Propagermanium (

INN Inns are generally establishments or buildings where travelers can seek lodging, and usually, food and drink. Inns are typically located in the country or along a highway. Before the advent of motorized transportation, they also provided accomm ...

), also known by a variety of other names including bis(2-carboxyethylgermanium) sesquioxide and 2-carboxyethylgermasesquioxane, is an

organometallic Organometallic chemistry is the study of organometallic compounds, chemical compounds containing at least one chemical bond between a carbon atom of an organic molecule and a metal, including alkali, alkaline earth, and transition metals, and so ...

compound of

germanium Germanium is a chemical element; it has Symbol (chemistry), symbol Ge and atomic number 32. It is lustrous, hard-brittle, grayish-white and similar in appearance to silicon. It is a metalloid or a nonmetal in the carbon group that is chemically ...

that is sold as an

alternative medicine Alternative medicine refers to practices that aim to achieve the healing effects of conventional medicine, but that typically lack biological plausibility, testability, repeatability, or supporting evidence of effectiveness. Such practices are ...

. It is a polymeric compound with the formula ((HOOCCH₂CH₂Ge)₂O₃)_''n''. The compound was first synthesized in 1967 at the Asai Germanium Research Institute in

Japan Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea ...

. It is a water-soluble organogermanium compound used as raw material in nutritional supplements. The compound displays low toxicity in studies with rats.

References

Organogermanium compounds Germanium(IV) compounds Inorganic polymers Propionic acids Polyelectrolytes {{Alt-med-stub