Amino acid compositions and methods for the treatment of liver diseases

1. A composition comprising:

a) a leucine (L)-amino acid entity chosen from L-leucine, oxo-leucine, β-hydroxy-β-methylbutyrate (HMB), isovaleryl-CoA, or N-acetyl-leucine; or a salt thereof, a dipeptide or salt thereof, a tripeptide or salt thereof, or a combination of any of the aforesaid;

b) an arginine (R)-amino acid entity chosen from L-arginine, argininosuccinate, L-citrulline, L-aspartate, L-glutamate, L-ornithine, agmatine, creatine, or N-acetyl-arginine; or a salt thereof, a dipeptide or salt thereof, a tripeptide or salt thereof, or a combination of any of the aforesaid;

c) a glutamine (Q)-amino acid entity chosen from L-glutamine, L-glutamate, carbamoyl-P, or N-acetyl-glutamine; or a salt thereof, a dipeptide or salt thereof, a tripeptide or salt thereof, or a combination of any of the aforesaid;

d) N-acetylcysteine (NAC) or a salt thereof, a dipeptide or salt thereof, or a combination of any of the aforesaid; and

e) one or more excipients chosen from one, two, three, four, or five of a buffering agent, a sweetener, a dispersion enhancer, a flavoring agent, or a coloring agent;

wherein when the leucine amino acid entity is HMB, the arginine amino acid entity is not creatine, and when the arginine amino acid entity is creatine, the leucine amino acid entity is not HMB;

wherein, when the composition is in powder form, at least 50 wt. % of the total wt. of the composition is one or more amino acid entities in free form, and

wherein the total wt. % of (a)-(d) is greater than the total wt. % of other amino acid entities in the composition.

2. The composition of claim 1 , wherein one, two, three, or more of methionine (M), tryptophan (W), valine (V), or cysteine (C) is absent, or if present, is present at less than 10 weight (wt.) %, 9 wt. %, 8 wt. %, 7 wt. %, 6 wt. %, 5 wt. %, 4 wt. %, 3 wt. %, 2 wt. %, or 1 wt. %.

3. The composition of claim 1 , wherein:

f) a wt. % of the Q-amino acid entity in the composition is greater than the wt. % of the R-amino acid entity;

g) the wt. % of the Q-amino acid entity in the composition is greater than the wt. % of the L-amino acid entity;

h) the wt. % of the R-amino acid entity in the composition is greater than the wt. % of the L-amino acid entity; or

i) a combination of two or three of (f)-(h).

4. The composition of claim 1 , further comprising one or both of an isoleucine (I)-amino acid entity or a valine (V)-amino acid entity.

5. The composition of claim 1 , wherein the composition further comprises an S-amino acid entity chosen from L-serine, phosphoserine, P-hydroxypyruvate, L-glycine, tryptophan, acetylserine, cystathionine, phosphatidylserine, or a combination thereof.

6. A pharmaceutical composition comprising the composition of claim 1 and a pharmaceutically acceptable excipient.

7. The composition of claim 1 , wherein the buffering agent is chosen from citric acid, sodium citrate, magnesium carbonate, magnesium bicarbonate, calcium carbonate, or calcium bicarbonate.

8. The composition of claim 7 , wherein the buffering agent is citric acid.

9. The composition of claim 1 , wherein the sweetener is chosen from sucralose, acesulfame potassium, glucose, dextrose, invert sugar, fructose, saccharin, aspartame, a dihydrochalcone compound, glycyrrhizin, Stevia rebaudiana , sorbitol, mannitol, xylitol, or a combination thereof.

10. The composition of claim 9 , wherein the sweetener is sucralose.

11. The composition of claim 9 , wherein the sweetener is acesulfame potassium.

12. The composition of claim 1 , wherein the dispersion enhancer is chosen from xanthan gum, starch, alginic acid, a polyvinylpyrrolidone, guar gum, kaolin, bentonite, purified wood cellulose, sodium starch glycolate, isoamorphous silicate, or microcrystalline cellulose.

