Difference Between Nicotinamide Adenine Dinucleotide and Nicotinamide Riboside

The key difference between nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide and nicotinamide riboside is that nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide (NAD) is a coenzyme central to metabolism that is found in all living cells, while nicotinamide riboside (niagen) is an alternative form of vitamin B3 that is functional as a precursor to nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide.

Metabolism is the process where the body converts food to energy. During this process, calories in food and beverages are combined with oxygen to produce the energy the body needs to function. Therefore, metabolism is defined as the number of life-sustaining chemical reactions taking place in the living cell. Nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide and nicotinamide riboside are two compounds that are extremely important for metabolism.

CONTENTS

1. Overview and Key Difference
2. What is Nicotinamide Adenine Dinucleotide 
3. What is Nicotinamide Riboside
4. Similarities – Nicotinamide Adenine Dinucleotide and Nicotinamide Riboside
5. Nicotinamide Adenine Dinucleotide vs Nicotinamide Riboside in Tabular Form
6. Summary – Nicotinamide Adenine Dinucleotide vs Nicotinamide Riboside

What is Nicotinamide Adenine Dinucleotide?

Nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide (NAD) is a coenzyme central to metabolism that is found in all living cells. This coenzyme was discovered by the British biochemists Arthur Harden and William John Young in 1906. The molecular weight of this compound is 663.43g/mol. It is a dinucleotide comprised of two nucleotides joined through a phosphate group. One nucleotide contains an adenine nucleobase. The other one has nicotinamide. It usually exists in two forms: oxidized (NAD⁺) and reduced (NADH) forms. In metabolism, nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide is involved in redox reactions. It carries electrons from one reaction to another. These electron transfer reactions are the main function of nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide.

It is also involved in other cellular processes such as repairing damaged DNA, posttranslational modifications (substrate of enzymes), fortifying cells’ defense system, setting the circadian rhythm, etc. In organisms, NAD can be synthesized from simple amino acids like tryptophan or aspartic acids (denovo pathway). Alternatively, it can also be synthesized from nutritive compounds such as niacin (salvage pathway). Moreover, some NAD transforms into another important coenzyme called nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide phosphate (NADP). The enzymes that make and use NAD⁺ and NADH are important in pharmacology. NAD⁺ is a direct target when treating diseases such as cancer, Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s disease, tuberculosis, etc.

What is Nicotinamide Riboside?

Nicotinamide riboside (niagen) is an alternative form of vitamin B3. It functions as a precursor to nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide. Nicotinamide riboside is a pyridine nucleoside similar to vitamin B3. The molecular weight of this compound is 255.25 g/mol.

Nicotinamide riboside was discovered in 1944 by American scientists Wendell Gingrich and Fritz Schlenk as a growth factor for Haemophilus influenza. It was initially termed as factor V. This bacterium lives and depends on the blood. When factor V purified from a person was infected with Haemophilus influenza, it existed in three forms: NAD+, NMN, and Nicotinamide riboside (NR). The NR was the compound that led to the most rapid growth of this bacterium. Niagen (NR) easily aims to reverse signs of aging from inside the body by converting easily to NAD⁺. Therefore, ChromaDex company licensed patents in 2012 to develop a process to bring NR to market. But ChromaDex company has been in a patent dispute with Elysium Health over the right to develop nicotinamide riboside supplements.

What are the Similarities Between Nicotinamide Adenine Dinucleotide and Nicotinamide Riboside?

• These compounds have nicotinamide.
• Both are extremely important for metabolism.
• They should be kept in the cold to avoid degradation.
• Both are very important to prevent human diseases.

What is the Difference Between Nicotinamide Adenine Dinucleotide and Nicotinamide Riboside?

Nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide is a coenzyme central to metabolism that is found in all living cells. On the other hand, nicotinamide riboside is an alternative form of vitamin B3 that is functioned as a precursor to nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide. So, this is the key difference between nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide and nicotinamide riboside. Moreover, nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide is a larger compound, while nicotinamide riboside is a smaller compound.

The following infographic tabulates the difference between nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide and nicotinamide riboside for side by side comparison.

Summary – Nicotinamide Adenine Dinucleotide vs Nicotinamide Riboside

Metabolism is described as all-important chemical reactions involved in maintaining the living state of cells in organisms. Nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide and nicotinamide riboside are two compounds that are extremely important for metabolism. Nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide is a coenzyme central to metabolism. On the other hand, nicotinamide riboside is a precursor to nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide. Thus, this is the key difference between nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide and nicotinamide riboside.

Reference:

1. “Nicotinamide Adenine Dinucleotide.” An Overview | ScienceDirect Topics.
2. Raman, Ryan. “Nicotinamide Riboside: Benefits, Side Effects and Dosage.” Healthline, Healthline Media.

Image Courtesy:

1. “NADpluscouleur” – original uploader was Darkdadaah at French Wikipedia. – Créée avec MarvinSketch et Photoshop. Dakdada (CC BY-SA 3.0) via Commons Wikimedia
2. “NMN vs NR” By Brettjweiss – Own work (CC BY-SA 4.0) via Commons Wikimedia