Thoroughbred Labs 5-Amino-1MQ

Thoroughbred Labs 5-Amino-1MQ is supplied as a 60-capsule tub, and Thoroughbred Labs prints 50 mg per capsule in the side FACTS panel and repeats it in its own product title. It is supplied through the Muscle Market range for laboratory research only, is not for human consumption, and is sold to adults aged 18 and over. Below: what the published research on 5-Amino-1MQ reports, what the label documents, how batch certificates are handled for Thoroughbred Labs products, and the questions most often asked about buying 5-Amino-1MQ in the UK.

About 5-Amino-1MQ

5-Amino-1MQ (5-amino-1-methylquinolinium) is a small-molecule inhibitor of nicotinamide N-methyltransferase (NNMT), an enzyme expressed in fat tissue and liver that methylates nicotinamide and in doing so influences the cellular availability of NAD+ precursors and S-adenosylmethionine. It was developed by a group at the University of Texas Medical Branch as a membrane-permeable, selective NNMT inhibitor. It is not a SARM and not a peptide.

Interest in the enzyme came first. A 2014 Nature paper found that NNMT expression was raised in the white fat and liver of obese and diabetic mice, and that lowering NNMT in those tissues with an antisense oligonucleotide protected mice against diet-induced obesity, with higher energy expenditure and higher fat-tissue levels of S-adenosylmethionine and NAD+ (Kraus et al., 2014). That work used a genetic tool, not a drug, but it made NNMT a target, and small-molecule inhibitors such as 5-Amino-1MQ followed.

In a 2018 study, diet-induced obese mice given an NNMT inhibitor from this series showed lower body weight and white fat mass and lower plasma cholesterol than vehicle-treated animals over the treatment period (Neelakantan et al., 2018). A 2019 study in aged mice reported that the inhibitor increased muscle stem cell activity and larger muscle fibres after an experimental injury (Neelakantan et al., 2019). Both studies used subcutaneous injection in mice over a few weeks, the same laboratory produced both, and neither was designed to assess long-term toxicity. A 2021 study from a collaborating team developed an assay for the compound in rat plasma and urine and measured its behaviour in rats after intravenous and oral administration (Awosemo et al., 2021). There are no human trials, no human pharmacokinetic data and no safety data in people, and the compound has never been approved as a medicine. It is frequently sold alongside claims that nothing published supports. Nothing above is a claim about this product.

In chemical terms, PubChem (CID 950107) records 5-amino-1-methylquinolinium under CAS number 685079-15-6, with the formula C10H11N2+ and a mass of 159.21 for the ion. The plus sign matters: the ring nitrogen carries a permanent positive charge, so the substance cannot exist on its own as a neutral powder and is always supplied as a salt paired with a negative counter-ion. Its systematic name is 1-methylquinolin-1-ium-5-amine.

This listing

• Manufacturer: Thoroughbred Labs
• Compound: 5-Amino-1MQ
• Form: Capsules
• Pack size: 60 capsules
• Strength: 50 mg per capsule, per the Thoroughbred Labs FACTS panel; 3,000 mg per tub as labelled
• Batch certificate of analysis: shown where Thoroughbred Labs supplies one for the batch we hold

5-Amino-1MQ in the UK: buying, legal status and what to check

Searches such as "5-Amino-1MQ UK" and "5 amino 1mq UK buy" ask whether a UK shop may sell it and how to judge a listing. 5-Amino-1MQ is not a licensed medicine in the UK, has not been assessed by the MHRA, and is not an authorised food supplement. It is not a controlled drug. It is sold for laboratory research to adults aged 18 and over and is not for human consumption. Whether or not it is named on the WADA Prohibited List, a substance with no current approval for human therapeutic use falls under section S0 (non-approved substances) and is prohibited at all times in sport. Anyone subject to anti-doping rules should consult the current list.

A research listing that publishes instructions for use or promised results contradicts the terms it sells under. What it should publish is information a researcher can check against the pack and a laboratory report. The table sets out those checks for 5-Amino-1MQ and how this listing answers each.

