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5-Amino 1MQ: Benefits, Dosage & Side Effects

Out of all the therapeutic peptides I have used since 2005, 5-Amino 1MQ is one of the BEST choices for simultaneous fat loss and muscle gain.

It’s one of the few tools in existence that allows highly advanced athletes to achieve their body recomposition goals without drastically changing their training regimen or their diet program.

But I realize this is an extraordinary claim, and I wouldn’t be making this statement unless I had undeniable proof.

So how exactly does 5-Amino 1MQ help you build lean muscle while also shredding fat at the same time?

And what is the BEST way to take 5-Amino 1MQ for optimal results?

This definitive article will answer all of those questions and tell you everything you need to know about 5-Amino 1MQ.

What Is 5-Amino 1MQ?

5-Amino 1MQ Peptide

5-Amino 1MQ (5-amino-1-methylquinoline) is a peptide molecule that is directly derived from methylquinolinium (MQ).

(NOTE: There is an ongoing debate about whether 5-Amino 1MQ should be classified as a small molecule or a peptide, but that’s a discussion far beyond the scope of this article)

It was discovered in 2017 by researchers at the University of Texas who were attempting to discover small, selective, and membrane-permeable inhibitors of an enzyme called nicotinamide N-methyltransferase (NNMT).

I’ll talk more about why inhibiting NNMT is so critical to 5-Amino 1MQ’s positive effects on the human body, but let’s keep digging into what the researchers discovered…

Out of all the modifications made to MQ, 5-Amino 1MQ proved to be the most potent in inhibiting NNMT because it had the lowest IC50 value (i.e. the minimum concentration of a substance needed to reduce the activity of an enzyme by at least 50%). her enzymes

In a separate study done on rats, using 5-Amino 1MQ did not affect the health of the cells it was targeting (i.e. fat cells), nor did it negatively affect the enzymes of other metabolic processes.

This leads us to the million-dollar question: Why is it so important for 5-Amino 1MQ to inhibit NNMT?

5-Amino 1-MQ Mechanism of Action

In order to understand 5-Amino 1MQ’s mechanism of action, we need to learn about the NNMT enzyme and the role it serves in the human body.

While it is located in several tissues such as fat and muscle, I want to pay attention to how NNMT affects your body weight:

“[NNMT is] a cytosolic enzyme that plays a role in cellular metabolism and energy homeostasis.

As fat cells grow larger, they begin to overproduce an enzyme called NNMT (nicotinamide N-methyltransferase). This enzyme acts to slow down fat cell metabolism (fat burning).

This slowdown makes it harder for these cells to burn accumulating fat. As fat tissue grows and more NNMT is produced, higher amounts of hormones and pro-inflammatory signals are produced that are responsible for weight gain and other chronic diseases such as type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular disease.”

NNMT is responsible for converting nicotinamide (NA) into 1-methylnicotinamide (1-MNA), which takes it out of the NAD salvage pathway (see the diagram below).

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(Source)

When this enzyme is present in great concentration within fat cells and is highly expressed, obesity is inevitable:

“In the study by Kannt and colleagues, NNMT expression is increased ~2-fold in subcutaneous and omental adipose tissue of type 2 diabetic subjects (men and women), compared to healthy controls… Importantly, interventions that increase insulin sensitivity, such as exercise and bariatric surgery, also decreased expression of NNMT in adipose tissue”

For this reason alone, scientists have been interested in every possible method for inhibiting NNMT expression:

“We report that NNMT expression is increased in [white adipose tissue (WAT)] and liver of obese and diabetic mice. NNMT knockdown in WAT and liver protects against diet-induced obesity by augmenting cellular energy expenditure. NNMT inhibition increases adipose [S-adenosylmethionine (SAM)] and [Nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide (NAD+)] levels”

As you’ll discover later on in this article, there’s a good reason why increased production of SAM and NAD+ within fat cells is beneficial.

