5-Amino-1MQ
A small-molecule NNMT inhibitor studied for its potential to increase cellular energy expenditure and reduce fat accumulation by blocking nicotinamide N-methyltransferase.
Also referenced as: 5-amino-1-methylquinolinium
Also appears in: Other
This name primarily lives in the research market and should not be read like an approved pharmaceutical product.
Primary lane: Metabolic. Also surfaces under Other for browsing and discovery.
5-amino-1-methylquinolinium
No FDA label signal · 0 trials · 3 PubMed results
Current evidence for 5-Amino-1MQ is limited to laboratory or animal studies — there are no name-matched human trials with reported results. Any claims about effects in people are not yet backed by clinical data.
5-Amino-1MQ has no clinical trials that name it and 3 PubMed-indexed publications and is not FDA-approved. Current evidence is preclinical or mechanistic.
Re-checked nightly against the registries — tracked since 2026-07-09. No band changes yet.
Grades evidence strength, not efficacy or safety. Research-use context; not medical advice. Graded 2026-07-13 from PubMed, ClinicalTrials.gov, ISRCTN, openFDA, Health Canada, and OpenAlex — computed deterministically and refreshed nightly, with a retraction check. How we grade →
What is 5-Amino-1MQ?
5-Amino-1MQ is a small-molecule inhibitor of nicotinamide N-methyltransferase (NNMT), an enzyme found in adipose tissue that plays a regulatory role in cellular energy metabolism. While technically not a peptide, it is widely sold alongside peptides in the research compound market due to overlapping vendor and customer communities.
How it works
NNMT methylates nicotinamide — a form of vitamin B3 — using SAM (S-adenosylmethionine) as a methyl donor. This reaction consumes SAM, which is also needed for other critical methylation reactions. By inhibiting NNMT, 5-Amino-1MQ is hypothesized to:
- Increase NAD+ salvage — more nicotinamide remains available for recycling into NAD+ via the salvage pathway (Neelakantan et al., Biochemical Pharmacology, 2017)
- Reduce fat cell size — preclinical studies in diet-induced obese mice showed reduced body weight and adipocyte size without changes in food intake (Neelakantan et al., Biochemical Pharmacology, 2018)
- Shift energy balance — NNMT knockdown in adipose tissue has been associated with increased energy expenditure in animal models (Kraus et al., Nature, 2014)
Research status
5-Amino-1MQ remains preclinical. Key published work:
- Kraus et al. (2014) demonstrated that NNMT knockdown in white adipose tissue protects against diet-induced obesity in mice (Nature, 508(7495):258–262)
- Neelakantan et al. (2017) identified 5-Amino-1MQ as a potent, cell-permeable NNMT inhibitor (Biochemical Pharmacology, 135:20–31)
- Neelakantan et al. (2018) showed that oral administration reduced body weight in diet-induced obese mice (Biochemical Pharmacology, 147:141–152)
No human clinical trials have been registered as of mid-2025.
Common dosage forms
Available from research vendors as capsules (typically 50mg) or lyophilized powder. The oral capsule format is unusual for the research peptide market, where most compounds are injectable.
Key considerations
- Not a peptide — it is a quinolinium-class small molecule, but widely categorized alongside peptides by vendors
- All efficacy data is from rodent models; no human pharmacokinetic or safety data is published
- The NNMT inhibition mechanism is well-characterized biochemically, but the therapeutic window in humans is unknown