USPlabs Modern BCAA
Here at USPlabs, we LOVE BCAA's...The problem is we take so much of them, all of the artificial flavors and colors in high amounts were giving us headaches, making us nauseous and basically leaving us feeling lethargic and, quite frankly, like crap... In addition, and maybe even more importantly, we just couldn't find the BCAA ratio we wanted...So we did what we do best - developed our own... It's called USPlabs Modern BCAA

Rules For BCAA
We made it VERY clear to our R & D team - USPlabs Modern BCAA^TM MUST be developed under these strict rules:
- BCAA Ratio formulation with mTOR activation in mind
- Ultra-Micronized
- Mix Clean
- No Artificial Colors
- Natural, refreshing taste
- No L-Glutamine

mTOR (Mammalian Target of Rapamycin) is a large proline-directed serine-threonine protein kinase that's responsible for a wide range of physiologic and metabolic functions in several cell types, including both adipocytes (fat cells) and myocytes (muscle cells)... Among its many roles, mTOR is responsible for hypertrophic growth (an increase in muscle cell size, for example), protein synthesis and tissue morphogenesis. As a result, compounds which target the regulatory pathways of mTOR have been highly sought out for quite some time.

A wide range of data have suggested that amino acids are capable of directly regulating mTOR signaling pathways in skeletal muscle (1, 2, 3, 4), including the possibility that they activate some of the cell signaling elements upstream from mTOR in the insulin/growth factor signaling pathway.

However, this same data suggest that the amino-acid induced activation of mTOR signaling pathways is not uniform, and there is evidence that the mechanism of mTOR activation may be both tissue and amino acid specific (5, 6). In particular, the amino acid leucine is indicated as being primarily responsible for the branched chain amino-acid induced activation of mTOR signaling pathways, and therefore mTOR's effect on protein turnover and synthesis (1 - 6). This hypothesis has come about as studies have shown that most of the effects of amino acids on mTOR signaling are abolished by lowering the concentration of leucine, or increased by adding leucine and, to a lesser extent, the other branched-chained amino acids.

In other words, leucine is the star, but it also must be mentioned that the other two BCAA's, isoleucine & valine, need to be present in order to maximize results... 8-1-1 BCAA Ratio. With the above in mind, we've formulated USPlabs Modern BCAA^TM with an 8-1-1 leucine-isoleucine-valine ratio. In terms of the leucine, the reasoning here is that, from a strictly technical standpoint, the data displays that only leucine and those other amino acids structurally related to leucine are responsible for the increase in mTOR commonly associated with BCAA supplementation.

Results & Value
As you know, many people are doubling, tripling, even quadrupling their dosage of BCAAs with a 2:1:1 & 4:1:1 bias in order to achieve better results. Given the fact that leucine is most likely the amino acid responsible for this effect, particularly in skeletal muscle, having a formula with an 8:1:1 ratio eliminates the need for such increased dosing, effectively creating an enormous value in addition to the other benefits.

The other issue here is amino acid transport and metabolism. All three of the branched chain amino acids - leucine, isoleucine and valine - compete for the same transport systems, and as a result, the presence of high concentrations of the other two branch-chained amino acids may lower intracellular levels of leucine...Obviously NOT what you want. This is further compounded by the fact that, once ingested, leucine first fulfills other structural roles unrelated to protein metabolism prior to activating mTOR signaling pathways...

The result is that BCAA products with a 2:1:1 or 4:1:1 bias may actually counteract the anabolic effects from the product, as these substrates are pitted against one another to compete for metabolism. By increasing the "normal" ratio of leucine to the other two branched chain amino acids, we ensure two things:

1. Double & mega dosing are unnecessary, as we have already doubled the component that is primarily responsible for the protein turnover and synthesis increases we see with BCAAs.
2, Competitive metabolism between the amino acids will not lower leucine levels to the point that it is unable to regulate mTOR.

Simply put, a 2:1:1 or 4:1:1 bias, while effective, is by no means optimal for mTOR signaling pathway activation, and an increase in protein synthesis associated with it.

Ultra-Micronized
Sure, now there's instantized BCAA's - but they are incredibly expensive & made by using soy...And I know you're tired of BCAA "floaties" and losing valuable product stuck to the side of the bottle...That's why the BCAA's in USPlabs Modern BCAA utilize an advanced micronization process that produces an incredibly light & voluminous powder that mixes great! Plus, USPlabs Modern BCAA^TM will keep you on your game at the gym or at work - no BCAA moustache or stained teeth to worry about...

Are You Drinking Ammonia?
Everyone knows creatine can quickly turn to its waste byproduct creatinine when mixed in water...So why doesn't anyone ever talk about what L-Glutamine can break down to? L-glutamine is known for its instability, in the dry state and especially in an aqueous solution (5,6). The degradation products from L-glutamine can be glutamic acid, ammonia and pyroglutamic acid, the latter two being potentially toxic (5-9). What's worse is the longer it sits in water, the more degradation takes place! Yuck! Needless to say, that's why we made it a rule that L-Glutamine was not in the USPlabs Modern BCAA^TM formula... Instead, to assist with blood glutamine pools, we've included a compound called Sustamine^TM...

Sustamine
This particular product consists of a glutamine dipeptide (L-alanyl-L-glutamine), which is more stable and far more water soluble than regular L-glutamine (1). These physicochemical properties alone may provide greater effectiveness as compared to l-glutamine. However, the presence of a unique intestinal transporter for the dipeptide may also allow for an increased amount of glutamine to reach the bloodstream and into skeletal muscle as compared to regular free L-glutamine (2-4).

