This is a working overview of SR9009, written for readers who want more than a one-paragraph summary but less than a textbook.
This page was last updated on 2025-12-09 and is reviewed periodically as new material appears.
REV-ERB proteins help regulate daily cycles in gene expression, including genes tied to lipid and glucose metabolism. SR9009 binds these receptors and alters their activity in cell and animal experiments. Consequences observed in rodents include changes in skeletal muscle oxidative capacity, blood lipid levels, and exercise performance. The precise chain from receptor occupancy to whole-body effects is still an active area of study. Human responses cannot be assumed from rodent data.
Most published work on SR9009 consists of preclinical studies. It is widely sold as a research chemical, a category that does not imply safety, efficacy, or pharmaceutical-grade quality. Sports anti-doping organizations have listed SR9009 as a prohibited substance, and its presence in an athlete sample can lead to sanctions. Legal status differs by country; in several jurisdictions it is not approved for human consumption and may be treated as an unapproved new drug.
Quality control for research materials includes identity confirmation by nuclear magnetic resonance and purity assessment by high-performance liquid chromatography. Mass spectrometry provides molecular weight confirmation and can detect related impurities. Purchasers should request a certificate of analysis that lists lot-specific data. Online products advertised for human use often lack such documentation. Distinguishing legitimate research material from mislabeled or contaminated samples is a recurring challenge in independent testing, and independent laboratories may use orthogonal methods to verify identity.
Detection of SR9009 in biological samples usually relies on liquid chromatography coupled to tandem mass spectrometry. This approach separates the compound from matrix components and identifies it by mass transitions. Because SR9009 can undergo metabolism, laboratories often look for both parent drug and specific metabolites. Sample preparation may involve protein precipitation or solid-phase extraction. Method validation examines sensitivity, carryover, and interference from related substances, and reference standards are required for accurate calibration.
Storage recommendations for SR9009 reference material typically specify a freezer at -20 °C or lower, with protection from moisture and light. Repeated freeze-thaw cycles can degrade small molecules and introduce variability. Stock solutions in dimethyl sulfoxide are often aliquoted to avoid repeated handling. Stability studies may examine degradation under heat, humidity, and light exposure. The compound's thiophene and nitro groups can participate in reactions that alter analytical signals over time, so such changes affect quantitative results.
| Property | Value | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Common name | SR9009 | Also referred to as Stenabolic in non-scientific contexts. |
| Chemical class | Synthetic small molecule | Not a steroid or peptide hormone. |
| Receptor target | REV-ERBα and REV-ERBβ | Nuclear receptor agonist in preclinical studies. |
| Development status | Investigational | No approved human therapeutic indication. |
| Regulatory attention | Prohibited in sport | Listed by anti-doping authorities. |
In rodent studies, SR9009 has been reported to increase mitochondrial content in skeletal muscle and improve exercise endurance under some conditions. These findings led to popular descriptions such as an exercise mimetic, although that term oversimplifies the biology. Effects vary by dose, timing, tissue, and model. The compound's influence on circadian pathways means that time of administration can matter in experiments. Whether similar metabolic changes occur in humans remains largely unexplored in controlled published trials.
Pharmacokinetic data for SR9009 are limited in published literature. Some reports indicate low oral bioavailability and rapid clearance in animals, which complicates interpretation of exposure and effect. Researchers often use injected routes in preclinical work to achieve measurable systemic levels. Analytical studies rely on mass spectrometry to detect the parent compound and its metabolites. Questions about tissue distribution, active metabolites, and long-term consequences remain open. Species differences in metabolism can affect observed half-life and target engagement.
In laboratory settings, SR9009 is typically characterized by liquid chromatography–mass spectrometry (LC-MS) or high-performance liquid chromatography with ultraviolet detection (HPLC-UV). These methods can confirm identity and estimate purity, but they require reference standards for accurate quantification. Because SR9009 is not a licensed pharmaceutical, no harmonized pharmacopeial monograph exists. Laboratories often validate in-house methods for matrices such as plasma, urine, or cell culture media. Sample preparation may involve protein precipitation or liquid-liquid extraction before analysis.