13. The composition of claim 12 , wherein the dispersion enhancer is xanthan gum.

14. The composition of claim 1 , wherein the flavoring agent is chosen from vanilla custard flavoring, orange flavoring, lime flavoring, or lemon flavoring.

15. The composition of claim 1 , wherein the coloring agent is FD&C Yellow 6.

16. The composition of claim 1 , further comprising lecithin.

17. The composition of claim 1 , further comprising a taste modifier.

18. The composition of claim 1 , wherein the one or more excipients comprise citric acid, sucralose, xanthan gum, vanilla custard flavoring, and orange flavoring.

19. The composition of claim 18 , wherein the one or more excipients further comprise acesulfame potassium, lecithin, lime flavoring, lemon flavoring, a taste modifier, and FD&C Yellow 6.

20. The composition of claim 1 , wherein the one or more excipients comprise the buffering agent, the sweetener, the dispersion enhancer, the flavoring agent, and the coloring agent.

21. The composition of claim 1 , wherein the leucine (L)-amino acid entity is chosen from L-leucine, oxo-leucine, isovaleryl-CoA, or N-acetyl-leucine; or a salt thereof, a dipeptide or salt thereof, a tripeptide or salt thereof, or a combination of any of the aforesaid.

22. The composition of claim 1 , wherein the arginine (R)-amino acid entity is chosen from L-arginine, argininosuccinate, L-citrulline, L-aspartate, L-glutamate, L-ornithine, agmatine, or N-acetyl-arginine; or a salt thereof, a dipeptide or salt thereof, a tripeptide or salt thereof, or a combination of any of the aforesaid.

23. The composition of claim 1 , wherein the leucine (L)-amino acid entity is chosen from L-leucine, oxo-leucine, isovaleryl-CoA, or N-acetyl-leucine; or a salt thereof, a dipeptide or salt thereof, a tripeptide or salt thereof, or a combination of any of the aforesaid, and

wherein the arginine (R)-amino acid entity is chosen from L-arginine, argininosuccinate, L-citrulline, L-aspartate, L-glutamate, L-ornithine, agmatine, or N-acetyl-arginine; or a salt thereof, a dipeptide or salt thereof, a tripeptide or salt thereof, or a combination of any of the aforesaid.

24. A composition comprising:

a) a L-amino acid entity chosen from:

i) L-leucine or a salt thereof,

ii) a dipeptide or salt thereof, or tripeptide or salt thereof, comprising L-leucine, or

iii) β-hydroxy-β-methylbutyrate (HMB) or a salt thereof;

b) an R-amino acid entity chosen from:

i) L-arginine or a salt thereof,

ii) a dipeptide or salt thereof, or tripeptide or salt thereof, comprising L-arginine,

iii) ornithine or a salt thereof,

iv) a dipeptide or salt thereof, or tripeptide or salt thereof, comprising ornithine,

v) creatine or a salt thereof, or

vi) a dipeptide or salt thereof, or tripeptide or salt thereof, comprising creatine;

c) L-glutamine or a salt thereof or a dipeptide or salt thereof, or tripeptide or salt thereof, comprising L-glutamine;

d) N-acetylcysteine (NAC) or a salt thereof or a dipeptide or salt thereof, or tripeptide or salt thereof, comprising NAC; and

e) one or more excipients chosen from one, two, three, four, or five of a buffering agent, a sweetener, a dispersion enhancer, a flavoring agent, or a coloring agent;

wherein when the leucine amino acid entity is HMB, the arginine amino acid entity is not creatine, and when the arginine amino acid entity is creatine, the leucine amino acid entity is not HMB;

wherein, when the composition is in powder form, at least 50 wt. % of the total wt. of the composition is one or more amino acid entities in free form, and

wherein the total wt. % of (a)-(d) is greater than the total wt. % of other amino acid entities in the composition.

