They did some experiments to find pathways in the cells that play a role in leukemia. And they found that taurine receptors appear to be important in some way. So this is an interesting starting point, but not anything like what is suggested in the title.
If I understand the paper right, "the cells feed on taurine" is also just wrong. What they see is that taurine plays a role in regulating glycolysis in those leukemia cells. And of course glycolysis uses glucose as indicated by its name, and taurine looks nothing like glucose.
Researchers from the University of Rochester warned consumers to be cautious, especially as taurine is commonly used in energy drinks and dietary supplements.
... "The study states, “Since taurine is a common ingredient in energy drinks... our work suggests that it may be of interest to carefully consider the risks and benefits of supplemental taurine in leukaemia patients,”.
I fail to see how that contradicts the comment to which you were replying, and I agree that the headline doesn’t seem to follow from the text.
>This process helps cancer cells multiply more rapidly, worsening the disease.
If I’m reading this right, it doesn’t cause cancer, but if you already have cancer it may make it spread faster.
2/10 headline at best.
The theory is that the taurine added to the drinks is feeding gut bacteria that then produce hydrogen sulfide that damages the intestinal lining.
I didn't think it passed the smell then, either.
Found it: https://www.cnet.com/science/how-smelling-farts-could-save-y...
Interesting because NAC also has been studied to possibly accelerate cancer growth if you already have it, but it helps with prevention if you don't have it. And it has sulfur and also produces hydrogen sulfide in the body.
1000x times more worried about micro-plastics and forever-chemicals now saturating every water source on the planet, that cannot possibly end well for cancer rates and other diseases.
(I welcome corrections to that understanding from experts!)
Personally, this seems far from convincing evidence that taurine in energy drinks is actually causing cancer. But it is suggestive and it seems like one might reasonably avoid taurine out of an "abundance of caution".
Otherwise it's just showing that cancer can feed on protein which is ... unsurprising?
Might as well say "tofu causes cancer" or "meat causes cancer" or "milk causes cancer"
Trump/RFK has proposed slashing the NIH budget by 40%. Further, DOGE and Trump political appointees are deeply embedded within the NIH and are preventing research grants Notice of Award (NoAs) from going out. This will have disastrous consequences for biomedical research.
