NMN: A new star in exploring health and anti-aging
NMN, the full name of which is β-nicotinamide mononucleotide, is a derivative of vitamin B and a key precursor of coenzyme I (NAD+) in the human body. NAD+, or nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide, is a coenzyme of thousands of enzymes in the human body. It participates in many physiological activities such as cell metabolism, energy synthesis, and DNA repair, and is essential for maintaining the normal progress of life activities.
The origin of NMN is closely linked to the discovery of NAD+. As early as 1904, British biologists Arthur Harden and William John Young first discovered the existence of NAD+ in the process of bread fermentation. They found that fermentation enzymes play a key role in the fermentation process of bread and other foods, and can help other proteins remain stable. However, it was not until 2013 that the potential of NMN as a precursor of NAD+ was truly explored.
Professor David Sinclair of Harvard University published a mouse experiment on the effect of NAD+ on the life span of mammals in the journal Cell, and made a breakthrough. He found that when NMN was present in food, the life span and various physical indicators of old mice were significantly improved compared to other mice. Specifically, under the condition that NMN synthesized NAD+, mice with only 2 months left to live actually lived 2.6 months longer than expected, extending their life span by an astonishing 2.3 times, which attracted widespread attention from the scientific community. Since then, more and more scientists have devoted themselves to the research of NMN and published their research results in many authoritative journals.
What are the effects of NMN supplementation on health?
Studies have shown that NMN supplementation can increase the content of NAD+ in the body through the biosynthetic pathway, thereby delaying, improving, and preventing various phenotypes related to aging. Specifically, NMN can reverse the aging process and prevent or alleviate various age-related health problems. For example, NMN can improve brain function and prevent neurodegenerative diseases; prevent pulmonary fibrosis and improve respiratory system function; improve liver function and reduce liver fatty degeneration; improve the function of immune cells and reduce inflammation; reduce muscle atrophy, improve mitochondrial function, and enhance muscle vitality; protect the skin from light damage, etc. In terms of brain microvascular protection, studies have found that NMN supplementation can improve microvascular endothelial function in elderly mice, reduce endothelial oxidative stress, rescue NO-mediated neurovascular coupling reactions, and improve mitochondrial function. This is of great significance for delaying cognitive decline.
In terms of obesity and related liver diseases, long-term high-fat diet is closely related to various chronic metabolic diseases such as obesity. Animal studies have shown that taking NMN, a precursor of NAD+, can increase NAD+ levels in muscle and liver and improve citrate synthase activity in muscle and liver caused by a high-fat diet. Researchers say it helps intervene in diet-related metabolic disorders, such as obesity and non-alcoholic fatty liver disease.
In terms of NMN's effects on mitochondrial function and cell aging, a study published in the International Journal of Molecular Sciences revealed the important role of NMN in regulating mitochondrial function and cell aging. Sirtuin 3, as a key mitochondrial protein, is not only involved in regulating oxidative stress responses, but also plays an indispensable role in the production of ATP (adenosine triphosphate). It is worth noting that the activation of the sirtuins family depends on the presence of NAD+ (nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide), and NMN can be converted into NAD+ inside the cell, thereby participating in the expression and regulation of Sirtuins.
In terms of improving immunity, COVID-19 infection can cause disorders in the expression of genes related to NAD+ metabolism, immune response, and cell death in mice, a phenomenon similar to that of human COVID-19 infected people. The experimental group of mice were treated with NMN, and the results showed that their pneumonia symptoms, including excessive inflammatory cell infiltration, hemolysis, and embolism in the lungs caused by the new coronavirus infection, were significantly improved. More importantly, supplementing with NMN can prevent 30% of elderly mice infected with the new coronavirus from dying.
The study also found that overweight parents affect the metabolism of their offspring and are considered to be a key factor in increasing the risk of overweight or obesity in their offspring in early life. Supplementing with NMN can reduce liver lipid accumulation in offspring of obese mothers, because NMN reduces the expression of genes involved in liver fat synthesis, transportation and uptake, and increases the expression of genes involved in fatty acid oxidation.
In addition to the above effects, with the continuous research on NMN, it is also found that it plays an important role in eye protection, Alzheimer's disease, diet and age-induced type 2 diabetes. NMN has shown many possibilities in exploring human health and delaying aging, and its continuous unlocking of functions has provided strong support for its wide application in the market.
In 2024, the global NMN market ushered in an unprecedented wave of growth. In the first half of the year, NMN sales achieved a leap to US$256.38 billion, with an annual year-on-year growth rate of 34.6%. In the field of health care ingredients, NMN's market share has soared to 64.7%. This significant growth not only highlights the unique value of NMN as a NAD+ precursor in anti-aging and health promotion, but also indicates that it is gradually becoming a new favorite of consumers' health consumption.
As a highly anticipated "elixir of life", the potential and value of NMN cannot be ignored. Starting from cosmetic raw materials, this impact on the field of food additives will undoubtedly open a new chapter for its wide application in the food, health care material products and other industries. In the future, we look forward to NMN being successfully approved and contributing more to the health and beauty of consumers. At the same time, this will further promote technological innovation and development in the field of synthetic biology and inject new vitality into the prosperity of the industry.