25. The composition of claim 24 , wherein the one or more excipients comprise the buffering agent, the sweetener, the dispersion enhancer, the flavoring agent, and the coloring agent.

26. The composition of claim 24 , wherein the one or more excipients comprise citric acid, sucralose, xanthan gum, vanilla custard flavoring, and orange flavoring.

27. The composition of claim 26 , wherein the one or more excipients further comprise acesulfame potassium, lecithin, lime flavoring, lemon flavoring, a taste modifier, and FD&C Yellow 6.

28. A composition comprising:

a) L-leucine or a salt thereof;

b) L-arginine or a salt thereof;

c) L-glutamine or a salt thereof;

d) NAC or a salt thereof;

e) L-isoleucine or a salt thereof;

f) L-valine or a salt thereof; and

g) one or more excipients chosen from one, two, three, four, or five of a buffering agent, a sweetener, a dispersion enhancer, a flavoring agent, or a coloring agent;

wherein, when the composition is in powder form, at least 50 wt. % of the total wt. of the composition is one or more amino acid entities in free form, and

wherein the total wt. % of (a)-(d) is greater than the total wt. % of other amino acid entities in the composition.

29. The composition of claim 28 , wherein the one or more excipients comprise the buffering agent, the sweetener, the dispersion enhancer, the flavoring agent, and the coloring agent.

30. The composition of claim 28 , wherein the one or more excipients comprise citric acid, sucralose, xanthan gum, vanilla custard flavoring, and orange flavoring.

31. The composition of claim 30 , wherein the one or more excipients further comprise acesulfame potassium, lecithin, lime flavoring, lemon flavoring, a taste modifier, and FD&C Yellow 6.

32. A method of manufacturing or making a composition comprising forming a composition comprising the following:

a) a leucine (L)-amino acid entity chosen from L-leucine, oxo-leucine, β-hydroxy-β-methylbutyrate (HMB), isovaleryl-CoA, or N-acetyl-leucine; or a salt thereof, a dipeptide or salt thereof, a tripeptide or salt thereof, or a combination of any of the aforesaid;

b) an arginine (R)-amino acid entity chosen from L-arginine, argininosuccinate, L-citrulline, L-aspartate, L-glutamate, L-ornithine, agmatine, creatine, or N-acetyl-arginine; or a salt thereof, a dipeptide or salt thereof, a tripeptide or salt thereof, or a combination of any of the aforesaid;

c) a glutamine (Q)-amino acid entity chosen from L-glutamine, L-glutamate, carbamoyl-P, or N-acetyl-glutamine; or a salt thereof, a dipeptide or salt thereof, a tripeptide or salt thereof, or a combination of any of the aforesaid;

d) N-acetylcysteine (NAC) or a salt thereof, a dipeptide or salt thereof, or a combination of any of the aforesaid; and

e) one or more excipients chosen from a buffering agent, a sweetener, a dispersion enhancer, a flavoring agent, and a coloring agent;

wherein when the leucine amino acid entity is HMB, the arginine amino acid entity is not creatine, and when the arginine amino acid entity is creatine, the leucine amino acid entity is not HMB;

wherein, when the composition is in powder form, at least 50 wt. % of the total wt. of the composition is one or more amino acid entities in free form, and

wherein the total wt. % of (a)-(d) is greater than the total wt. % of other amino acid entities in the composition.

33. The method of claim 32 , wherein the one or more excipients comprise the buffering agent, the sweetener, the dispersion enhancer, the flavoring agent, and the coloring agent.

34. The method of claim 32 , wherein the one or more excipients comprise citric acid, sucralose, xanthan gum, vanilla custard flavoring, and orange flavoring.

35. The method of claim 34 , wherein the one or more excipients further comprise acesulfame potassium, lecithin, lime flavoring, lemon flavoring, a taste modifier, and FD&C Yellow 6.