Colloidal Suspensions and NADH

[Ron Reiner <rreiner@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

Hi:

There has been some recent discussions on NADH and some distributor that
sells it as a colloidal suspension.  I have a relative who is PhD in BioChem
specializing in drug delivery mechanisms.  I asked him about colloidal
suspensions and NADH.  Here is his response for those who are interested.

                Ron Reiner (rreiner@xxxxxxxxxxxxx)  48 + 1 YR
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>
>About colloidal suspensions - the pathway into the body through the
>intestinal wall is capable of accepting large molecules and even maybe a
>colloid particle or two, probably entirely by a process called endocytosis -
>cells swalllow an "object" and may unswallow it on the other side.  The
>problem is that while it does happen, the amount of anything that can enter
>the body through that route is extremely small.  So, as a drug delivery
>system it would only be useful for an extremely potent drug.  Something like
>insulin, which is extremely potent, might work except that digestive enzymes
>would destroy the insulin molecule before it had much of a chance to be
>absorbed. Steroid hormones which are also of very high potency might be
>delivered that way too.
>
>NADH is another matter.  Levels of NADH in cells, as you already obviously
>know, are pretty high because these molecules are essential parts of the
>chemical process for many different enzymes.  In a sense NADH and/or its
>counterpart, NAD+, are vitamins.  Many vitamins serve the same type of role,
>as something called a "coenzyme".  I have never heard of ingesting NADH and I
>don't know for sure what the digestive and absorptive process would be but
>given the reactive character of NADH I suspect it would be changed or broken
>down in the liver pretty quickly (what is referred to as "the first pass
>effect") as many drugs are. On the other hand many drugs that are widely used
>and quite effective suffer extensive metabolism and their action is often due
>to the small fraction that gets in unchanged.  Maybe ingestion of NADH would
>deliver some to the bloodstream unchanged - but how much one would have to
>ingest to get the right amount absorbed I can't say. I haven't heard anything
>about NADH as a drug for Parkinsonism but if it is, I suspect that taking it
>by mouth, while desirable from a convenience standpoint, wouldn't be
>necessary.  An injection would be fine and could deliver as much as was
>needed.  It doesn't seem to me that any fancy delivery system would be
>necessary for that molecule. A colloidal delivery system proably couldn't
>deliver enough and, the smaller the amount delivered, the greater the
>percentage  of metabolic transformation. Other possible routes would be
>intranasal, sublingual  and as a rectal suppository.
>
>