But to make a long story short… NNMT inhibition is the magic behind why 5-Amino 1MQ works so well.

Not only do we halt the growth of fat cells and restore the body’s ability to burn fat, but we also allow for that unneeded fat to be broken down (via increased production of the Sirt1 enzyme) and be excreted from the body.

This makes 5-Amino 1MQ a potentially powerful anti-obesity medication.

And on a side note… we also have a much better understanding of why our metabolism slows down as we get older!

Top 5 Benefits of 5-Amino 1MQ

Unfortunately, there are VERY few studies directly examining 5-Amino 1MQ’s effects on the human body.

And of the few that exist (less than 10), they are either done in cell cultures or in rats.

At the same time, these studies demonstrate several therapeutic applications for 5-Amino 1MQ if it ever reaches the interest of mainstream medicine.

Not to mention that I’ve personally used 5-Amino 1MQ with great success, so I can definitely speak from my personal experience.

Here is what we know to date about the possible health benefits of 5-Amino 1MQ…

Great Bodybuilding Potential

A filed patent studying the use of 5-Amino 1MQ and several other potent NNMT inhibitors discovered some interesting connections between lowered NNMT expression and increased activation in muscle cells:

“…several recent studies have showed modest increases in intracellular NAD+, achieved through nutraceutical supplements, dramatically increased muscle stem cell (muSC) activity in aged mice and the mdx mouse model of Duchenne MD.”

“Treatment with NNMT inhibitor doubled muscle fiber cross sectional area and enhance muscle stem cell (muSC) activation and integration into regenerating muscle fibers following injury in aged (>24 mo old) mice.”

It’s an extremely long document to read in one sitting, so allow me to summarize the main takeaways in relation to 5-Amino 1MQ and building muscle:

  • Lowering NNMT expression can promote the regeneration of aged muscle cells, while also help in treating muscular disorders such as muscle atrophy
  • It can also improve neuromuscular function, whether it’s during resistance training or recovering from a muscle injury
  • Finally, you can repair muscule damage via inhibition of NNMT

Adding on to all of those benefits, 5-Amino 1MQ may help increase your ability to maximally contract your muscle fibers:

“We recently developed small molecule inhibitors of nicotinamide N-methyltransferase (NNMT), an enzyme overexpressed with aging in skeletal muscles and linked to impairment of the NAD+ salvage pathway, dysregulated sirtuin 1 activity, and increased muSC senescence.

…Importantly, improved muSC activity translated not only to larger myofibers after injury but also to greater contractile function, with the peak torque of the [tibalis anterior] increased by ∼70% in NNMTi-treated mice compared to controls”

Readers of Living a Fully Optimized Life already know that this principle is critical to working your muscles to their fullest extent and – by extension – developing your physique to its maximum capacity.

Weight Loss and Fat Loss

Earlier in the article, I quoted a rat study where 5-Amino 1MQ’s fat-targeting properties were revealed.

But what I didn’t disclose were some of the game-changing fat loss results that took place after 11 days of eating a high-fat diet while receiving 5-Amino 1MQ, or that the mice were obese due to eating a high-fat diet for 16 weeks prior to the experiment:

  • Body weight went down by 6%
  • The rate of lipogenesis (i.e. the synthesis and storage of fat) was decreased by 70%
  • Cholesterol levels were 30% lower
  • >30% reduction in fat cell size, and >40% reduction in fat cell volume
  • NAD+ concentration in fat cells was 1.2-1.6 times higher

Keep in mind that the rats treated with 5-Amino 1MQ and the rats receiving no treatment ate the SAME amount of calories!

Food intake was not impacted, and any observable side effects or toxicity were negligible to the point where they should not be taken seriously.

It’s no wonder why many scientists are referring to it as “the ultimate pharmaceutical grail for people with obesity”.

