GHK-Cu at a glance
GHK is a chain of three amino acids: glycine, histidine and lysine. Loren Pickart found it in 1973 in the albumin fraction of human plasma, during a search for the serum factor that made liver cells survive longer in culture. The tripeptide has a strong grip on copper(II), and the resulting complex, GHK-Cu, is what most studies use. The metal also explains the blue colour of the material; GHK on its own is a white powder.
Reference lists place this copper-binding tripeptide among the repair peptides, next to BPC-157 and TB-500, although the mechanism proposed for it resembles neither.
- Gly-His-Lys: 340.4 Da as free peptide, about 402 Da with copper(II) bound.
- Reported plasma levels drop from about 200 ng/ml at age 20 to about 80 ng/ml at age 60, a correlation and nothing more.
- Firmest data: fibroblast cultures and rat wounds. Human data: small topical studies.
- A cosmetic ingredient (INCI name copper tripeptide-1), not a medicine.
How GHK-Cu works
The sources name no receptor. The oldest hypothesis is chemical instead: GHK as a copper shuttle. In the complex the metal ion sits between nitrogen atoms supplied by the glycine, the histidine ring and the peptide backbone, an arrangement that would let the peptide carry copper to where it is wanted. Several repair enzymes need copper as a cofactor. One is lysyl oxidase, which cross-links collagen and elastin.
In culture, cells exposed to GHK-Cu changed their output of collagen, of glycosaminoglycans and of the enzymes that remodel the matrix around them.
The age-related fall in plasma GHK is where most interest in the peptide begins. It is an observation. Nobody has shown that the lower level produces any feature of ageing, or that restoring it reverses one. The sources give no half-life.
The evidence ladder for GHK-Cu
| Evidence level | Model or trial | Main finding |
|---|---|---|
| Cell culture | Fibroblasts; Maquart et al., 1988 (FEBS Letters) | More collagen synthesis from about 1 pM upwards, peaking near 1 nM |
| Cell culture | Lung fibroblasts from people with COPD; Campbell et al., 2012 (Genome Medicine) | Cells regained the capacity to contract and remodel collagen |
| Computational analysis | Connectivity Map expression profiles; the same Boston University-led 2012 paper, later Pickart and co-authors | GHK reversed an emphysema-associated pattern; later papers argue for shifts in thousands of genes |
| Animal study | Experimental wounds in rats; Maquart group, 1993 (Journal of Clinical Investigation) | More connective tissue built up with GHK-Cu; copper-free GHK did nothing |
| Small human studies | Creams and serums on skin | Skin density, thickness and fine lines assessed; small and short |
| Randomised trial | No large trial | – |
| Licensed use | None as a medicine | Cosmetic ingredient only |
The lower rungs are sound for what they are: a fibroblast effect at very low concentrations, and a rat wound result whose copper-free control shows that the metal is no mere passenger. The gene-expression rung is different. The Connectivity Map is a public database of expression profiles, recorded largely from cancer cell lines after a few hours of exposure to a compound. Patterns computed from such data are hypotheses about what GHK might do, not effects measured in a person.
The human rung concerns formulated cosmetics on skin. It says nothing about injected peptide, and no large randomised trial backs either wound healing or a change in ageing skin.
GHK-Cu doses reported in studies
For reference only: these are exposures recorded in published work, not doses in the pharmacological sense, and not guidance.
| Setting | Exposure | Route | Note |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fibroblast culture (1988) | About 1 pM to 1 nM | Added to the medium | Largest collagen response near 1 nM |
| Rat wounds (1993) | Amount not given in the sources | Local treatment | GHK-Cu set against copper-free GHK |
| COPD lung fibroblasts (2012) | Amount not given in the sources | Added to the culture | Collagen contraction and remodelling measured |
| Human skin | Set by each cosmetic formulation | Topical | Small, short studies |
| Humans, systemic | No validated dose | – | No controlled trial published |
A picomolar figure from a culture dish has no milligram equivalent in a living organism, and the strength of a cream says nothing about other routes.
