What foods contain arginine in your daily diet?

Overview

Arginine (2-amino-5-guanidinovaleric acid) is one of the 20 amino acids coded for as part of human ribosomal protein synthesis. Aside from being a structural component of many proteins, arginine also serves several other bodily roles that make it vital to overall health. Arginine and its metabolism have been increasingly recognized as potential therapeutic targets in several disease states in the last several decades, most notably cardiovascular disease, wound healing, and cancer[1].

Biological activity

Arginine is involved in several biological processes. It is the substrate for a series of reactions leading to the synthesis of other amino acids, and it is a substrate for two enzymes, namely nitric oxide (NO) synthase (NOS) and arginase, which are fundamental for the generation of NO and urea, respectively. Arginine is known to act as a substrate for NO production by endothelial cells, thus regulating vascular tone and, overall, cardiovascular homeostasis[2]. NO is synthesized from arginine by the enzyme NOS in a reaction that involves the transfer of electrons from nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide phosphate (NADPH)—via the flavin adenine dinucleotide (FAD) and flavin mononucleotide (FMN) in the C-terminal reductase domain—to the heme in the N-terminal oxygenase domain, where the substrate arginine is oxidized to citrulline and NO. Arginine is also implicated in T-cell proliferation and host immune responses, as well as in creatine and collagen synthesis.

Source

Arginine, which plays a vital role in life, has many sources and can be taken from the daily diet.

Many nuts are sources of arginine. This includes Walnuts, Hazelnuts, Pecans, Peanuts, Almonds, Cashews, Brazil Nuts, etc. The arginine content in nuts makes them high in protein, but nuts are also excellent sources of fiber and essential vitamins.

Seeds have a significant amount of arginine. Pumpkin seeds have one of the highest concentrations of arginine. One cup of dried pumpkin seeds contains 6.905 grams of the amino acid. Other seeds with a high amount of arginine include watermelon, sesame, and sunflower seeds.

As one of the best protein sources, meat contains all the amino acids your body needs, including arginine. White meat has the highest amount of arginine. Its health benefits come from being rich in protein and low in fat. One turkey breast has 16.207 grams of arginine, while one cup of chicken has 2.790 grams. Beef contains 4.131 grams of arginine per pound of cooked meat. Although it also has high arginine levels, it has more fat than other protein sources.

References

[1] Vance L. Albaugh. "Arginine." Reference Module in Life Sciences (2017).

[2] Jessica Gambardella. “Arginine and Endothelial Function.” Biomedicines 8 8 (2020).