Description
Considerable research attention has recently been placed on the physiological signalling molecule, nitric oxide (NO) (Jones et al. 2020). Augmenting NO synthesis through exogenous substances may improve skeletal muscle function and performance through improved blood flow, contractility, and mitochondrial respiration (Stamler and Meissner 2001). Typical strategies to increase NO activity include the ingestion of green leafy vegetables and/or beetroot juice and L-citrulline (Jones 2020). Indeed, L-citrulline is known to exert positive effects on exercise performance and recovery (Gonzalez and Trexler 2020). More recently, however, a direct NO precursor called citrulline malate (CM) has been touted to have ergogenic potential, which is the combination of L-citrulline and malate (Gonzalez and Trexler 2020). The mechanisms of CM might be more far-reaching as a result, due to the synergistic impact of both components (i.e., L-citrulline and malate) at the intramuscular level (Wax et al. 2015). Specifically, malate has been suggested to increase the rate of ATP production by mitigating lactate production during states of high flux; and by doing so allowing for continued pyruvate and energy production (Wax et al. 2016). Furthermore, the malate-aspartate shuttle (MAS) may be more efficient following CM ingestion, thereby improving ATP availability (Wu et al. 2007; Agudelo et al. 2019). Based on these promising findings and additional mechanisms compared to L-citrulline supplementation alone, it is plausible to suggest CM supplementation could be a worthwhile ergogenic aid.
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