ATP disodium salt, also known as Adenosine 5′-Triphosphate, disodium salt, is a central component of the body's energy storage and metabolism, and is also used as a form of coenzyme in cells. Adenosine-5′-triphosphate (ATP), a naturally occurring nucleotide found in every cell, belongs to the purine family. It consists of a purine base (adenine), ribose, and three phosphate groups. ATP is the most fundamental of all biological macromolecules and the universal source of chemical energy readily available to all living cells. It plays an important role in muscle contraction, glucose breakdown (anaerobic glycolysis), the citric acid cycle and aerobic oxidation (oxidative phosphorylation). Supplementing with ATP disodium salt can provide many different health benefits, including regulation of blood flow and muscle contraction.

Benefits

Enhancement of athletic capacity

Studies have shown that oral ATP does not increase plasma ATP levels, but long-term supplementation with ATP disodium salt improves strength, stamina, lean body mass, and blood flow in trained athletes. In a double-blind, placebo-controlled, randomised design study, 42 healthy men took either 400mg of ATP disodium salt or a placebo 2 weeks before exercise. The results showed that oral ATP supplementation prevented post-exercise decreases in ATP, ADP, and AMP levels; ATP supplementation resulted in significant decreases in muscle excitability in the 8th, 9th, and 10th voxels in the placebo group (-30.5%, -28.3%, and -27.9%, respectively), whereas supplementation prevented the decreases in muscle excitability in the later voxels. Thus, oral administration of ATP prevents exercise-induced decreases in ATP and its metabolites and increases peak power and muscle excitability, which may be beneficial in sports requiring repeated high-intensity sprints.

Regulates blood flow and muscle contraction

Intravascular ATP induces vasodilation and is associated with the regulation of skeletal muscle blood flow during exercise. Mechanical stress on erythrocytes and endothelial cells stimulates the release of ATP in vitro. Mechanical effects of muscle contraction also result in increased plasma ATP during exercise. However, the mechanical effect of muscle contraction may independently increase intravascular ATP in resting skeletal muscle without altering local metabolism; or it may further increase intravascular ATP during mild exercise with increased metabolism and local deoxygenation; therefore, it is likely to be a stimulus for increasing intravascular ATP during exercise in humans.

Treatment for Asthenopia

Adenosine triphosphate disodium salt hydrate (ATP-2Na) is used to treat asthenopia.Studies have shown improvement in astigmatism and concomitant fatigue symptoms in patients after 1 and 3 months of ATP-2Na compared to before ingestion.

Safety

Oral ATP disodium salt supplements have been studied in 14 human clinical trials. Doses ranged from 90 mg to 5000 mg, and dosing times ranged from acute administration to 2 years, with no serious adverse events and no statistically or clinically significant changes in blood chemistry or haematology observed. However, ATP disodium salt supplements may cause adverse reactions such as diarrhoea and nausea, which may improve with discontinuation of the drug. (ATP disodium salt) has been reported to be acutely toxic in mice and rats following intravenous, subcutaneous, and oral administration as reported in the ChemIDplus database (ChemIDplus). In addition, it is safe for healthy subjects to ingest 400 mg of ATP supplementation per day for up to 12 weeks.

References:

[1] RALF J?GER; John C F Jr; Martin Purpura. Subchronic (90-Day) repeated dose toxicity study of disodium adenosine-5′-triphosphate in rats[J]. Regulatory Toxicology and Pharmacology, 2020. DOI:10.1016/j.yrtph.2020.104760.

[2] M. PURPURA. Oral Adenosine-5′-triphosphate (ATP) Administration Increases Postexercise ATP Levels, Muscle Excitability, and Athletic Performance Following a Repeated Sprint Bout[J]. Journal of the American College of Nutrition, 2017. DOI:10.1080/07315724.2016.1246989.

[3] YO NAKAMURA. Clinical Evaluation of Adenosine Triphosphate Disodium Hydrate (ATP-2Na) for Asthenopia[J]. Adenosine Triphosphate in Health and Disease, 2019. DOI:10.5772/INTECHOPEN.80288.