Nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide metabolism and arterial stiffness after long-term nicotinamide mononucleotide supplementation
Katayoshi T, Uehata S, Nakashima N, et al.
Key finding
12 weeks of 250 mg/day NMN in middle-aged adults raised blood NAD+ and was associated with reduced arterial stiffness (CAVI) vs. placebo.
Summary
Long-duration, placebo-controlled trial of oral NMN in healthy middle-aged Japanese adults. Participants received 125 mg NMN twice daily (250 mg/day) or placebo for 12 weeks, with cardiovascular and NAD+-metabolome endpoints measured at baseline and end of treatment. NMN supplementation significantly elevated whole-blood NAD+ and related metabolites (NMN, NAM, MeNAM) relative to placebo. A secondary analysis showed reduction in cardio-ankle vascular index (CAVI) — a measure of arterial stiffness — in the NMN group compared with placebo, with effect magnitude correlating with baseline CAVI. Safety was good; no serious adverse events and no clinically significant changes in liver or kidney function panels. The study is one of the few human NMN trials published in a peer-reviewed journal, extends prior short-term PK studies, and provides early signal for vascular-aging endpoints that will inform larger cardiovascular-focused trials. Cohort size and single-country sample limit generalizability.
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