Physicochemical behavior influences handling. SR9009 is described as a solid with limited aqueous solubility, so organic solvents such as dimethyl sulfoxide or ethanol are common in research stock solutions. Aqueous dilution can produce precipitates if the organic content is too low. Light, heat, and repeated freeze-thaw cycles may affect stability. Storage recommendations usually specify a desiccated freezer environment protected from light, but exact stability data depend on the formulation and matrix.
Broad proteomic and transcriptomic profiling has led to innumerable advances in the biomedical space, but the characterization of RNA and protein expression is limited in its ability to inform on the functional characteristics of proteins. Given that transcript and protein expression information leave gaps in knowledge surrounding the effects of post-translational modifications and protein-protein interactions on enzyme activity, and that enzyme activity varies across cell types, disease states, and physiological conditions, specialized tools are required to profile enzyme activity across contexts. Additionally, many identified enzymes have not been sufficiently characterized to yield actionable mechanisms on which to base functional assays. Without a basis for a functional biochemical readout, chemical tools are required to detect drug-protein interactions.
By the end of the 1960s, peptides were phased out as drug candidates. Miguel Ondetti moved to the gastrointestinal hormone group in the mid 1960s. The first hormone to be studied by Ondetti's group was cholecystokinin, a digestion hormone. This product presented unique challenges because of the small amounts used in reactions. Unfortunately, bioassays were not quantitative enough to use for results and chemical reactions did not run well as such low amounts.
==== Other activities ==== In addition to the opioid receptors, naltrexone binds to and acts as an antagonist of the opioid growth factor receptor (OGFR) and toll-like receptor 4 (TLR4). It has been proposed that low doses of naltrexone (1 to 5 mg/day) produce TLR4 antagonism, and standard clinical doses (50 to 100 mg/day) exert opioid receptor and OGFR antagonism. The interactions of naltrexone with TLR4 are claimed to be involved in the therapeutic effects of low-dose naltrexone.
=== Silica aerogel === Silica aerogels are the most common type of aerogel, and the primary type in use or study. It is silica-based and can be derived from silica gel or by a modified Stöber process. Nicknames include frozen smoke, solid smoke, solid air, solid cloud, and blue smoke, owing to its translucent nature and the way light scatters in the material. The lowest-density silica nanofoam weighs 1,000 g/m3, which is the evacuated version of the record-aerogel of 1,900 g/m3. The density of air is 1,200 g/m3 (at 20 °C and 1 atm). The silica solidifies into three-dimensional, intertwined clusters that make up only 3% of the volume. Conduction through the solid is therefore very low. The remaining 97% of the volume is composed of air in extremely small nanopores. The air has little room to move, inhibiting both convection and gas-phase conduction. Silica aerogel also has a high optical transmission of ~99% and a low refractive index of ~1.05. It is very robust with respect to high power input beam in continuous wave regime and does not show any boiling or melting phenomena. This property permits to study high intensity nonlinear waves in the presence of disorder in regimes typically unaccessible by liquid materials, making it promising material for nonlinear optics. This aerogel has remarkable thermal insulative properties, although its thermal conductivity depends on formulation, density, pressure and measurement method.
In biochemistry, the most prevalent, internationally accepted system of nomenclature for fatty acids is defined by the International Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry (IUPAC). Herein, the ω-x system (also known as the omega x or n-x system) establishes that fatty acids can be identified through the following formation: C:Dω–x where C is the total number of carbons, D is the number of double bonds, and ω–x indicates the position of the first double bond, counting from the –CH3 end of the fatty acid. The ω–x system curbs ambiguity regarding SFAs and MUFAs, as it specifically denotes both the carbon and unsaturation numbers, as well as the location of the double bond (i.e., for MUFAs). Equally, ω–x nomenclature is widely used for PUFAs, particularly for those wherein two consecutive double bonds are consistently separated by a methylene group (–CH2–). However, several PUFAs contain double bonds that are not always interrupted by a methylene group, and thus the ω–x system fails to establish the specific position of all double bonds about PUFA chains. As such, these atypical PUFAs are generically referred to as "non-methylene interrupted" (NMI) fatty acids, and are commonly found in lipids from marine invertebrates.
