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Incretin & metabolic

5-Amino-1MQ (5-amino-1-methylquinolinium)

Also known as 5A1MQ, 5-Amino-1MQ, 5-amino-1-methylquinolinium, 5-amino-1-methylquinolinium iodide, 5MQ (used in one paper), NNMT inhibitor

Preclinical only

Small-molecule NNMT (nicotinamide N-methyltransferase) inhibitor. Investigational, preclinical.

Not FDA-approved. Not on FDA's 503A category lists (May 14, 2026). Source, May 14, 2026

Identity. 5-Amino-1MQ is 5-amino-1-methylquinolinium, a small-molecule inhibitor of nicotinamide N-methyltransferase (NNMT). It is not a peptide. FDA's Jan 20 2026 warning letter names it as '5-amino-1-methylquinolinium iodide (5-Amino-1MQ)', so the research form is the iodide salt. One paper abbreviates it '5MQ' and another '5A1MQ'. Do not confuse it with 1-methylquinolinium, which lacks the 5-amino group. The PubMed search string '5-amino-1MQ' returns nothing; the compound is indexed under its full chemical name. Route: the formulary item is a 10 mg vial, but every practice number found is an oral capsule dose. No source gives an injectable (SC/IM) human dose. Do not convert any oral mg dose to a vial, reconstitution volume or injection volume. Mg basis: no source says whether any mg figure (vial, capsule or mouse dose) refers to the iodide salt or the cation. By formula arithmetic (cation about 159.2 g/mol plus iodide about 126.9 g/mol, salt about 286.1 g/mol), salt mass is about 1.8x cation mass, so figures may not be comparable. Supplier pages list conflicting CAS numbers. Check the basis and identity against the certificate of analysis from the partner pharmacy.

At a glance

These dosages are a helpful guide, not a prescription. Every clinician is expected to do their own due diligence before prescribing.

No established human dose

The evidence is preclinical only. Peer-reviewed work is limited to cell culture and diet-induced obese mice, mostly from one group associated with Ridgeline Therapeutics. No human trial, PK or safety study was found in PubMed. In mice, oral bioavailability was 3.5%, while subcutaneous and intravenous dosing gave far higher exposure (SC 25 mg/kg: Cmax 7,010 ng/mL, AUC 7,031 ng*h/mL; PO 30 mg/kg: Cmax 14.5 ng/mL, AUC 224 ng*h/mL). Oral and parenteral doses are therefore not interchangeable. All human doses in circulation are clinic or community extrapolations.

No label or human study dosing exists; oral community doses lack trial support and must not be paired with the 10 mg vial.
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What clinics and vendors publish

These ranges come from clinic and vendor publications, not studies.

Community-reported

No practice number rests on a trial, review, textbook or identifiable prescriber protocol. All labels here are community-reported, unverified and oral. The only dosed source is a community aggregator of 75 anecdotal reports (Peptide Protocol Wiki, 2026-02-18). It says its doses come from 'unverified allometric scaling calculations and clinic experience' and that human oral bioavailability is unknown. The source's 'most commonly reported from clinics' wording is its own unverified claim. Mouse oral bioavailability was 3.5%, so oral capsule dosing has no pharmacokinetic support. The 10 mg formulary vial does not match these oral capsule doses and must not be paired with them.

