Is Taurine bigger than Caffeine?

Caffeine is the heavier molecule, 194.19 g/mol against 125.15 g/mol for Taurine. Taurine is C2H7NO3S and Caffeine is C8H10N4O2.

Which has the lower reported LD50, Taurine or Caffeine?

Caffeine, at 192 mg/kg (oral, rat), against 7,000 mg/kg (oral, rat) for Taurine. An LD50 is one acute animal measurement, and the two here were not necessarily measured in the same species, so it is a data point rather than a ranking of how dangerous either is to a person.

Taurine vs Caffeine: what is the difference?

Caffeine is the energy drink ingredient that produces alertness by blocking adenosine, while taurine is an amino sulfonic acid the body makes for other jobs.

TaurineC2H7NO3S

CaffeineC8H10N4O2

Sources and notes

The sentence under the titlefrom sourceMoleculeFinder comparison notesThe pair's answer line.
The two drawingscomputedMoleculeFinder rule (RDKit MCS)Each molecule's own drawing, as its page shows it. The common core, 1 of 14 atoms, is too small to align on.

Side by side

	Taurine	Caffeine
Molecular weightCalculated PubChem	125.15 g/molC2H7NO3S	194.19 g/molC8H10N4O2
Hydrogen-bond donorsCalculated PubChem	2	0
Half-life in the bodyEditorial MoleculeFinder curated	Not recorded	about 5 h
Where each turns upEditorial MoleculeFinder food and product lists	Energy drinksAdded by the maker FishNaturally present Red meatNaturally present ShellfishNaturally present	CoffeeAbout 95 mg per 8 oz cupNaturally present Energy drinksAbout 80 mg per 250 ml canAdded by the maker TeaAbout 47 mg per 8 oz cupNaturally present Soft drinksAdded by the maker Also on our chocolate and cocoa lists
FamilyEditorial MoleculeFinder curated	Amino acids	Plant alkaloids, Stimulants
Everyday groupEditorial MoleculeFinder curated	Body	Food & flavor
Chemical groupsCalculated Found by rule (RDKit)	Amines	Not recorded
Hazard labelReported ECHA via PubChem; ECHA, EU CLP Regulation, Safe Work Australia via PubChem	Warning	Warning
The supplier-filed hazard label's signal word, not a statement about ordinary use.
Oral LD50Measured HSDB via PubChem	7,000 mg/kgpure taurine, rat, oral	192 mg/kgpure caffeine, rat, oral
A single acute animal measure. It ranks nothing about human safety.

Sources and notes

Molecular weightcomputedPubChemComputed from the structure; the formula is under each weight.
Hydrogen-bond donorscomputedPubChemThe hydrogens on nitrogen or oxygen that each molecule can lend to a hydrogen bond, counted from its structure.
Half-life in the bodyfrom sourceMoleculeFinder curatedIn a typical adult: the time the body takes to clear half of it.
Where each turns upfrom sourceMoleculeFinder food and product listsEach amount is an editorial figure from our lists, not a measurement of any one product. Each mark is set by hand on the list, never inferred.
Familyfrom sourceMoleculeFinder curated
Everyday groupfrom sourceMoleculeFinder curated
Chemical groupscomputedFound by rule (RDKit)Each group is found in the structure by a chemical pattern.
Hazard labelfrom sourceECHA via PubChem; ECHA, EU CLP Regulation, Safe Work Australia via PubChem
Oral LD50from sourceHSDB via PubChem
ECHAfrom sourceAttributionSource: European Chemicals Agency, echa.europa.eu.
EU CLP Regulationfrom sourceAttributionSource: EUR-Lex, Regulation (EC) No 1272/2008, © European Union.
Safe Work Australiafrom sourceAttributionSource: Safe Work Australia, Hazardous Chemical Information System, © Commonwealth of Australia, CC BY 4.0.
Identifiersfrom sourcePubChemPubChem CID 1123 (Taurine) and 2519 (Caffeine).

In more detail

These two share a can and almost nothing else. Caffeine is a plant alkaloid that blocks adenosine receptors, and it is the ingredient in an energy drink that produces the alertness. Taurine is an amino sulfonic acid your own body makes and holds in large amounts in muscle, heart and brain, where it works on cell volume, calcium handling and bile salts rather than on wakefulness. The formulas hardly overlap, C8H10N4O2 against C2H7NO3S, and taurine is barely a third of caffeine's weight. Taurine is in energy drinks for reasons that have more to do with marketing history than with stimulation, which is worth knowing before reading anything into the label.

Sources and notes

The paragraphfrom sourceMoleculeFinder comparison notes

Questions

What is the difference between Taurine and Caffeine?: Caffeine is the energy drink ingredient that produces alertness by blocking adenosine, while taurine is an amino sulfonic acid the body makes for other jobs.
Is Taurine bigger than Caffeine?: Caffeine is the heavier molecule, 194.19 g/mol against 125.15 g/mol for Taurine. Taurine is C2H7NO3S and Caffeine is C8H10N4O2.
Which has the lower reported LD50, Taurine or Caffeine?: Caffeine, at 192 mg/kg (oral, rat), against 7,000 mg/kg (oral, rat) for Taurine. An LD50 is one acute animal measurement, and the two here were not necessarily measured in the same species, so it is a data point rather than a ranking of how dangerous either is to a person.

Sources and notes

The answersfrom sourceMoleculeFinderThe first is the pair's answer line; the others are read off the table above.

Keep going

TaurineIts structure, properties and sources, on its own page.CaffeineIts structure, properties and sources, on its own page.CoffeeFollow caffeine from your cup to the sleepiness signal it blocks, then on to chocolate.