What to look for	Why it matters for 5-Amino-1MQ	This listing
Strength per capsule	Without it, total content per pack cannot be calculated	50 mg per capsule, from the FACTS panel; 3,000 mg per tub as labelled
Salt form	The compound is a charged ion, so the counter-ion changes the weight of each milligram of powder	Not stated on the label; check any certificate supplied
Batch number and matching certificate	Connects an analysis to the stock actually shipped	Certificate shown only where the manufacturer supplies one for the batch we hold
Identifiable UK seller	Gives an age check, a contact and a returns route	FreeMuscle, registered in Andorra, dispatching from Scunthorpe; 18+ only; 30-day returns on unopened items
Delivery	Traceable, discreet transit	Free tracked UK delivery in plain packaging; EU delivery 3-7 working days

Orders placed before 2pm Monday to Friday are processed the same working day. The full terms are on our shipping and guarantee pages, and the UK supplier checklist sets out the same tests for any shop. Our research guide covers the wider legal picture for compounds sold on this basis.

Reading the certificate of analysis for this product

Testing works differently here than on our own label. Free Muscle-brand batches are each assayed by Janoshik Analytical, an independent laboratory, and the certificate is emailed on request. Thoroughbred Labs is a third-party Muscle Market brand, so for this 5-Amino-1MQ we can show a certificate only if Thoroughbred Labs supplies one for the exact batch in stock. We do not pass off an undated or batchless PDF as a batch certificate. You can contact us to ask whether a certificate is held for the current batch. Where a certificate exists, the charged structure of 5-Amino-1MQ makes some fields more telling than usual.

• Identity: HPLC compares the sample with a reference standard by retention time; LC-MS adds a mass. Because the molecule is already charged, it appears in positive-mode mass spectrometry at about m/z 159 without needing to pick up a proton, and the published rat assay monitored a transition from m/z 159.1 to a fragment at m/z 90 (Awosemo et al., 2021). A reported mass far from 159 points to a different substance.
• Purity: the percentage of detected material that is 5-Amino-1MQ, usually from HPLC peak areas. It describes the powder, not the quantity in each capsule.
• Salt form and content: a content figure should say whether it is expressed as the salt or as the ion alone. The same weighed powder gives a smaller number when only the 159.21 ion is counted, so two honest certificates can report different milligrams for identical capsules.
• Batch number: must match the number printed on the pack you hold.
• Test date and laboratory: identify when and by whom the analysis was done.

Missing fields should be read at face value. A certificate with purity but no content figure confirms what the molecule is while leaving the 50 mg on the label unmeasured. A certificate without a batch number cannot be tied to this stock. If Thoroughbred Labs has supplied nothing for the current batch, this listing makes no analytical claim. Our lab tests page and the guide on how to read a certificate of analysis go further.

Capsules compared with other forms

Search terms such as "5 amino 1mq capsules UK", "5 amino 1mq tablets UK", "5 amino 1mq oral" and "5-amino-1mq subcutaneous" show that the compound circulates as capsules, tablets, loose powder and injectable solutions. The published record for each route is thin and should be read carefully.

The two mouse efficacy papers gave the compound by subcutaneous injection, so they say nothing direct about capsules. The only published oral data come from the 2021 rat study, which found the compound in plasma after oral administration and reported an oral bioavailability of about 38 per cent in rats, meaning a sizeable fraction of the orally administered amount reached the circulation in those animals (Awosemo et al., 2021). Rat figures cannot be converted into human figures, and no study has measured oral absorption in people.

Because 5-Amino-1MQ is a small molecule rather than a chain of amino acids, it is not broken down by stomach and gut proteases in the way oral peptides are, which is why the "peptide" label sometimes attached to it in search results is misleading. Its permanent charge is a different consideration, since charged molecules often cross gut membranes less readily than neutral ones.

Otherwise the formats differ in measurement. A capsule holds a weighed blend of active powder and filler, so consistency depends on even mixing; a solution depends on the compound staying dissolved and intact. Only a content assay could show whether each capsule holds the 50 mg the label states. None of this is a claim about effect.

