparagine and glutamine during the production of uracil and cytosine. These bases are required, among other things, for the “ladder bosses” of human DNA, but are also essential for other functions such as signal transduction and catalyzing biochemical reactions.
Milk is rich in orotic acid
This substance is also found in foods: in yeasts and dairy products such as yogurt, kefir, quark, and buttermilk – sheep’s milk, by the way, contains more than 3 times as much orotic acid as cow’s milk. Breast milk is also particularly rich in orotic acid.
Orotic acid owes its name to its discoverers, the Italian researchers Biscaro and Belloni. They isolated it for the first time at the beginning of the 20th century from cow’s whey – and its Greek name is “orós”. Initially, orotic acid was thought to be essential to life, so it was included among the vitamins.
Orotic acid and magnesium
Even though this status has been revoked, the substance is said to have a number of positive effects: orotic acid is said to protect the liver and halt the progression of liver diseases, it is said to counteract the development of cancer and – especially in combination with magnesium, whose transport medium it serves as – to prevent cardiovascular diseases and positively influence fat metabolism. It is said to stimulate the provision of energy in the cells, especially the heart muscle, and thus increase its performance capacity. It is also said to promote long-term memory.
That is why orotic acid is touted as a so-called biofactor that can compensate for deficiencies in the body and – in higher doses – have the effect of a drug. As a means of cardiovascular protection, it is particularly often offered as a combination preparation with magnesium.
Effect of orotic acid not scientifically proven
However, hardly any of these touted effects have been sufficiently proven scientifically to date. Positive effects were shown predominantly in experimental studies in rats, but in humans only in a few clinical studies. In rats, it lowered cholesterol levels but at the same time increased the likelihood of fatty liver. A recent study involving just under 80 patients with severe heart failure was able to show that those affected could actually benefit from taking an additional dose of orotic acid – both in terms of survival rates and the extent of their symptoms.
In order to use the substance in a truly supportive and therapeutic way, clinical research would have to target orotic acid even more. However, there is already one confirmed area of application: orotic acid is produced in increased amounts in certain metabolic defects in the urea cycle – so if it is detectable in the urine, this directs suspicion to a corresponding disorder in amino acid metabolism.