(NOTE: The results were replicated in a separate study using a different NNMT inhibitor, also observing the normalization of tolerance to glucose and increased insulin sensitivity)

Already, we’re seeing some strong interest in using 5-Amino 1MQ to treat obesity and other metabolic diseases in US veterans.

Later in the article, I’ll share my “5-Amino 1MQ before and after” testimonial and give you my first-hand experience with using this peptide.

May Lower Cellular Senescence

Earlier in this article, I talked about how 5-Amino 1MQ can lead to increased concentrations of NAD+ and SAM within fat cells.

And as it turns out, both compounds are essential for fighting against cellular senescence.

NAD+ has been touted as the next great anti-aging treatment for fighting against age-associated diseases:

“During human aging, decrease of NAD+ levels is associated with potentially reversible dysfunction in the liver, kidney, skeletal and cardiac muscle, endothelial cells, and neurons.

At the same time, the number of senescent cells, associated with damage or stress that secretes proinflammatory factors (SASP or senescence-associated secretory phenotype), increases with age in many key tissues, including the kidneys, lungs, blood vessels, and brain”

SAM may not get the same level of media attention as NAD+, but that doesn’t stop it from being less useful:

“S-adenosylmethionine, or SAM, has been used for several years in the treatment of hepatic conditions and osteoarthritis and more recently in the treatment of clinical depression.

Of relevance, recent evidence indicates that SAM exerts anti-inflammatory effects by reducing the expression of the proinflammatory cytokine tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNFα) and increasing the expression of the anti-inflammatory cytokine interleukin 10 (IL-10).

SAM is the main cellular methyl donor involved in DNA, RNA, and histone methylation and therefore may modulate gene expression via epigenetic mechanisms.”

It’s no wonder why many scientists consider it to play  “an essential role in the survival of all organisms.”

(FYI – this deep-dive article from Life Extension does a thorough job of explaining how SAM helps reserve aging and helps people live longer lives)

Increased Energy Levels

5-Amino 1MQ is useful for increasing your “cellular energy”, according to world-class peptide physician Dr. Heather Smith-Fernandez:

“Improving the condition of our mitochondria and improving efficient output of cellular energy has widespread effects, and in some cases, these effects are palpable (we actually feel more energy, more focus, less pain, more endurance).

By blocking NNMT, 5-amino1MQ stimulates an increase in nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide (NAD+), a cofactor that is at the root of cellular metabolism, thereby increasing metabolic rate and activating the sirtuin-1 gene which has also been called the longevity gene.”

And if you’re wondering what cellular energy is, it serves as the very foundation for helping you feel energetic and alive:

“Our bodies contain trillions of cells. Inside each of them are huge numbers of tiny, energy-producing power plants called “mitochondria”. Mitochondria convert the food we eat and the air we breathe into “ATP”, a special type of fuel that powers our cells, and in turn, us.

From blinking to thinking, walking to talking, we use ATP for almost everything we do. Healthy mitochondria produce enormous amounts of ATP and at the same time, ATP provides the enormous amounts of energy for the processes and reactions that help keep our cells healthy and vital.”

Very shocking to see that 5-Amino 1MQ improves mitochondrial health (not)!

Inhibiting NNMT Expression

Lowering the expression of the NNMT enzyme isn’t anything new under the sun, as it is well-connected to several disease states:

“NNMT is implicated in various disease conditions such as metabolic disorders, neurodegenerative diseases and cancer, and tissue NNMT expression or plasma levels of its product MNA have been proposed as biomarkers for these conditions”

Other chronic metabolic diseases that are linked to NNMT expression include:

  • Insulin resistance & diabetes
  • Heart disease
  • Kidney disease
  • Liver disease
  • Parkinson’s disease
  • Chronic inflammation

I’m not suggesting that 5-Amino 1MQ will directly lead to reducing your risk of any of the diseases above – that time will come when researchers finally smarten up and start testing the peptide in human clinical trials.

