1,4-dideoxy-1,4-imino-D-Arabinitol (DAB) is an inhibitor of glycogen phosphorylase, a key enzyme in glycogenolysis. It inhibits glycogenolysis in isolated liver cells (IC50 = 1.0 µM) and in homogenates of cerebral cortex and cerebellum (IC50s = 463 and 383 nM, respectively).[1][2][3] DAB is used to inhibit glycogenolysis, in liver and in brain, in various animal models.[4][5][6]
Reference:
[1]. Andersen, B., and Westergaard, N. The effect of glucose on the potency of two distinct glycogen phosphorylase inhibitors. Biochem. J. 367(Pt. 2), 443-450 (2002).
[2]. Andersen, B., Rassov, A., Westergaard, N., et al. Inhibition of glycogenolysis in primary rat hepatocytes by 1, 4-dideoxy-1,4-imino-D-arabinitol. Biochem. J. 342, 545-550 (1999).
[3]. Walls, A.B., Sickmann, H.M., Brown, A., et al. Characterization of 1,4-dideoxy-1,4-imino-d-arabinitol (DAB) as an inhibitor of brain glycogen shunt activity. J. Neurochem. 105(4), 1462-1470 (2008).
[4]. Fosgerau, K., Westergaard, N., Quistorff, B., et al. Kinetic and functional characterization of 1,4-dideoxy-1, 4-imino-d-arabinitol: a potent inhibitor of glycogen phosphorylase with anti-hyperglyceamic effect in ob/ob mice. Arch. Biochem. Biophys. 380(2), 274-284 (2000).
[5]. Gibbs, M.E. Role of Glycogenolysis in Memory and Learning: Regulation by Noradrenaline, Serotonin and ATP. Front. Integr. Neurosci. 9:70, 70 (2016).
[6]. Marina, N., Ang, R., Machhada, A., et al. Brainstem hypoxia contributes to the development of hypertension in the spontaneously hypertensive rat. Hypertension 65(4), 775-783 (2015).