Sources: en.wikipedia.org
== History == Between 1936 and 1940, Japanese chemist and lichenologist Yasuhiko Asahina published a series of papers in the Journal of Japanese Botany detailing the microcrystallization technique. This simple and rapid method allowed for the identification of major metabolites in hundreds of lichen species, contributing significantly to taxonomic research. The technique was introduced to western lichenologists in a 1943 publication by Alexander Evans, and was used regularly until more advanced techniques such as thin-layer chromatography and high-performance liquid chromatography were introduced and integrated into laboratories. Decades of research on the secondary metabolites of lichens culminated in the publication of Identification of Lichen Substances, a 1996 work by Siegfried Huneck and Isao Yoshimura, that summarized analytical data for hundreds of lichen molecules, including images of microcrystals. Ultimately, the microcrystallization method had limitations, as it was unable to detect minor components or analyze complex mixtures of lichen substances. Despite these drawbacks, microcrystallization played a crucial role in the study of correlations between lichen chemistry, morphology, and geographic distribution.
Osteopromotive describes a material that promotes the de novo formation of bone. Osteoconductivity describes the property of graft material in which it serves as a scaffold for new bone growth but does not induce bone growth de novo. This means that osteoconductive materials will only contribute to new bone growth in an area where there is already vital bone. Osteoinductivity describes the property of graft material in which it induces de novo bone growth with biomimetic substances, such as bone morphogenetic proteins. Such materials will contribute to new bone growth in an area where there is no vital bone, such as when implanted into muscle tissue. In contrast, osteopromotive substances will not contribute to de novo bone growth but serve to enhance the osteoinductivity of osteoinductive materials. An example of this is enamel matrix derivative, which serves to enhance the osteoinductive nature of demineralized freeze dried bone allograft (DFDBA).
== Role in cancer == IRS-1, as a signalling adapter protein, is able to integrate different signalling cascades, which indicates its possible role in cancer progression. IRS-1 protein is known to be involved in various types of cancer, including colorectal, lung, prostate and breast cancer. IRS-1 integrates signalling from insulin receptor (InsR), insulin-like growth factor-1 receptor (IGF1R) and many other cytokine receptors and is elevated in β-catenin induced cells. Some evidence shows that TCF/LEF-β-catenin complexes directly regulate IRS-1. IRS-1 is required for maintenance of neoplasmic phenotype in adenomatous polyposis coli (APC) - mutated cells, it is also needed for transformation in ectopically expressing oncogenic β-catenin cells. IRS-1 dominant-negative mutant functions as tumor suppressor, whereas ectopic IRS-1 stimulates oncogenic transformation. IRS-1 is upregulated in colorectal cancers (CRC) with elevated levels of β-catenin, c-MYC, InsRβ and IGF1R. IRS-1 promotes CRC metastasis to the liver. Decreased apoptosis of crypt stem cells is associated with colon cancer risk. Reduced expression of IRS-1 in Apc (min/+) mutated mice shows increased irradiation-induced apoptosis in crypt. Deficiency in IRS-1 - partial (+/-) or absolute (-/-) - in Apc (min/+) mice demonstrates reduced amount of tumors comparing to IRS-1 (+/+)/ Apc (min/+) mice. In lung adenocarcinoma cell line A549 overexpression of IRS-1 leads to reduced growth. Tumor infiltrating neutrophils have recently been thought to adjust tumor growth and invasiveness.
