What would happen if a human took Tretonin?

Question

When a Jaffa's Goa'uld died or was removed, they could be kept alive using Tretonin and with it increased strength, senses, healing properties, lifespan, etc. that came from the injection.

What would happen if a human, who has never had the symbiont, started taking Tretonin? Would they also see these increased effects? We've seen that earthlings are perfectly compatible as Goa'uld hosts. It would be a formidable boost to soldiers, although the possibility of needing the drug for the rest of your life might be a deal breaker for some (would never-been-a-host humans even need it to remain alive?)

Answer 1

The humans living on Pangara (i.e. the people who invented Tretonin, as seen in SG1: Cure) were taking the stuff regularly.

Their leader Dollen was very clear regarding the effects; perfect health and long-lasting vitality.

DOLLEN: We call it Tretonin, Colonel. It is our greatest scientific discovery.

CARTER: How so?

DOLLEN: Major Carter, from what you have told me about your world, your people suffer from a myriad of illnesses, many are untreatable. Tretonin makes our immune systems impervious to any ailment. We live in perfect health.

_{^{SG1: Cure}}

Answer 2

The original Pangaran version of Tretonin required daily injections. Its effect was that the human injecting it would have their natural human immune system suppressed and they would become dependant on Tretonin, however in return they possessed perfect health at all times, never getting sick. This version of Tretonin would have been even more effective had the source, Egeria, not deliberately introduced a genetic defect into her offspring to limit their usefulness. (Episode 6.10, "Cure")

The refined version of Tretonin created by the Tok'Ra was designed to be used exclusively by the Jaffa to remove their dependancy on symbiotes, while still retaining some of the strength and natural curing capabilities that symbiote provided, first given to Teal'c and Bra'Tac to save their lives after they lost their symbiotes.
(Episode 6.19, "The Changeling")

No human has ever injected the Refined form of Tretonin, though the Tau'Ri did gain the ability to manufacture it after being granted the knowledge of the Asgards, so we probably started experimenting with it at some point, you know how humans are. We've created Replicators and cloned Goa'ulds in the past, after all.
(Episode 10.20, "Unending")

Some possible outcomes of human consumption might be:

1. No Effect - The Tok'Ra engineered it for Jaffa use, so a human would be unaffected by it.
2. Minor effects - There are still effects due to the similarities in human and Jaffa physiology, but as the drug is tuned to Jaffa, the human only has a marginal increase in natural ability, similar to if they had taken a caffeine pill.
3. Dependancy - The human injecting Refined Tretonin would gain some superior strength and health, but become as dependant on Tretonin as a Jaffa, essentially created a kind of drug-addicted super soldier.
4. Toxic - Being engineered for Jaffa use, the drug is harmful to humans, causing a reaction that could harm or even kill the user.

Personally, I find #3 to be the most likely, but it's an avenue that's never been explored and understandably the leader of the SGC isn't willing to put any of their soldiers' lives at risk to test it out. So we may never truly know. Unless the reboot tells us something, but I'm not gonna hold my breath.

Answer 3

It depends on the version.

The final version was modified from the Pangaran by the Tok'ra specifically for use on Jaffa (in S07E04 "Orpheus"). This version's effect on humans is unknown but likely either harmful or nonexistent.

The original Pangaran version was flawed (in S06E10 "Cure"). The prim'ta (larvae) of the Goa'uld Queen Egeria were used to develop the drug, but unbeknownst to the Pangarans Egeria introduced a genetic defect that severely weakened the derived Tretonin's abilities. It failed to reproduce the strength, senses, and extended lifespan that Tretonin derived from pure samples most likely could have, only providing a healing effect and immunity to disease. Human consumption would initially heal the user and suppress their immune system for a limited time. The more doses taken, the longer the immune suppression lasts, until it is in a permanent state of suppression. The Tok'ra, working with Egeria, eventually developed an antidote to stimulate the natural immune system, but as far as cannon goes, it has never been converted and used on Jaffa, so the results of it on Jaffa are unknown. To answer the question, this version would only cure humans of sicknesses, and would require an antidote (or continued tretonin) after a few uses.