StartCommunity-reported
50 mg ORAL capsule (community-reported typical dose, not a documented starting dose; no trial basis)
TypicalCommunity-reported
50 mg oral capsule once daily (community-reported, unverified; no identifiable prescriber protocol)
CeilingCommunity-reported
NOT A SAFETY LIMIT. Highest dose appearing in community reports: 100-150 mg oral daily (once daily or split 50 mg two to three times daily). The source states there are no published dose-response data in humans. No maximum dose has been established in any species by a human study.
FrequencyCommunity-reported
Once daily (50 mg standard); higher-dose protocol once daily or 50 mg two to three times daily
RouteCommunity-reported
Oral capsule ONLY. No injectable human dose exists.
TimingCommunity-reported
Morning
CycleCommunity-reported
8-12 weeks continuous, or 8 weeks on / 4 weeks off (cycling protocol 50-100 mg once daily); the same source says there is no evidence cycling is needed
  • Community-reportedOther web source1
    Standard oral protocol: 50 mg, oral capsule, once daily, for 8-12 weeks. Most commonly reported protocol from peptide therapy clinics; taken in the morning.
  • Community-reportedOther web source1
    Higher-dose protocol: 100-150 mg daily, either once or split as 50 mg two to three times daily, for 8-12 weeks. Some clinics prescribe higher doses; no published dose-response data in humans.
  • Community-reportedOther web source1
    Cycling protocol: 50-100 mg once daily, with 8 weeks on and 4 weeks off. no evidence that cycling is necessary or beneficial.

Safety

Serious warnings

  • No injectable human dose exists. Every dose in circulation is an oral capsule dose. Do not convert oral mg to the 10 mg vial or to injection volumes. Mouse oral bioavailability was 3.5%, and parenteral exposure per mg was far higher (SC 25 mg/kg AUC 7,031 vs PO 30 mg/kg AUC 224 ng*h/mL).2
  • FDA warning letter to a 503B outsourcing facility (01/20/2026): 'Drug products compounded using 5-Amino-1MQ and NAD+ are not eligible for the exemptions provided by section 503B, because 5-Amino-1MQ and NAD+ do not appear on the 503B bulks list'. Its 503A status is not established (it is not on FDA's Category 2 page dated 04/22/2026). No FDA-approved product was found. Do not present it as routinely compoundable.3
  • Long-term safety in humans has not been evaluated.1
  • No published human clinical trial data exist for 5-Amino-1MQ.1

Contraindications

  • No contraindications can be established because no human data exist. This is not a statement that none apply.1
  • No data exist for pregnancy, lactation, children, hepatic or renal impairment, thyroid disease, active cancer, or diabetes on glucose-lowering drugs. Avoid use until data exist (precaution based on the absence of data).2
  • Avoid concomitant MAO inhibitors and serotonergic drugs (precaution based on in vitro MAO-A inhibition; see interactions).2

Adverse effects

  • Mouse (animal only): 'administration of NNMT inhibitors did not impact total food intake nor produce any observable adverse effects.'4
  • Mouse (animal only): total white blood cell count fell at the high dose (32 mg/kg/day SC), with 31% lower lymphocytes and 50% lower monocytes than control. Monocytes were also lower at the low dose (10 mg/kg/day, p<0.01). The authors interpreted this as improved inflammation, but it is a hematologic effect that has not been studied in humans.2
  • Community reports (anecdotal, subject to placebo effect and confirmation bias) describe 'No dramatic acute effects or obvious side effects'.1

Monitoring

  • These suggestions come from animal findings and chemistry only. They are not validated in humans and are not source recommendations. CBC with differential at baseline and during use (mouse WBC, lymphocyte and monocyte reductions). ALT/AST (measured in the mouse study). Fasting glucose, plus insulin or A1c if on glucose-lowering drugs (large glycemic and insulin effects in mice). Blood pressure and heart rate (MAO-A signal). TSH/free T4 if the product is an iodide salt, especially with thyroid disease, pregnancy or lactation.2

