GHK-Cu

Why scientists study it

• The body makes this copper peptide: it was first isolated from human plasma in 1973, and plasma levels fall to about one-third of young-adult levels by the seventh decade of life.
• In a 2015 Connectivity Map analysis, Pickart reported significant changes in about 4,192 human genes, including ones for DNA repair, antioxidant defense and tissue rebuilding.
• Wound healing, collagen production and lower inflammation signals were seen in rodent injury models, fibroblast cultures and human skin samples.

Three studies to know

2015 · BioMed Research International

Pickart and colleagues ran GHK through the Connectivity Map. They reported that it changes the activity of about 4,192 human genes, close to 31% of the protein-coding genes in the index. The effects grouped around tissue rebuilding, antioxidant defense and DNA repair. Read the paper

2018 · International Journal of Molecular Sciences

Pickart and Margolina reviewed the gene data together with animal and cell findings on wounds and inflammation. They argued that GHK-Cu’s wide effect on genes is why it gives steady results in injury and aging models that have little else in common. Read the paper

1993 · Journal of Clinical Investigation

Maquart and colleagues tested GHK-Cu in wounds in live rats. Collagen and connective tissue built up more as the dose went up. Later research on how the peptide rebuilds skin rests on this result. Read the paper

Safety and legal status

• The body makes it, and decades of use in skin care have mapped its safety on the skin well. Because it helps blood vessels and tissue grow, there is a caution in theory for research that involves active cancer.
• It is not approved as a medicine by the FDA, the EMA or the MHRA. It is common in cosmetics under ingredient (INCI) names such as Copper Tripeptide-1.
• Supplied only for in vitro and laboratory research, or for cosmetic research on the skin. It is not meant for human consumption, diagnosis or treatment.