Effects of D-allose on ATP production and cell viability in neonatal rat cardiomyocytes

2-Deoxy-D-glucose (2DG) induces anticancer effects through glycolytic inhibition but it may raise the risk of arrhythmia. The rare monosaccharide D-allose also has anticancer properties, but its cardiac effects are unknown. We examined the effects of D-allose on adenosine triphosphate (ATP) production in neonatal rat cardiomyocytes. We showed that 25 mM D-allose selectively reduced glycolytic ATP, but had minimal impact on mitochondrial ATP, while 1 mM 2DG strongly inhibited both. Furthermore, D-allose had less impact on cell viability and was less cytotoxic than 2DG; neither compound caused apoptosis. Thus, D-allose selectively diminished glycolytic ATP production with no apparent effects on cardiomyocytes.