5-Amino-1MQ compared with SLU-PP-332

The compound most often searched alongside 5-Amino-1MQ is SLU-PP-332, and Thoroughbred Labs also lists the two in a single research pack. They are grouped together because both are recent small molecules discussed in metabolic research, but they act at different points in the cell and have different histories.

5-Amino-1MQ blocks an enzyme. By inhibiting NNMT it reduces the methylation of nicotinamide, which in animal and cell work was linked to changes in NAD+ and S-adenosylmethionine levels. SLU-PP-332 activates receptors: it is a pan-agonist of the oestrogen-related receptors ERR alpha, beta and gamma, nuclear receptors that switch on genes for mitochondrial energy production. One works by taking an enzyme out of play, the other by turning on a transcription programme. Neither acts at the androgen receptor, and neither is a peptide or a hormone.

The evidence bases are alike in shape. The published mouse studies of SLU-PP-332, looking at endurance and metabolic measures, are recent and come mainly from the group that developed it as an ERR agonist, just as the 5-Amino-1MQ work comes mainly from the group that developed that compound. Neither compound has been given to people in a published study.

Point of comparison	5-Amino-1MQ	SLU-PP-332
Type of action	Enzyme inhibitor (NNMT)	Receptor agonist (ERR alpha, beta, gamma)
Chemistry	Quinolinium cation, supplied as a salt	Neutral acylhydrazone, C18H14N2O2
Animal evidence	Mouse studies from one laboratory	Recent mouse studies, mainly from one laboratory
Oral data	Rat pharmacokinetics only	None published
Human data	None	None
WADA position	Prohibited at all times under S0 (non-approved substances)	Prohibited at all times under S0 (non-approved substances)
UK status	Unlicensed; research use only	Unlicensed; research use only

This comparison is pharmacological and regulatory only. Nothing here suggests that the two compounds act together or should be used together, and the SLU-PP-332 and 5-Amino-1MQ research guide covers each in more depth.

Detection, sport and testing

For anyone bound by an anti-doping code, 5-Amino-1MQ is prohibited at all times. Section S0 of the WADA Prohibited List covers any pharmacological substance not approved for human therapeutic use, and this compound has never been approved anywhere, so it is caught whether or not it is named. A compound missing from the named examples is therefore not permitted.

On detection, the published evidence is limited but clear in one respect. The 2021 rat study validated a liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry method that quantified 5-Amino-1MQ in both plasma and urine, the two sample types used in sport testing (Awosemo et al., 2021). What is missing is any excretion study in people, so there is no established detection window in human urine or blood. Any figure quoted online for how long it remains detectable is unsupported. The accurate position is that it is detectable in principle and the window has not been established.

Storage, stability and handling

With no published stability data for these capsules, storage guidance rests on the compound's chemistry and laboratory practice. The amino group on the aromatic ring is the kind of structure that can slowly oxidise and discolour with air and light, and organic salts in powder form often take up moisture from humid air, which can cause clumping and soften gelatin or plant-based capsule shells. Heat speeds both processes.

• Keep the capsules sealed in the original container, closing it promptly after opening and leaving any desiccant sachet inside.
• Store at room temperature or below, away from radiators, windowsills and direct sunlight.
• Avoid damp rooms such as bathrooms and kitchens.
• Keep the pack and its label together, since the batch number is the link to any certificate of analysis.
• Keep out of reach of children and separate from food and drink.

Capsules that have stuck together, changed colour or developed an unusual smell should be set aside and not used for research. Standard laboratory rules on gloves, labelling and disposal of unwanted material apply.

