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Ec8.0
Beta-Ecdysterone Research
Mostly mechanism / observationalHigh safety
16 peer-reviewed studies
What the evidence says
Mostly mechanism / observational
Most Beta-Ecdysterone studies are mechanism or observational rather than RCTs that measure a clinical effect — keep findings provisional.
Most evidence is from high-quality randomised trials published 2011–2025 with a typical study size of 46 participants.
Based on 16 studies · 7 RCTs · 466 total participants
Confidence
Moderate
What the studies found
2helped· 14 more without graded effect data
By outcome
Lean body mass & muscle growthEnhanced muscle protein synthesis and strength · 4-10 weeks
Mostly mechanism / observational15 studies
Safety profile
Mostly mechanism / observational5 studies
Therapeutic & clinical
Mostly mechanism / observational4 studies
Muscle strength & powerEnhanced muscle protein synthesis and strength · 4-10 weeks
Mostly mechanism / observational3 studies
Glucose & metabolic
Too few graded studies2 studies
Endurance & exercise performance
Too few graded studies1 study
Energy & fatiguePotential support for recovery and performance · 4-8 weeks
Too few graded studies1 study
By the numbers
Pulled from 10 studies with measurable effects
People studied
466
typical study: 46 people
Strongest designs
7
0 pooled, 7 randomised
Showed benefit
100%
2/2 studies
How long studies ran
3+ months
2
Populations Studied
Adults undergoing resistance training2
Athletes and general population1
Various patient populations1
Sarcopenic seniors at risk of mobility disability1
Active research area
10 studies in the last 5 years
201120182025
1Systematic ReviewCited 4×2025
The similarities with agents mimicking calorie restriction and anti-aging effects are also elucidated and discussed.
Zádor E · Cells (2025)
Various beneficial effects have been reported in vivo and in vitro for 20E and its related compounds in mammals.
Trials for the safety of clinical application showed a remarkably high tolerance in humans.
This review aims to assess the latest development in the involvement of various pathways in tissues and organs and look if it is plausible to find a single primary target of this compound.
However, the therapeutic potential of phytoecdysteroid-rich extracts extends beyond sports nutrition, with promising applications in treating chronic fatigue, cardiovascular diseases, and neurodegenerative disorders.
Todorova V et al. · Nutrients (2024)
The current review investigates the beneficial biological effects of ecdysterone and turkesterone in nutrition, highlighting their roles not only in enhancing athletic performance but also in the management of various health problems.
Plant-based diets, associated with various health benefits and environmental sustainability, often include sources rich in phytoecdysteroids.
However, the therapeutic potential of phytoecdysteroid-rich extracts extends beyond sports nutrition, with promising applications in treating chronic fatigue, cardiovascular diseases, and neurodegenerative disorders.
In humans, PEs display biological, pharmacological, and medicinal properties, such as anti-diabetic, antioxidant, anti-microbial, hepatoprotective, hypoglycemic, anti-cancer, anti-inflammatory, antidepressant, and tissue differentiation activity.
Arif Y et al. · International journal of molecular sciences (2022)
In plants, PEs play a potent role in enhancing tolerance against insects and nematodes via their allelochemical activity, which increases plant biological and metabolic responses.
PEs promote enzymatic and non-enzymatic antioxidant defense systems, which decrease reactive oxygen species in the form of superoxide radicals and hydroxyl radicals and reduce malondialdehyde content.
PEs also induce protein biosynthesis and modulate carbohydrate and lipid synthesis.
We call for additional research to validate the safety and health-promoting properties of PEs and other herbal compounds, for the benefit of all consumers.
Lapenna S et al. · Critical reviews in food science and nutrition (2015)
To illustrate the latter, we focus on phytoecdysteroid (PE)-containing preparations, generally sold to sportsmen and bodybuilders.
We review the limited published scientific evidence that supports claims for these products in humans.
In addition, we model the in silico binding between different PEs and human nuclear receptors and discuss the implications of these putative bindings in terms of the mechanism of action of this family of compounds.
The prospects of using the 20-hydroxyecdysone in the composition of food supplements and specialized products for athletes are discussed.
Volodin VV et al. · Voprosy pitaniia (2013)
The features of adaptogenic effect of phytoecdysteroids, polyhydroxylated sterols, which are analogs of hormones of molting and metamorphosis of arthropodas, and are structurally similar to glucocorticoids on the example of the most widely studied phytoecdysteroid--20-hydroxyecdysone--are described.
The results of studies of anabolic action of 20-hydroxyecdysone in experiments on laboratory animals and the possible explanation (existing in the modern scientific literature) of the mechanism of this phenomenon are discussed.