But based on the evidence presented so far, there is good reason to believe 5-Amino 1MQ is potentially therapeutic for those disease states.

5-Amino 1MQ Dosage For Muscle Growth

There isn’t an established 5-Amino 1MQ dose for enhanced muscle growth and fat loss, but I have managed to find a dosing protocol that was most effective for my body recomposition goals.

The optimal 5-Amino 1MQ dosage is 50 mg to 150 mg once a day with food in the form of a capsule for 20-30 days before taking a break for 1-2 weeks. 

One of the main reasons why I love 5-Amino 1MQ is that it doesn’t have to be injected subcutaneously, intramuscularly, or intravenously in order to get optimal results (unlike most other peptides).

As it turns out, you will confer maximum benefits with 5-Amino 1MQ when you consume it orally (since the majority of the drug, when injected intravenously, is “eliminated unchanged in the urine”).

Most peptide vendors will usually sell 5-Amino 1MQ in the form of 50 mg capsules, so you’ll end up taking 1-3 capsules per day, evenly spaced out.

(NOTE: As with any supplement I recommend, I would start at the lower end of the dosing range and gradually work your way up)

And since the peptide is oil-soluble, I want to emphasize the importance of taking 5-Amino 1MQ with food for maximum absorption.

Lastly, I have found that 5-Amino 1MQ works best with short dosing cycles.

Therefore, I recommend the 20-30 day timeframe as there is no reason to continuously overstimulate your body for long periods of time.

5-Amino 1MQ Side Effects and Safety Profile

Unfortunately, any search for 5-Amino 1MQ side effects on Google won’t lead to any helpful results.

The best “official statement” I could find was from one peptides clinic that claims 5-Amino 1MQ is safe for human consumption:

“Yes, 5-amino-1MQ is well-tolerated. The favorable safety profile of 5-amino-1MQ in proper dosages is one of its best features.

As a peptide, 5-amino-1MQ is efficiently and safely metabolized like any amino acid sourced through diet. It poses no health risk, except in excessively large dosages.”

I was also unable to find any meaningful studies examining the toxicity of 5-Amino 1MQ in the few animal studies published in respectable peer-reviewed journals.

This was confirmed to me by my business partner and genius biochemist Nick Andrews, who had the following to say:

“Chronic administration has been tested and shown to not generate toxic or negative effects while generating the positive effects observed in adipose tissue as well as muscle tissue.”

My best guess is that this is supported by what has been seen in animal and cell models thus far:

“5-amino-1MQ shows in vivo therapeutic efficacy in murine models of DIO (20 mg/kg/d sc.), muscle injury (5 or 10 mg/kg bid. sc.), and intraperitoneal HeyA8 ovarian cancer metastasis (20 mg/kg/d ip.) with no adverse effects to the animals (up to 60 mg/kg/d)”

For this reason, I feel it is only right to chime in again by sharing my personal experience with using 5-Amino 1MQ…

  • Insomnia: The extra energy boost from 5-Amino 1MQ sometimes made it difficult to sleep at night if I took it later in the day
  • Feeling “winded” during cardiovascular exercise: This happened to me 2-3 weeks into daily use of 5-Amino 1MQ when I was doing steady-state cardio at 30-45 minutes per session. However, I have it on good authority that this is your body adapting and improving your cardiovascular fitness

The second “side effect” is arguably a positive benefit, as it can help someone who struggles with exercise get to the point where it easily becomes a daily habit… almost like “exercise in a pill”!

Overall, these side effects are very minor in severity and easily go away when you use 5-Amino 1MQ properly and consistently.

But I do have to chime in with one important caveat…

Using 5-Amino 1MQ DOES NOT replace the fundamentals of building a lean, muscular and healthy physique: Intelligent weight training, frequent cardiovascular exercise, blood work, hormonal optimization, supplementation where necessary, developing the right mindset, and so on. 

