Medical Uses For Inosine

Inosine is not an amino acid but is classified as a nucleoside, one of the basic compounds comprising cells. It is a precursor to adenosine, an important energy molecule, and plays many supportive roles in the body, including releasing insulin, facilitating the use of carbohydrate by the heart, and, potentially, participating in oxygen metabolism and protein synthesis.

It is associated with the development of purines, nonprotein nitrogen compounds that have important roles in energy metabolism. It has been suggested that inosine may improve ATP (Adenosine Tri-Phosphate) production in the muscle and thus be of value to strength athletes. It is also thought to enhance oxygen delivery to the muscles which would benefit endurance athletes.

Inosine is a metabolic activator. It has been used for pre-heavy training by "world class" power-lifters, Soviet and Eastern Block strength athletes to increase oxygen-carrying capacity and promote levels of ATP a high energy compound that helps muscle contraction.

Inosine increases the body's natural ability to handle strenuous exercise, workouts, intense training programs, and competitive events. Inosine belongs to a chemical family called purine nucleotides, the structural units of your body's RNA (ribonucleic acid) and DNA (deoxyribonucleic acid). Inosine easily penetrates the cell walls of both your cardiac and skeletal muscles there inosine helps the generation of ATP. Inosine boosts the production of ATP thus improving respiration and oxygen transport.

Extracellular purines, including adenosine and ATP, are potent endogenous immunomodulatory molecules. Inosine, a degradation product of these purines, can reach high concentrations in the extracellular space under conditions associated with cellular metabolic stress such as inflammation or ischemia. In the present study, we investigated whether extracellular inosine can affect inflammatory/immune processes... Inosine suppressed proinflammatory cytokine production and mortality in a mouse endotoxemic model. Taken together, inosine has multiple anti-inflammatory effects. These findings, coupled with the fact that inosine has very low toxicity, suggest that this agent may be useful in the treatment of inflammatory/ischemic diseases.

  • Gy?rgy Hask?, Et al. Inosine Inhibits Inflammatory Cytokine Production by a Posttranscriptional Mechanism and Protects Against Endotoxin-Induced Shock. The Journal of Immunology, 2000, 164: 1013-1019.

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