Glossary

• NNMT (nicotinamide N-methyltransferase): the enzyme 5-Amino-1MQ inhibits; it transfers a methyl group to nicotinamide.
• Nicotinamide: a form of vitamin B3 and a precursor of NAD+.
• NAD+: nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide, a coenzyme central to energy metabolism in cells.
• S-adenosylmethionine (SAM): the methyl donor NNMT uses; it also supplies methyl groups to DNA and histones.
• Quinolinium: a quinoline ring with a positively charged nitrogen, the core of 5-Amino-1MQ.
• Counter-ion: the negatively charged partner that turns a charged molecule into a stable salt.
• Oral bioavailability: the fraction of an amount given by mouth that reaches the bloodstream unchanged.
• Pharmacokinetics: the study of how a substance is absorbed, distributed, broken down and eliminated.
• LC-MS/MS: liquid chromatography with tandem mass spectrometry, used to identify and measure a compound by mass and fragments.
• Section S0: the WADA category covering substances with no current approval for human therapeutic use.
• Certificate of analysis (COA): a laboratory report of identity, purity and content for a named batch.

About Thoroughbred Labs 5-Amino-1MQ

Thoroughbred Labs is a UK online brand, sold at thoroughbredlabs.co.uk in pounds, with 24/7 Billing Limited (company number 14990140) named in its footer as the business for statutory purposes; Companies House shows that company as active and London-registered, incorporated in July 2023. The brand states that it has no premises open to customers and deals with enquiries by email or in writing. It offers 5-Amino-1MQ in two forms, a 10 mg freeze-dried vial and these 50 mg capsules, and pairs the capsules with SLU-PP-332 in a Research System. We stock the capsules and the Research System, not the vial.

The tub carries 5-AMINO-1MQ, 60 CAPSULES and the research-only band on its yellow front label; the side FACTS panel states 5-AMINO-1MQ 50mg per capsule; the fillers are microcrystalline cellulose and magnesium stearate, in a vegetarian capsule. At that stated figure the tub holds 3 g, the largest labelled amount per capsule among the Thoroughbred Labs tubs we stock. The label does not name the counter-ion. When we checked its certificate page on 2 October 2026 it listed a report for the 5-AMINO-1MQ vial (batch TBL5A890) but none for the capsules; a vial report describes different material, so this listing shows no certificate.

This is the only 5-Amino-1MQ capsule we stock, so the 5-Amino-1MQ collection has no cross-brand comparison; the nearest point of reference is the brand's own Research System, which contains a tub with the same panel. The Thoroughbred Labs collection sets out the brand's labelling conventions and published documents. Check the seal, read the panel against this page, keep the batch number and ask us what paperwork exists for it.

5-Amino-1MQ is a small-molecule NNMT inhibitor with rodent data only; nothing containing it is licensed, it is neither medicine nor food under UK law, and WADA section S0 covers it as a substance without any health-authority licence, so it is prohibited at all times. Adults only, laboratory research only.

Related

• All brands of 5-Amino-1MQ we stock, compared
• All Thoroughbred Labs products
• Thoroughbred Labs SLU-PP-332 and the Thoroughbred Labs research pack listing both compounds
• Metabolic research compounds
• Batch testing and certificates of analysis
• Delivery and returns

Research compounds sold by Free Muscle are supplied for laboratory research use only and are not for human consumption. They are not authorised as medicines by the MHRA, EMA or FDA, are not food supplements, and are sold only to adults aged 18 or over. Nothing on this page is medical or dosing advice. Summaries of published research describe study findings and are not claims about any product.

References

• Kraus D, et al. Nicotinamide N-methyltransferase knockdown protects against diet-induced obesity. Nature. 2014;508(7495):258-262. PMID: 24717514.
• Neelakantan H, et al. Selective and membrane-permeable small molecule inhibitors of nicotinamide N-methyltransferase reverse high fat diet-induced obesity in mice. Biochem Pharmacol. 2018;147:141-152. PMID: 29155147.
• Neelakantan H, et al. Small molecule nicotinamide N-methyltransferase inhibitor activates senescent muscle stem cells and improves regenerative capacity of aged skeletal muscle. Biochem Pharmacol. 2019;163:481-492. PMID: 30753815.
• Awosemo O, et al. Development & validation of LC-MS/MS assay for 5-amino-1-methyl quinolinium in rat plasma: Application to pharmacokinetic and oral bioavailability studies. J Pharm Biomed Anal. 2021;204:114255. PMID: 34304009.