Mills · Cell metabolism 2016 · controlled animal study · n=?

Long-Term Administration of Nicotinamide Mononucleotide Mitigates Age-Associated Physiological Decline in Mice.

Cited 927 times in the scientific literature.

Level 5 - mechanism / opinion, no new human data

Preclinical animal study without human data

PubMed 28068222 · doi:10.1016/j.cmet.2016.09.013 · record verified 2026-08-26

What was done

Wild-type C57BL/6N mice fed regular chow received oral administration of nicotinamide mononucleotide (NMN) for 12 months during normal aging. The authors evaluated tissue NAD+ synthesis, body weight gain, energy metabolism, physical activity, insulin sensitivity, plasma lipid profiles, eye function, organ gene expression, and skeletal muscle mitochondrial metabolism.

What was found

The abstract reports no numerical values, effect sizes, or confidence intervals. Qualitatively, oral NMN was rapidly utilized for tissue NAD+ synthesis, suppressed age-associated weight gain, enhanced energy metabolism, increased physical activity, improved insulin sensitivity and plasma lipids, and ameliorated eye function without apparent toxicity. NMN also prevented age-associated gene expression changes in key metabolic organs and enhanced skeletal muscle mitochondrial oxidative metabolism.

Why it matters

This study provides foundational preclinical evidence that chronic oral supplementation with an NAD+ intermediate can safely attenuate broad aspects of normal age-related metabolic and physiological decline in a mammalian model.

Limits

The study was conducted entirely in mice, so findings cannot be directly extrapolated to human efficacy or safety. The abstract provides no sample sizes, dosages, or numerical data.

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