Human Protein Requirements and New Findings Regarding the Factors That Influence Them
A special issue of Nutrients (ISSN 2072-6643). This special issue belongs to the section "Proteins and Amino Acids".
Deadline for manuscript submissions: 20 January 2026 | Viewed by 945
Special Issue Editor
Interests: human nutrition; gut microbiota; sports science; immunology; exercise physiology
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Special Issue Information
Dear Colleagues,
Various factors influence human nitrogen balance, including age, sex, climate, protein source, energy availability, and physical activity.
Many questions attract researchers:
- The body can adapt to a consistent level of protein intake within up to two weeks. When the body adapts to a protein-free diet, some nitrogen loss is inevitable. In the nitrogen balance method, the amount of nitrogen required by the body is usually calculated based on the assumption that the miscellaneous loss of nitrogen from the skin and other sources is the same as the loss that occurs when the body adapts to a protein-free diet. However, when the body has fully adapted to a certain level of protein intake, is the miscellaneous loss the same as that occurring when the body is on a protein-free diet?
- Do protein requirements change with age as resting metabolic rate decreases?
- The texture of the diet influences the secretion of mucin, which is rich in threonine. Does the texture of the diet—whether regular, modified, or fluid—affect the body’s protein and amino acid requirements?
- The gut microbiota can fix atmospheric nitrogen and/or produce essential amino acids. Does gut microbiota affect the requirement?
- The latest recommended essential amino acid pattern was established by the WHO/FAO/UNU in 2007. Could new findings improve this scoring pattern?
- Topics in sports nutrition include the protein requirements of physically active athletes and strategies to retain or add skeletal muscle during weight loss.
This Special Issue collects papers on human nitrogen/protein requirements from various perspectives. Novel findings related to this theme are also welcome.
Prof. Dr. Yoshio Suzuki
Guest Editor
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Keywords
- nitrogen balance
- nitrogen requirement
- protein requirement
- sex
- climate
- protein source
- health
- injured
- physical activity
- age
- exercise
- amino acid
- weight loss
- adaptation
- energy availability
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