These notions are supported by the higher glutamine concentrations in plasma and skeletal muscle of animal models administered alanyl-glutamine, as compared to those observed with free L-glutamine (3,4). This is important because up to 65% of regular L-glutamine can be destroyed before it makes its way to your muscles... As mentioned, we added Sustamine to assist with blood glutamine pools, but I want to make it abundantly clear we're not trying to win glutamine product of the year here...

USPlabs Modern BCAA is a BCAA formula first & foremost because, quite frankly, that's what delivers the goods...
If you want a bunch of ingredients that really won't have a significant impact on your physique & performance, then USPlabs Modern BCAA probably isn't for you... If you want an awesome BCAA product designed for those who truly realize just how important BCAA's are, then USPlabs Modern BCAA^TM was made with you in mind.

Unbelievable Taste
Yes, I know, you've heard that one before - only to be disappointed... And while taste is highly subjective, I'm incredibly confident you simply won't believe you're drinking a naturally flavored BCAA product...You'll want to drink it all day long!

USPlabs Modern BCAA^TM comes in two incredibly refreshing flavors :
- Grape Bubblegum (mixes clean with slight purple tint)
- White Blue Raspberry (White because there is no coloring -natural blue coloring is unstable so we decided to leave it out, and Blue because it tastes and smells like you expect Blue Raspberry to).

Directions for use: As a dietary supplement, mix 1 serving (2 level scoops) in 20 ounces of water and shake vigorously for 30 seconds. Sip throughout workout or athletic event. An additional serving may be taken immediately after training or any time additional aminos are needed. Using very cold water can hinder solubility and cause foaming.

Warning: This product is only intended to be consumed by healthy adults 18 years of age or older. Pregnant or nursing women should not use this product. Discontinue use and immediately consult your health care professional if you experience any adverse reaction to this product. Do not exceed recommended serving. Do not use if safety seal is broken or missing. KEEP OUT OF REACH OF CHILDREN.

References

1. Anthony J. C., Anthony T. G., Kimball S. R., Vary T. C., Jefferson L. S. Orally administered leucine stimulates protein synthesis in skeletal muscle of postabsorptive rats in association with increased eIF4F formation. J. Nutr. 2000;130:139-145
2. Tischler M. E., Desautels M., Goldberg A. L. Does leucine, leucyl-tRNA, or some metabolite of leucine regulate protein synthesis and degradation in skeletal and cardiac muscle?. J. Biol. Chem. 1982;257:1613-1621
3. Kimball S. R., Shantz L. M., Horetsky R. L., Jefferson L. S. Leucine regulates translation of specific mRNAs in L6 myoblasts through mTOR-mediated changes in availability fo eIF4E and phosphorylation of ribosomal protein S6. J. Biol. Chem. 1999;274:11647-1
4. Buse M. G., Weigand D. A. Studies concerning the specificity of the effect of leucine on the turnover of proteins in muscles of control and diabetic rats. Biochim. Biophys. Acta 1977;475:81-89
5. Patti M. E., Brambilla E., Luzi L., Landaker E. J., Kahn C. R. Bidirectional modulation of insulin action by amino acids. J. Clin. Invest. 1998;101:1519-1529
6. Shigemitsu K., Tsujishita Y., Miyake H., Hidayat S., Tanaka N., Hara K., Yonezawa K. Structural requirement of leucine for activation of p70 S6 kinase. FEBS Lett 1999;447:303-306
7. Fox H. L., Pham P. T., Kimball S. R., Jefferson L. S., Lynch C. J. Amino acid effects on translational repressor 4E-BP1 are mediated primarily by L-leucine in isolated adipocytes. Am. J. Physiol. Cell Physiol. 1998b;275:C1232-C1238
8. Furst P. New developments in glutamine delivery. J Nutr. 2001 Sep;131(9 Suppl):2562S-2568S.
9. Klassen P, et al. The pharmacokinetic responses of humans to 20 g of alanyl-glutamine dipeptide differ with the dosing protocol but not with gastric acidity or in patients with acute Dengue fever. J Nutr. 2000 Feb;130(2):177-182
10. Rogero MM, et al. Plasma and tissue glutamine response to acute and chronic supplementation with L-glutamine and L-alanyl-L-glutamine in rats. Nutr Res. 2004 Apr;24(4):261-270
11. Rogero MM, et al. Effect of alanyl-glutamine supplementation on plasma and tissue glutamine concentrations in rats submitted to exhaustive exercise. Nutrition. 2006 May;22(5):564-571
12. Shih FF. Analysis of glutamine, glutamic acid and pyroglutamic acid in protein hydrolysates by high-performance liquid chromatography. J Chromatogr. 1985 Mar 29;322(1):248-256
13. Archibald RM. Chemical characteristics and physiological roles of glutamine. Chem Rev. 1945 Oct;37(2):161-208
14. Stehle P, et al. Isotachophoretic analysis of synthetic dipeptide L-alanyl-L-glutamine: Evidence for stability during heat sterilization. J Chromatogr. 1984;294:507-512
15. Khan K, et al. The stability of L-glutamine in total parenteral nutrition solutions. Clin Nutr. 1991 Aug;10(4):193-198
16. Khan K & Elia M. Factors affecting the stability of L-glutamine in solution. Clin Nutr. 1991 Aug;10(4):186-192

These statements have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. This product is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure or prevent any disease. Individual results may vary.