Compound status

The short answer for the peptides people ask about most.

• BPC-157

  BPC-157 (body protection compound 157, also called PL 14736 or bepecin) is a synthetic peptide studied mostly in animals for tissue repair. FDA describes it as a peptide reported to be made of 15 amino acids.

  Not FDA-approved

• CJC-1295

  CJC-1295 is a synthetic 29-amino-acid analog of growth-hormone-releasing hormone (GHRH 1-29) with substitutions at positions 2, 8, 15 and 27. "CJC-1295 with DAC" adds a linker that binds albumin in the blood, which keeps it circulating for days.

  Not FDA-approved

• Epitalon

  Epitalon (epithalon, epitalon acetate, AEDG peptide) is a synthetic tetrapeptide, H-Ala-Glu-Asp-Gly-OH, first made in the late 1980s by researchers led by Vladimir Khavinson at Saint Petersburg University.

  Not FDA-approved

• GHK-Cu

  GHK-Cu (copper tripeptide-1, glycyl-L-histidyl-L-lysine copper) is a three-amino-acid peptide bound to copper, used mainly as a skin-care ingredient.

  Not FDA-approved; may be compounded by a licensed pharmacy

• Glutathione

  Glutathione (GSH, reduced glutathione, L-glutathione) is a small molecule made of three amino acids that cells produce to neutralize reactive oxygen and support immune function. It is the body's most abundant antioxidant made inside cells.

  Not FDA-approved; may be compounded by a licensed pharmacy

• Ipamorelin

  Ipamorelin (ipamorelin acetate, NNC 26-0161) is a synthetic peptide that triggers growth-hormone release by mimicking ghrelin, the body's hunger hormone. It is not FDA-approved.

  Not FDA-approved

• MOTS-c

  MOTS-c (mitochondrial open reading frame of the 12S rRNA-c) is a 16-amino-acid peptide encoded in mitochondrial DNA, first described in mice in 2015.

  Not FDA-approved

• NAD+

  NAD+ (nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide) is a coenzyme the body makes and uses in cellular energy metabolism and redox balance. NAD+ injections are pharmacy-compounded shots of it, given under the skin or into a muscle.

  Not FDA-approved; may be compounded by a licensed pharmacy

• Sermorelin

  Sermorelin (sermorelin acetate, GRF 1-29, formerly sold as Geref) is a synthetic version of the first 29 amino acids of growth-hormone-releasing hormone, GHRH(1-29). It prompts the pituitary to release the body's own growth hormone.

  Not FDA-approved; may be compounded by a licensed pharmacy

• SS-31 (elamipretide)

  Elamipretide (SS-31, MTP-131, Bendavia; brand Forzinity) is a synthetic four-amino-acid peptide, D-Arg-2,6-dimethyl-Tyr-Lys-Phe-NH2, that binds cardiolipin in the inner membrane of mitochondria.

  FDA-approved for a different use

• TB-500

  TB-500 (TB-500 acetate, TB-500 free base, Ac-LKKTETQ, "thymosin beta-4 fragment") is a synthetic, N-acetylated seven-amino-acid peptide matching amino acids 17 to 23 of thymosin beta-4.

  Not FDA-approved

• Tesamorelin

  Tesamorelin (tesamorelin acetate, TH9507; brands Egrifta SV and Egrifta WR) is a synthetic growth-hormone-releasing factor analog approved to reduce excess abdominal fat in adults with HIV-associated lipodystrophy.

  FDA-approved