ReviewThe British journal of nutrition2023
Ergothioneine: an underrecognised dietary micronutrient required for healthy ageing?
Review in The British journal of nutrition, 2023. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. It is linked to trial NCT07750002 (A Randomized, Double-Blind, Placebo-Controlled Trial Evaluating the Effects of NVTIA® Ergothioneine Supplementation on Healthy Aging Biomarkers and Skin Health in Healthy Adults), which is not on this map. Cited by 37 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.
What it found
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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
A Randomized, Double-Blind, Placebo-Controlled Trial Evaluating the Effects of NVTIA® Ergothioneine Supplementation on Healthy Aging Biomarkers and Skin Health in Healthy Adults
Who cites it
37 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it, 67 citations in OpenAlex.
- The role of Ergothioneine in cognition and age-related neurodegenerative disease: a systematic review.Inflammopharmacology · 2025Pooled it
- XFM and HERFD-XAS studies of selenium in tissues and whole blood from mice supplemented with potentially therapeutic selenocompounds.Redox report : communications in free radical research · 2026Article
- The Gini coefficient as a surrogate for the regulability or homeostasis of metabolite concentrations: focus on ergothioneine.Metabolomics : Official journal of the Metabolomic Society · 2026Article
- Natural Histidine Derivatives-From Basic Research to Potential Applications in Cosmetics and Nutricosmetics.Antioxidants (Basel, Switzerland) · 2026Review
- Edible Fungi and Skin Redox Homeostasis: Bioactive Diversity, Processing, Oral Exposure, and Evidence Gaps.Antioxidants (Basel, Switzerland) · 2026Review
- Ergothioneine: Biosynthesis, Molecular Mechanisms, Physiological Function, and Role in Disease.MedComm · 2026Review
- A Multi-Target Approach to Colitis: Ergothioneine Promotes Recovery by Restoring the Intestinal Barrier, Reducing Inflammation, and Remodeling the Microbiota.Food science & nutrition · 2026Article
- Plasma as Proxy for Tissue Metabolism When Extending Lifespan in Mice.Metabolites · 2026Article
- Multi-Tissue Metabolomic Signatures of Five Longevity Interventions Converge on Ergothioneine and Lipid Remodeling in Male UM-HET3 Mice.bioRxiv : the preprint server for biology · 2026Article
- Circulating metabolites at the crossroads of lifestyle and brain health.Nature aging · 2026Article
- Ergothioneine Ameliorates Alcoholic Fatty Liver Disease: A Dual Strategy of Accelerated Ethanol Elimination and Reducing Oxidative Stress.Journal of biochemical and molecular toxicology · 2026Article
- Ergothioneine promotes osteogenesis and angiogenesis through PI3K/AKT pathway and prevents glucocorticoid-induced osteonecrosis of the femoral head.Scientific reports · 2026Article
- Uncovering the Potential Mechanisms of Ergothioneine in Neuroinflammation Through Network Pharmacology, Molecular Docking, Molecular Dynamics Simulation, and In Vitro Validation.International journal of molecular sciences · 2026Article
- Quantitative Food Compounds Enable Dietary Ontology Referencing across 500 Foods and Human Plasma.Analytical chemistry · 2026Article
- Clinically recommended strategies for nutritional metabolic intervention in cardiac surgery: a narrative review of oral support agents and modulators on postoperative outcomes and mechanisms.Frontiers in nutrition · 2026Review
- Selenoneine, a food chain component with potential neuroprotective effects against electrophilic mercury forms.Advances in neurotoxicology · 2026Article
- Single-cell transcriptomics identifies ergothioneine as a mitochondrial protector to prevent AKI-to-CKD progression.PloS one · 2026Article
- Development of HybridFoods (Basel, Switzerland) · 2025Article
- Ergothioneine: An Antioxidative, Neuroprotective and Anti-Inflammatory Compound from Mushroom Residuals.Molecules (Basel, Switzerland) · 2025Review
- Potential dietary geroprotectors and their impact on key mechanisms of aging.Biogerontology · 2025Review
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
3 authors at 1 institution in 1 country.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
Ergothioneine is a naturally occurring amino acid and thiol antioxidant found in high amounts in mushrooms and fermented foods. Humans and animals acquire ergothioneine from the diet through the pH-dependent activity of a membrane transporter, the large solute carrier 22A member 4 (SLC22A4), expressed on the apical membrane of the small intestine. The SLC22A4 transporter also functions in the renal reabsorption of ergothioneine in the kidney, with avid absorption and retention of ergothioneine from the diet observed in both animals and humans. Ergothioneine is capable of scavenging a diverse range of reactive oxygen and nitrogen species, has metal chelation properties, and is predicted to directly regulate nuclear factor erythroid 2-related factor 2 (Nrf2) activity. Although not lethal, the genetic knockout of the SLC22A4 gene in multiple organisms increases susceptibility to oxidative stress, damage and inflammation; in agreement with a large body of preclinical data suggesting the physiological function of ergothioneine is as a cellular antioxidant and cytoprotectant agent. In humans, blood levels of ergothioneine decline after the age of 60 years, and lower levels of ergothioneine are associated with more rapid cognitive decline. Conversely, high plasma ergothioneine levels have been associated with significantly reduced cardiovascular mortality and overall mortality risks. In this horizon’s manuscript, we review evidence suggesting critical roles for dietary ergothioneine in healthy ageing and the prevention of cardiometabolic disease. We comment on some of the outstanding research questions in the field and consider the question of whether or not ergothioneine should be considered a conditionally essential micronutrient.
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Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.