This page describes published research and public regulatory records. It is not medical advice. SoluneFit does not sell, supply, or recommend any compound. The SoluneFit app includes a private, on-device tracker for people who want a record of what they and their clinician have already decided — the app neither suggests compounds nor doses.
Also known as: GHK, copper tripeptide-1, glycyl-L-histidyl-L-lysine copper, copper peptide, Iamin gel.
Regulatory status
Not an approved drug; sold legally as a cosmetic ingredient for topical use. For injectable compounding FDA listed GHK-Cu in category 2 (risk of immunogenicity from aggregation and impurities; limited human data) until the nomination was withdrawn [5]. Not an FDA-approved wound product: a topical gel was trialled for diabetic ulcers in the 1990s [3].
What it is
Naturally occurring tripeptide (Gly-His-Lys) complexed with copper(II).
A small copper-binding peptide found in human plasma, saliva and urine whose level falls with age. It is a common cosmetic ingredient for ageing skin and was tested as a topical gel for diabetic foot ulcers; injected use has essentially no human data.
What the published research shows
Topical: one multicentre, randomised, vehicle-controlled diabetic-ulcer trial and several small 12-week cosmetic studies (41-71 women, mostly conference reports). Injectable or systemic: no human trials; animal and cell data only.
Published human studies and reports (these describe trial populations, not SoluneFit claims):
- Diabetic neuropathic foot ulcers (Mulder 1994, topical gel): Daily metered topical GHK-Cu gel plus standard wound care vs vehicle: median plantar-ulcer closure 98.5 % vs 60.8 %; in ulcers larger than 100 mm² 89.2 % vs -10.3 %; ulcer infections 7 % vs 34 %.
- Ageing facial skin (cosmetic studies summarised by Pickart 2018): A GHK-Cu facial cream applied for 12 weeks in 71 women with photoaging increased skin density and thickness and reduced fine lines and wrinkle depth; an eye cream in 41 women for 12 weeks did better than placebo and vitamin K cream. These were 2002 conference reports, not peer-reviewed trials.
- Collagen in thigh skin (pilot study summarised by Pickart 2018): 12 weeks of topical GHK-Cu improved collagen production in 70 % of women treated, versus 50 % with vitamin C cream and 40 % with retinoic acid.
Mechanism, as reported
Thought to deliver copper to tissue and switch on repair programmes: in lab and animal studies it attracts repair cells, stimulates collagen, elastin and glycosaminoglycan synthesis, and modulates the enzymes that remodel the matrix. Much of the broader gene-expression evidence comes from one research group.
Practical record
- Elimination half-life: 0.5 h (confidence: low). Placeholder for 'very fast clearance': no primary source with a numeric human half-life was found. The only PK paper is a 1997 rat study in which IV GHK was rapidly degraded to His-Lys, itself eliminated rapidly. Treat the curve as a guess.
- Studied routes: topical, subcutaneous.
- Typical supply: Topical creams and serums (cosmetic, often listed as copper tripeptide-1); lyophilised vials for injection on the research-chemical market.
Safety signals on record
- Reported adverse events: No formal safety dataset for topical use was found in the sources reviewed; the diabetic-ulcer trial reported fewer infections, not more, on the gel [3]. For injection, FDA's concern is immune reactions to aggregated or impure peptide, and human safety data are limited [5].
- Contraindications: None established (no label).
- Interactions: None documented.
- Notes: Plasma GHK falls from about 200 ng/mL at age 20 to about 80 ng/mL at 60 [2]. Most mechanistic and cosmetic claims come from reviews by the compound's discoverer, so independent confirmation is thin. Copper load from injections has not been studied.
Sources
- Pickart L. The human tri-peptide GHK and tissue remodeling. J Biomater Sci Polym Ed 2008;19(8):969-88 (2008)
- Pickart L, Margolina A. Regenerative and protective actions of the GHK-Cu peptide in the light of the new gene data. Int J Mol Sci 2018;19(7):1987 (2018)
- Mulder GD et al. Enhanced healing of ulcers in patients with diabetes by topical treatment with glycyl-l-histidyl-l-lysine copper. Wound Repair Regen 1994;2(4):259-69 (1994)
- Endo T, Miyagi M, Ujiie A. Simultaneous determination of glycyl-L-histidyl-L-lysine and its metabolite, L-histidyl-L-lysine, in rat plasma by HPLC with post-column derivatization. J Chromatogr B 1997;692(1):37-42 (1997)
- FDA. Certain bulk drug substances for use in compounding that may present significant safety risks (nominated-but-withdrawn list; content current as of 04/22/2026) (2026)
- Pickart L, Vasquez-Soltero JM, Margolina A. GHK peptide as a natural modulator of multiple cellular pathways in skin regeneration. Biomed Res Int 2015;2015:648108 (2015)
General wellness education, not medical advice. Unapproved compounds have no established dosing, purity standard, or safety profile.