User:Skol1214/Leucine

Leucine is an essential amino acid meaning it can’t be made in the body and must be consumed through diet or supplementation. Essential amino acids are responsible for repairing damaged tissue and muscle protein synthesis (MPS). MPS is a metabolic process that combines chains of amino acids to form fully functional skeletal muscle proteins. Leucine drives MPS by attaching to the cell mTOR. Once attached to mTOR, leucine then signals for anabolic growth using amino acids to create muscle cells. The process of MPS initiation by leucine activating mTOR is widely accepted due to various studies. Ingesting roughly 3 grams of leucine is sufficient to stimulate anabolic growth through molecular signaling of mTOR. 3 grams of leucine can be found in 25 grams of whey protein, or by eating meat. It should be noted that through eating meat, .7 grams of leucine are ingested, so it is wise to consume whey protein to meet the requirement of 3 grams in order to stimulate MPS.