Adenosine 5-monophosphate (AMP) is a nucleotide involved in energy metabolism and protein synthesis. Studies suggest AMP may help prevent postherpetic neuralgia and alleviate photosensitivity, but more research is needed. AMP is also marketed as a weight loss supplement, but there is no scientific evidence to support this claim. Side effects are unknown.
Adenosine 5-monophosphate is a nucleotide, or component, of ribonucleic acid (RNA). It is also produced in the body’s cells during the synthesis of adenosine 5-triphosphate (ATP), the process by which the body produces energy during normal metabolism. Adenosine 5-monophosphate might help prevent the onset of postherpetic neuralgia in patients with herpes zoster and may also help alleviate photosensitivity in patients with porphyria cutanea tarda. Due to some potentially serious side effects and a lack of research studies, adenosine 5-monophosphate supplementation is not widely used. Because adenosine 5-monophosphate is involved in energy metabolism, it is occasionally used as a weight loss supplement.
As a result of a theory that shingles patients might not produce enough adenosine 5-monophosphate, a research study looked at the effects of adenosine 5-monophosphate injection in shingles patients. Postherpetic neuralgia is the nerve pain that often accompanies shingles infections and can range from mild to severe. Eighty-eight percent of patients experienced an improvement in their neuralgia compared to forty-eight percent on a placebo. Still, the researchers cautioned that more research was needed before AMP could be used to treat shingles neuralgia.
Another study found that oral AMP supplementation was effective against photosensitivity in half of the study participants. However, the study was not reliable and a placebo effect cannot be ruled out. More research would be needed to confirm the preliminary findings, but as of 2011 no other studies have been done. A similar study found that adenosine 5-monophosphate might be effective against cold sores, but it was done as an open study and has reliability issues.
The photosensitivity study used doses of 160-200 mg of oral AMP over a period of one month. There have been concerns that oral AMP may not be as bioavailable as other forms of AMP, such as the injected gel form used in the shingles study. Despite the initial findings, further research would be needed to explore and confirm these results.
As adenosine 5-monophosphate is involved in energy metabolism and protein synthesis, it has been hypothesized that AMP supplementation may facilitate cellular energy production. This, in theory, would boost metabolism and increase the rate at which the body burns calories. Until now, there has been no research to support this theory. Despite the lack of evidence, some supplement manufacturers began manufacturing AMP for public use and marketing it as a dietary aid.
AMP may have some beneficial effects on specific medical conditions. However, the preliminary studies cannot be used as strong evidence and more research is needed to explore the initial findings. Also, the use of AMP as a weight loss aid is completely unfounded and based on theory with no scientific backing. AMP side effects are unknown but need to be explored further.
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