A reducing sugar is any sugar that is capable of acting as a reducing agent. In an alkaline solution, a reducing sugar forms some aldehyde or ketone, which allows it to act as a reducing agent, for example in Benedict's reagent. In such a reaction, the sugar becomes a carboxylic acid. All monosaccharides are reducing sugars, along with some disaccharides, some oligosaccharides, and some polysaccharides. The monosaccharides can be divided into two groups: the aldoses, which have an aldehyde group, and the ketoses, which have a ketone group. Ketoses must first tautomerize to aldoses before they can act as reducing sugars. The common dietary monosaccharides galactose, glucose and fructose are all reducing sugars. Disaccharides are formed from two monosaccharides and can be classified as either reducing or nonreducing. Nonreducing disaccharides like sucrose and trehalose have glycosidic bonds between their anomeric carbons and thus cannot convert to an open-chain form with an aldehyde group; they are stuck in the cyclic form. Reducing disaccharides like lactose and maltose have only one of their two anomeric carbons involved in the glycosidic bond, while the other is free and can convert to an open-chain form with an aldehyde group. The aldehyde functional group allows the sugar to act as a reducing agent, for example, in the Tollens' test or Benedict's test. The cyclic hemiacetal forms of aldoses can open to reveal an aldehyde, and certain ketoses can undergo tautomerization to become aldoses.
Sources: en.wikipedia.org
The active Ras protein phosphorylates several proteins, along with the serine/threonine kinase, Raf. Raf in turn activates the MAPK cascade to facilitate ribosomal s6 kinase (RSK) activation and transcriptional regulation. Both Akt and RSK, components of the PI3K-Akt and MAPK pathways respectively, act to phosphorylate the cyclic AMP response element binding protein (CREB) transcription factor. Phosphorylated CREB translocates into the nucleus and mediates increased expression of anti-apoptotic proteins, thus promoting NGF-mediated cell survival. However, in the absence of NGF, the expression of pro-apoptotic proteins is increased when the activation of cell death-promoting transcription factors such as c-Jun are not suppressed by the aforementioned NGF-mediated cell survival pathways.
== Payloads == Many of the payloads for oncology ADCs (oADC) are natural product based with some making covalent interactions with their target. Payloads include the microtubulin inhibitors monomethyl auristatin E (MMAE), monomethyl auristatin F (MMAF) and mertansine, DNA binder calicheamicin and topoisomerase 1 inhibitors SN-38 and exatecan resulting in a renaissance for natural product total synthesis. Glucocorticoid receptor modulators (GRMs) represent to most active payload class for iADCs. Approaches releasing marketed GRM molecules such as dexamethasone and budesonide have been developed. Modified GRM molecules have also been developed that enable the attachment of the linker with the term ADCidified describing the medicinal chemistry process of payload optimization to facilitate linker attachment. Alternatives to small molecule payloads have also been investigated, for example, siRNA. More recently, targeted protein degraders have been explored as payloads for antibody conjugates. A 2025 study described a KIF11-directed degrader–antibody conjugate (DAC), in which a cereblon-recruiting degrader was used as the payload to induce antigen-dependent protein degradation and cytotoxicity in preclinical models.
In 2002, they developed an unnatural base pair between 2-amino-8-(2-thienyl)purine (s) and pyridine-2-one (y) that functions in vitro in transcription and translation, for the site-specific incorporation of non-standard amino acids into proteins. In 2006, they created 7-(2-thienyl)imidazo[4,5-b]pyridine (Ds) and pyrrole-2-carbaldehyde (Pa) as a third base pair for replication and transcription. Afterward, Ds and 4-[3-(6-aminohexanamido)-1-propynyl]-2-nitropyrrole (Px) was discovered as a high fidelity pair in PCR amplification. In 2013, they applied the Ds-Px pair to DNA aptamer generation by in vitro selection (SELEX) and demonstrated the genetic alphabet expansion significantly augment DNA aptamer affinities to target proteins.
Sources: en.wikipedia.org
It is a synthetic compound studied as an agonist of REV-ERB nuclear receptors. It is not an approved medicine and has mainly been examined in laboratory and animal research.
No. It is a small molecule that binds nuclear receptors involved in circadian regulation. Its classification differs from anabolic steroids or peptide hormones.
Published human clinical trial data are lacking. Most safety and activity information comes from preclinical models, so effects in people remain uncertain.
Liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry is a common approach. It can detect the parent compound and its metabolites in biological matrices.