Could 1,3 dimethylamylamine (DMAA) in food supplements have a natural origin?

Abstract

1,3 dimethylamylamine or methylexaneamine (DMAA) is a synthetic pharmaceutical patented in the 1940s as a nasal decongestant which can be used as a recreational stimulant. Alleged to occur in nature, DMAA has become a widely used ingredient in sports food supplements, despite its status as a doping agent and concerns over its safety. There is now some doubt as to whether it can be sourced naturally or whether it actually occurs naturally at all. The presence of DMAA was investigated by high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) in extracts of the leaves and stems of four geranium species and of three well-known cultivars. The amounts of DMAA in commercial geranium (Pelargonium graveolens) oil and the leading sports supplement which uses the ingredient were also measured. DMAA was not found in any of the leaves or stems or in the commercial geranium oil included in this study. Approximately 30 mg per daily dose was found in the food supplement. Therefore, the amount of DMAA found in the supplement is most unlikely to have been sourced in nature, and it must be concluded that synthetic DMAA, known to be capable of causing severe adverse physiological effects, has been added.

Methylhexanamine is not detectable in Pelargonium or Geranium species and their essential oils: A multi‐centre investigation

“…[1] Figure 4 shows the chemical structure of MHA and that of the I.S. [13][14][15][16] Meanwhile two other reports by investigators, supported by USP Lab (a major manufacturer of MHA containing dietary supplements), reported the presence of MHA in pelargonium samples and oils acquired from China for their studies. [1] The results of our investigation (both by GC-MS and LC-MS/MS) revealed that MHA does not exist in authentic samples of Pelargonium graveolens plant material or pelargonium oil or in multiple samples of commercially available Pelargonium oil down to the ppb level.…”

“…[11,12] In 2011, we initiated a study in which we acquired authenticated Pelargonium plant material (13 samples) and authenticated Pelargonium oil (2 samples), along with commercially available Pelargonium oils (20 samples) and dietary supplements labelled to contain Pelargonium as the source of MHA or just the chemical, MHA. [13][14][15][16] Meanwhile, two other laboratories, Li et al and Fleming et al, reported in 2012 their finding of MHA in Pelargonium plant and oils collected in China. [1] While all Pelargonium plant material and oils were found to be negative for MHA, high levels of MHA were found in the commercial dietary supplements, indicating that their source of MHA is of synthetic origin.…”

Identification and quantification of 1,3-dimethylbutylamine (DMBA) from Camellia sinensis tea leaves and dietary supplements

“…However, along with Ping's paper [4], three other papers have claimed to confirm the presence of DMAA in geranium [11][12][13], while all independent academic investigations have been unable to find any evidence of DMAA in http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.jpba.2015.07.004 0731-7085/© 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved. geranium [6][7][8]14,15]. Lopez-Avila and Zorio [5] suggested that the reason that other authors [6][7][8] could not find DMAA in geranium plants or oils was because the original compounds detected in the Ping paper [4] were amides and not amines.…”

“…Over the past several years, research has explored the possibility that DMAA might or might not be a natural constituent of geranium [4][5][6][7][8][9][10][11][12][13][14][15]. In 2014, Monakhova et al, [9] developed a nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) method for the detection of DMAA based on integration of two methyl groups in the range 0.92-0.84 ppm.…”

Effects of controlled doses of Oxyelite Pro on physical performance in rats

“…Consequently, studies began to investigate geranium plants to identify the presence of DMAA and determine the amount of this substance. In contradiction, some studies found DMAA in geranium plants (funded by USPlabs) [11, 12] and others did not identify the DMAA being of native origin [13, 14]. In addition, the amount of DMAA found in plants was lower than the amount found in dietary supplements.…”