Interactions

  • In vitro, 5A1MQ at 10 uM showed 'no significant activity against all targets tested except a 67.4% inhibition of monoamine oxidase-A (MAO-A)'. Mouse plasma after SC 25 mg/kg reached a Cmax of 7,010 ng/mL, which is about 44 uM (7,010 ng/mL divided by 159.21 g/mol for the cation). That is above the 10 uM that inhibited MAO-A. Mouse oral Cmax (14.5 ng/mL, about 0.09 uM) is far below it. MAO-A inhibition at injectable exposure is plausible and unstudied. At mouse oral exposure it is not expected. There are no human data. Until this is clarified, treat serotonergic antidepressants, MAOIs, linezolid, tramadol, meperidine, dextromethorphan and sympathomimetics as cautions, extrapolated from the MAOI class and not from 5-Amino-1MQ data. Watch for hypertension and serotonin toxicity.2
  • If the product is the iodide salt, 50 mg would carry about 22 mg iodide by formula arithmetic (50 x 126.9/286.1), against an adult tolerable upper intake of 1,100 mcg/day. The American Thyroid Association states that ingestion above that level 'is not recommended and may cause thyroid dysfunction'. This applies only if the product is the iodide salt and releases the iodide, both of which are unverified.5

Handling

Reconstitution

No validated reconstitution, beyond-use dating or storage guidance exists for human use. Follow the dispensing pharmacy's labeling only, and do not calculate doses from vendor tables. Non-clinical context only: in the mouse study the compound 'was prepared weekly by dissolving in 0.9% sterile saline and filtering through a sterile 0.2 um membrane'.

Storage before mixing

No citable storage guidance exists.

Storage after mixing

Mouse-study solutions 'were stored at 4 C' (research use, prepared weekly).2

Evidence

The evidence is preclinical only. Peer-reviewed work is limited to cell culture and diet-induced obese mice, mostly from one group associated with Ridgeline Therapeutics. No human trial, PK or safety study was found in PubMed. In mice, oral bioavailability was 3.5%, while subcutaneous and intravenous dosing gave far higher exposure (SC 25 mg/kg: Cmax 7,010 ng/mL, AUC 7,031 ng*h/mL; PO 30 mg/kg: Cmax 14.5 ng/mL, AUC 224 ng*h/mL). Oral and parenteral doses are therefore not interchangeable. All human doses in circulation are clinic or community extrapolations.

Mechanism

5-Amino-1MQ inhibits NNMT, which methylates nicotinamide to 1-methylnicotinamide using SAM. In mouse and cell work, inhibition reduced 1-MNA and raised NAD+ and SAM in adipocytes. It is selective against related methyltransferases but showed 67.4% in vitro MAO-A inhibition at 10 uM. The authors list MAO-A activity as an off-target liability they are working to optimize away. Human relevance is untested.24

Availability

Amounts offered

  • 10 mg

Custom strengths on request.

References

According to PubMed

  1. 15-Amino-1MQ: Community Protocols & Reports (75 anecdotal reports, dated 2026-02-18)Peptide Protocol Wiki (community aggregator), 2026
  2. 2Nicotinamide N-methyltransferase inhibition mitigates obesity-related metabolic dysfunction.Diabetes, Obesity and Metabolism 26(11):5272-5282, 2024
  3. 3GenoGenix LLC - 718739 - 01/20/2026 (warning letter, 503B outsourcing facility)U.S. FDA, 2026
  4. 4Selective and membrane-permeable small molecule inhibitors of nicotinamide N-methyltransferase reverse high fat diet-induced obesity in mice.Biochemical Pharmacology 147:141-152, 2017
  5. 5ATA Statement on the Potential Risks of Excess Iodine Ingestion and ExposureAmerican Thyroid Association
  6. 6Reduced calorie diet combined with NNMT inhibition establishes a distinct microbiome in DIO mice.Scientific Reports 12(1):484, 2022
  7. 7Small molecule inhibitor of nicotinamide N-methyltransferase shows anti-proliferative activity in HeLa cells.Journal of Obstetrics and Gynaecology 41(8):1240-1245, 2021
  8. 8Bulk Drug Substances Used in Compounding Under Section 503A of the FD&C Act (content dated 05/14/2026)U.S. FDA, 2026
  9. 9Certain Bulk Drug Substances for Use in Compounding that May Present Significant Safety Risks (content current as of 04/22/2026)U.S. FDA, 2026

Last reviewed 2026-10-14. 22 figures checked against their sources. How this works