Phosphorylethanolamine or phosphoethanolamine is an

ethanolamine Ethanolamine (2-aminoethanol, monoethanolamine, ETA, or MEA) is a naturally occurring organic chemical compound with the formula or . The molecule is bifunctional, containing both a primary amine and a primary alcohol. Ethanolamine is a colorl ...

derivative that is used to construct two different categories of phospholipids. One category termed a

glycerophospholipid Glycerophospholipids or phosphoglycerides are glycerol-based phospholipids. They are the main component of biological membranes in eukaryotic cells. They are a type of lipid, of which its composition affects membrane structure and properties. T ...

and the other a

sphingomyelin Sphingomyelin (SPH, ) is a type of sphingolipid found in animal cell membranes, especially in the membranous myelin sheath that surrounds some nerve cell axons. It usually consists of phosphocholine and ceramide, or a phosphoethanolamine hea ...

, or more specifically within the sphingomyelin class, a sphingophospholipid. Phosphorylethanolamine is a

polyprotic acid An acid is a molecule or ion capable of either donating a proton (i.e. Hydron, hydrogen cation, H+), known as a Brønsted–Lowry acid–base theory, Brønsted–Lowry acid, or forming a covalent bond with an electron pair, known as a Lewis ...

with two pKa values at 5.61 and 10.39. Phosphorylethanolamine has been falsely promoted as a

cancer Cancer is a group of diseases involving Cell growth#Disorders, abnormal cell growth with the potential to Invasion (cancer), invade or Metastasis, spread to other parts of the body. These contrast with benign tumors, which do not spread. Po ...

treatment.

Effectiveness

As a potential drug, phosphorylethanolamine has undergone human clinical trials. These were halted when no evidence of benefit was found.

Edzard Ernst Edzard Ernst (born 30 January 1948) is a retired British-German academic physician and researcher specializing in the study of complementary and alternative medicine. He was Professor of Complementary Medicine at the University of Exeter, the wo ...

has called phosphorylethanolamine "the most peculiar case of Brazilian quackery".

Legality

There has been ongoing controversy and litigation in

Brazil Brazil, officially the Federative Republic of Brazil, is the largest country in South America. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by area, fifth-largest country by area and the List of countries and dependencies by population ...

with regard to its use as a cancer treatment without approval by the

National Health Surveillance Agency The Brazilian Health Regulatory Agency (, ''Anvisa'', literally National Health Surveillance Agency) is a regulatory body of the Brazilian government, created in 1999 during President Fernando Henrique Cardoso's term of office. It is responsible ...

. For years, Gilberto Chierice, a Chemistry Professor at the

São Carlos São Carlos (Saint Charles, in English, ; named after Charles Borromeo, Saint Charles Borromeo) is a Brazilian city and municipality in the Interior of São Paulo, interior of the state of São Paulo, 254 kilometers from the city of São Paulo. ...

campus of the

University of São Paulo The Universidade de São Paulo (, USP) is a public research university in the Brazilian state of São Paulo, and the largest public university in Brazil. The university was founded on 25 January 1934, regrouping already existing schools in ...

, used resources from a campus laboratory to unofficially manufacture, distribute, and promote the drug to cancer patients without it having gone through clinical testing. In September 2015, university administrators began preventing the Professor from continuing with this practice. In October 2015, several courts in Brazil ruled in favor of plaintiffs who wanted the right to try the compound. However, a state court overturned the lower courts' decision a month later. Jailson Bittencourt de Andrade, secretary for Brazil's science and technology ministry, said the ministry plans to fund further research on the compound, but that it will be years before a determination can be made about phosphorylethanolamine's safety and efficacy in humans. On April 14, 2016, a law was passed in Brazil allowing the use of synthetic phosphorylethanolamine for cancer treatment, despite opposition from the

Brazilian Medical Association The Brazilian Medical Association () founded in 1951, is the national class association of physicians in Brazil. With more than 140,000 associates, it is the second largest in the Americas, just after the American Medical Association. Its official ...

, the Brazilian Society of Clinical Oncology, and the regulatory agency

Anvisa The Brazilian Health Regulatory Agency (, ''Anvisa'', literally National Health Surveillance Agency) is a regulatory body of the Brazilian government, created in 1999 during President Fernando Henrique Cardoso's term of office. It is responsible ...

. However, shortly after, the country's Supreme Court suspended the law.

References

Additional images

Image:Phosphate Group.svg,

Phosphate Phosphates are the naturally occurring form of the element phosphorus. In chemistry, a phosphate is an anion, salt, functional group or ester derived from a phosphoric acid. It most commonly means orthophosphate, a derivative of orthop ...

Image:Ethanolamine.svg,

Ethanolamine Ethanolamine (2-aminoethanol, monoethanolamine, ETA, or MEA) is a naturally occurring organic chemical compound with the formula or . The molecule is bifunctional, containing both a primary amine and a primary alcohol. Ethanolamine is a colorl ...

{{Authority control Alternative cancer treatments Aminoethyl compounds Health fraud Organophosphates

Effectiveness

Legality

See also

References

Additional images