HMB is produced from ketoisocaproate (KIC), a metabolic leucine, through the action of the enzyme KIC-dehydrogenase produced naturally by the human body. Human body synthesizes between 0.3 and 1.0 gram of HMB daily, with about 5% being derived from dietary leucine catabolism.
HMB is a bioactive metabolic generated by fractionation of branched-chain essential amino acid leucine - one of the three branched chain amino acids comprising the BCAA.
Many benefits are related to HMB in the literature, such as increased strength, increase lean body mass, decrease protein catabolism and muscle injury or fractionation; HMB also has immunomodulatory activity in animal models, and reduces fat in body.