Scientific publication testifying on the application of phytoecdysteroids to remove chronic fatigue syndrome, reducing nerve and muscle fatigue, improve memory and attention processes are presented.
Because of these properties, ecdysterone has the potential to be developed as a medicinal agent.
Cahlíková L et al. · Natural product communications (2011)
Beside ecdysone (1), ecdysterone (2) is one of the most common 5beta-cholest-7-en-6-one (ecdysteroid) derivatives, which, besides having a hormonal effect on invertebrates, possesses a number of favorable non-hormonal biological effects on mammals.
The most interesting of these is that on degenerative diseases, one of which, up to now not clarified in detail, is the so-called adaptogenic effect (protection of the organism against adverse stress factors) associated with anabolic, gastroprotective, and antioxidant effects.
A second group of favorable effects is the possibility of suppression of neurodegenerative processes and protection of the cardiovascular system (metabolic syndrome symptom suppression, antidiabetic activity, and protection of heart and blood vessels).
9400-meter walk test gait speedRCTCited 7×n=233 · medium study2025
After 6 to 9 months of treatment, BIO101 350 mg bid showed strong trends consistent with a clinically relevant effect on the 400MWT GS, close to the minimal clinically important difference (MCID) in sarcopenia (0.1 m/s).
Fielding RA et al. · Journal of cachexia, sarcopenia and muscle (2025)
A total of 233 participants were randomised (mean age 75.5 ± 7.12; 54.3% female), of whom 232 and 156 were included in the full analysis set (FAS) and per-protocol (PP) populations, respectively.
Due to COVID-19 pandemic, 55% of on-site end-of-treatment efficacy assessments were lost, reducing the studies' power.
BIO101 showed a good safety profile at both doses (number of subjects with related treatment emergent adverse events (TEAEs) of 13 (16.0%), 10 (13.3%) and 10 (13.5%) in the placebo, 175 mg and 350 mg BIO101 groups, respectively).
10Muscle mass and strength gainsRCTn=46 · small study2025
Important RCT raising concerns about commercial beta-ecdysterone product quality and label accuracy, with implications for interpreting the supplement's real-world efficacy.
Isenmann et al. · Journal of the International Society of Sports Nutrition (2025)
No statistically significant differences in muscle mass or strength gains compared to placebo after 12 weeks
Label discrepancies were identified between claimed and measured ecdysterone content in the commercial product
Both groups showed improvements in body composition attributable to resistance training
11Safety and pharmacokinetics of BIO101RCTCited 27×n=34 · small study2023
BIO101 shows a good safety and pharmacokinetic profile that led to the selection of doses for the subsequent interventional clinical trials of Phase 2 in age-related sarcopenia (SARA-INT) and Phase 3 in Covid-19 (COVA).
Dioh W et al. · Journal of cachexia, sarcopenia and muscle (2023)
Large benefit
← WorseNo effectBetter →
Mean plasma exposure was slightly lower in older adults (22% lower for Cmax and 13%-15% lower for AUCs) compared with young subjects.
BIO101 shows a good safety and pharmacokinetic profile that led to the selection of doses for the subsequent interventional clinical trials of Phase 2 in age-related sarcopenia (SARA-INT) and Phase 3 in Covid-19 (COVA).
These findings suggest that 20E supplementation, when combined with RT, may support regional fat reduction, promote fat oxidation, and improve insulin sensitivity, thereby offering potential benefits for metabolic health.
Sripinyowanich S et al. · Journal of nutritional science and vitaminology (2025)
The 20E group showed significant reductions in arm (p<0.01), leg (p<0.05), and abdominal fat (p<0.05), with arm fat reduction significantly greater than in the PLA group (p<0.05).
Fat oxidation increased at rest and during exercise in the 20E group (p<0.01), with between-group differences evident only at 40% of V•O2peak (p<0.05).
Furthermore, 20E supplementation was associated with favorable metabolic changes, including reductions in fasting insulin (p<0.01) and plasma FFAs (p<0.05), alongside an increase in QUICKI (p<0.01).
16Metabolic profiling and quantitative analysis of metabolitesObservationaln=51 · small study2024
This observational examined the effects of Beta-Ecdysterone.
Mamadalieva NZ et al. · Scientific reports (2024)
The results showed that 8-O-acetylharpagide, 20-hydroxyecdysone (ecdysterone) and ajugachin B were the most abundant constituents in the species.
The two major compounds, 8-O-acetylharpagide and 20-hydroxyecdysone, were chosen as the markers for the quality assessment of A. turkestanica material.
The methanolic extract of the aerial parts of A. turkestanica showed no noteworthy anthelmintic (antihelmintic), antifungal, or cytotoxic effect in in vitro assays.