5'-methylthioadenosine

5'-Methylthioadenosine (MTA) is a naturally occurring, sulfur-containing nucleoside found in mammalian tissues, generated from S-adenosylmethionine (SAM) primarily during polyamine biosynthesis. It is metabolized solely by the enzyme 5'-methylthioadenosine phosphorylase (MTAP) as part of the methionine and purine salvage pathways. MTA acts as an endogenous substrate for MTAP and also functions as an inhibitor of spermidine synthase, protein arginine methyltransferase 5 (PRMT5), and protein carboxymethyltransferase, thereby modulating gene expression, cell proliferation, and apoptosis. Preclinical research has investigated MTA for its potential therapeutic applications in autoimmune diseases (such as multiple sclerosis), transplant rejection, liver injury/fibrosis, and certain cancers (including BRAF-mutant melanoma and cholangiocarcinoma). It is primarily utilized as a research reagent and is not currently approved for clinical use.

Other names

5'-deoxy-5'-(methylthio)adenosine5'-methylthioadenosine5'-S-methyl-5'-thio-adenosine5'-S-methyl-5'-thioadenosine5-methylthioadenosinemethylthioadenosineMTAS-methyl-5'-thioadenosineS-methyl-5-thioadenosineS-methyl5-thioadenosineS-methyl 5-thioadenosinethiomethyladenosine