5-Amino 1MQ is meant to be a complement to healthy lifestyle habits, so don’t think you’ll benefit from using this peptide if you are highly inflamed.

5-Amino 1MQ Before And After Results: What to Expect

So what results can you realistically expect from using 5-Amino 1MQ?

I’ll start with my N-of-1 experience

First, 5-Amino 1MQ definitely works for adding pure muscle to your frame. 

After six weeks of daily 5-Amino 1MQ use, I was able to put on 10.7 pounds – minimal fat deposition and a LOT of lean muscle gain!

No extra consumption of calories, no changes to my training routine, no deviations from my every-other-day fasting protocol, and no use of other fat loss peptides such as Ipamorelin.

I also noticed a significant reduction in delayed onset muscle soreness (DOMS) when I did multiple high-volume sets of push-ups… 36 hours later, I didn’t feel any soreness whatsoever.

This means that even on a caloric deficit for losing body fat, 5-Amino 1MQ could be a useful tool in preventing loss of muscle mass.

Second, 5-Amino 1MQ was equally effective for fat loss.

Because energy expenditure is increased within fat cells, the rate of cellular metabolism within these fat cells go up.

When that happens, your overall basal metabolic rate (BMR) is higher and you end up burning more fat via the process of thermogenesis.

It’s almost like you can eat anything you want and you literally will not gain body fat.

I would highly recommend 5-Amino 1MQ all-around, but it’s a great alternative when you are unresponsive to peptides such as Ipamorelin for losing abdominal fat tissue.

The weight loss effects will take around 6-8 weeks for them to fully manifest, so don’t think you’ll become a fat-burning machine after a single dose of 5-Amino 1MQ!

Fitness YouTuber VigorousSteve did a strict run of 5-Amino 1MQ and had an impressive transformation:

Notice the difference in his physique… putting his use of other compounds outside, it is rare to see a single compound induce such a change in a fully optimized individual.

Most people on the Internet who use 5-Amino 1MQ for bodybuilding purposes seem to take an interest in the peptide for this reason alone.

While the consensus is it either really works well or not at all (here and here), there is great speculation on how 5-Amino 1MQ could be even more beneficial for obese people.

Third, I immediately noticed a major boost in energy levels upon taking 5-Amino 1MQ. 

Moreover, it helps you push far past your normal point of failure during intense exercise as the added energy prevents you from prematurely burning out.

In short… Give 5-Amino 1MQ a go and see if you are able to replicate my personal experience with using the peptide.

Where to Buy 5-Amino 1MQ

With so few places offering 5-Amino 1MQ for sale, you need to be extremely careful when examining any peptides vendor to ensure you’re getting the highest purity possible.

Fortunately, Limitless Life Nootropics is the ONLY place I know where you can source pharmaceutical-grade 5-Amino MQ for a reasonable price. 

Use code JAY15 to get 15% off your order!

Every single peptide sold by this vendor is independently tested by a third-party analytical laboratory before it hits the shelves, meaning you’ll never receive a fake and/or impure product. 

<Special Black Friday Sale Going on Now-Spend $300 or More and get 20% OFF Your Order-use code Jay20>

Additional Reading Resources for 5-Amino 1MQ

5-Amino 1MQ is drastically under-studied and is in desperate need of randomized clinical trial data from human subjects.

But that doesn’t mean other high-level physicians and biohackers have ignored its positive yet powerful effects on body recomposition.

So without further ado, here are some useful resources for learning more about 5-Amino 1MQ:

An ENTIRE hour-long podcast on the latest research findings that support 5-Amino 1MQ’s numerous health benefits

Lucas Aoun of Ergogenic Health, a monthly contributor to this website, provides a great 1-minute summary of all the main points I’ve talked about in this article and a detailed video of how 5-Amino 1MQ works in the human body. 

Peptides clinic EvexiPEL published an in-depth article further exploring the connection between NNMT, NAD+, and obesity. 

And as always…

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