Safety findings and open questions
Skin-care products have contained copper tripeptide-1 for decades and it counts as well tolerated; when there is a complaint, it is usually local irritation. No controlled human safety data exist for injected GHK-Cu, and laboratory-grade powder has not passed the release testing required of injectable medicines, such as sterility and endotoxin tests.
- Copper makes up roughly 16% of the complex by mass. The body needs this trace element, controls it closely and is harmed by an excess, so what would repeated systemic exposure mean for copper load?
- For injection, no trial has described tolerability, reactions at the site or what repeated dosing does.
- Does the fall in plasma GHK with age matter causally, or is it a bystander?
Bench notes: storing and reconstituting GHK-Cu
The panel gives three conditions for the lyophilised powder: −20 °C, dry and dark. Keep the vial in its box for the light protection. Colour is a quick identity check: GHK-Cu sold without a blue tint is a matter to raise with the supplier.
The usual research solvent is bacteriostatic water, which contains a preservative and so tolerates repeated withdrawals. Bring the sealed vial to room temperature first, let the water run down the glass and swirl until the solution is clear. Refrigerate the solution, mark lot number and date, and plan aliquots in advance: a 100 mg vial holds a large amount of material. General handling is covered in Storage and Reconstitution: A Bench Protocol.
Status in the Netherlands, Belgium and Luxembourg
The European Medicines Agency has authorised no medicine based on GHK-Cu, and that holds for the Netherlands, Belgium and Luxembourg alike. Its legal home is cosmetics: as copper tripeptide-1 it comes under Regulation (EC) No 1223/2009, which is limited to products for external body surfaces, the teeth and the lining of the mouth. Injected or swallowed GHK-Cu lies outside that framework, and a product that claims to treat or prevent disease is a medicinal product and needs authorisation. National and institutional rules on possession and import differ and should be checked.
The WADA Prohibited List has a catch-all class, S0, for pharmacological substances that lack a current approval for therapeutic use in humans. A cosmetic listing is no such approval, so athletes in tested sport should ask their national anti-doping organisation first.
Ordering GHK-Cu for research in the Benelux
King Peptides lists GHK-Cu 100 mg. The peptide is also one of four ingredients in KLOW-80 Blend - GHK-Cu + BPC-157 + TB-500 + KPV. On what a blend can and cannot show, see Peptide Combinations: What Is Studied Together and Why.
The shop’s lab reports page lists this product at an HPLC purity of 98% or higher, not the 99% or higher that applies to most of its range, so 98% is the figure to hold the certificate against. Every lot has its own certificate of analysis with HPLC and mass spectrometry. The mass line needs care because two values are legitimate: 340.4 Da for the free peptide and about 402 Da for the copper(II) complex. The certificate should say which form was measured, and a number that fits neither is a question for the supplier. Checking a Certificate of Analysis, Line by Line explains the other fields.
Orders go out from the Netherlands as tracked parcels, usually arriving in 1–2 business days within the country and in 3–5 business days in Belgium and Luxembourg. No customs clearance applies inside the EU. Buying Research Peptides in the Netherlands, Belgium and Luxembourg has the full supplier checklist.
GHK-Cu: quick answers
Is research GHK-Cu a different substance from the copper peptide in cosmetics? No. Copper tripeptide-1 is the cosmetic name for the same molecule. The product differs: a cream is a finished cosmetic with a set concentration, a vial is unformulated powder for laboratory work.
Does GHK work without the copper? In the 1993 rat wound study it did not: the complex increased connective tissue and the copper-free peptide had no effect.
Has anyone shown that GHK-Cu slows ageing? No. Falling plasma levels are an observation, the gene-expression claims are computational, and the human studies stop at creams and serums.
How does it differ from Epithalon? Both turn up in longevity research, but the molecules are unrelated: GHK-Cu concerns copper handling and matrix repair, while Epithalon is tied to telomerase claims.
Research use only. This page describes GHK-Cu for laboratory and scientific research. Research material has no marketing authorisation, whatever the status of the molecule as a medicine elsewhere, and is not meant for human or veterinary use. Nothing on this page is medical advice; the doses above are those reported in published studies, not recommendations. Check the rules that apply in your country and at your institution before ordering.