Quality
How to read a certificate of analysis
What HPLC purity, LC-MS identity and endotoxin numbers mean, and the three lines most COAs leave out.
Read the guide →Home › Learn
Research guides and tools
Answer-first guides written for the bench, not the sales page. Each one starts with the number or the step you came for.
Start here: three handling guides
Handling
Storage and stability by compound
Freezer, fridge or bench: a table of storage windows before and after reconstitution.
Read the guide →Compound research guides
What is each compound studied for?
One long-form guide per compound: structure, mechanism, the models it appears in, what the literature shows, handling, and references.
GLP-1 & Metabolic
PEP-RTA-3 research guide
PEP-RTA-3 is a synthetic 39-amino-acid peptide engineered to activate three receptors at once: GIP, GLP-1 and the glucagon receptor.
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GLP-1 & Metabolic
PEP-TZP-2 research guide
PEP-TZP-2 is a 39-amino-acid synthetic peptide with agonist activity at both the GIP and GLP-1 receptors.
Read the guide →
GLP-1 & Metabolic
PEP-SMG-1 research guide
PEP-SMG-1 is a 31-residue analogue of human GLP-1 modified for a long circulating half-life.
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Repair & Recovery
BPC-157 research guide
BPC-157 is a synthetic pentadecapeptide, 15 amino acids long, whose sequence derives from a protective protein found in human gastric juice.
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Repair & Recovery
TB-500 research guide
TB-500 is a synthetic peptide fragment of thymosin beta-4, a 43-amino-acid protein present in nearly every cell type that binds and sequesters actin, the structural protein cells use to move and divide.
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Peptide Blends
BPC-157 and TB-500 blend research guide
The blend co-lyophilizes BPC-157 and TB-500 in one vial at a fixed 1:1 ratio, 5 mg of each.
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Peptide Blends
CJC-1295 and Ipamorelin blend research guide
This blend combines CJC-1295 without DAC, a 29-amino-acid analogue of growth-hormone-releasing hormone, with Ipamorelin, a pentapeptide agonist of the ghrelin receptor, co-lyophilized at 5 mg each.
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Growth Hormone Axis
Ipamorelin research guide
Ipamorelin is a synthetic pentapeptide and a selective agonist of the ghrelin receptor, also called the growth-hormone secretagogue receptor (GHS-R1a).
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Growth Hormone Axis
PEP-TSM-G research guide
PEP-TSM-G is a 44-amino-acid analogue of growth-hormone-releasing hormone with a trans-3-hexenoic acid group at the N-terminus that protects it from enzymatic breakdown.
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Longevity & Skin
GHK-Cu research guide
GHK-Cu is the tripeptide glycyl-L-histidyl-L-lysine complexed with a copper(II) ion.
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Longevity & Skin
NAD+ research guide
NAD+ is nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide, the coenzyme at the centre of cellular energy metabolism and the substrate consumed by sirtuins, PARP enzymes and CD38.
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Longevity & Skin
MOTS-c research guide
MOTS-c is a 16-amino-acid peptide encoded by a short open reading frame within the mitochondrial 12S ribosomal RNA gene, one of a small family of mitochondrial-derived peptides.
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GLP-1 & Metabolic
PEP-CAG-A research guide
PEP-CAG-A is a long-acting synthetic analogue of amylin, the 37-residue hormone co-secreted with insulin by pancreatic beta cells, formula C194H312N54O59S2, mass 4409, CAS 1415456-99-3.
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GLP-1 & Metabolic
AOD-9604 research guide
AOD-9604 is a synthetic sixteen-residue peptide corresponding to residues 177-191 of human growth hormone with an added N-terminal tyrosine, formula C78H123N23O23S2, mass 1815.1.
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GLP-1 & Metabolic
5-Amino-1MQ research guide
5-Amino-1MQ, 5-amino-1-methylquinolinium, is a small molecule, not a peptide: a quinolinium cation of formula C10H11N2+, mass 159.2, CAS 685079-15-6, supplied as a salt.
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Repair & Recovery
KPV research guide
KPV is the tripeptide Lys-Pro-Val, formula C16H30N4O4, mass 342.43, the three C-terminal residues of alpha-melanocyte-stimulating hormone.
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Repair & Recovery
ARA-290 research guide
ARA-290, known in pharmacology as cibinetide, is an eleven-residue peptide derived from the helix B surface of erythropoietin, formula C51H84N16O21, mass 1257.3, CAS 1208243-50-8, with an N-terminal pyroglutamate.
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Repair & Recovery
SS-31 research guide
SS-31, known in pharmacology as elamipretide, is the tetrapeptide D-Arg-Dmt-Lys-Phe-NH2, formula C32H49N9O5, mass 639.8.
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Repair & Recovery
Thymosin alpha-1 research guide
Thymosin alpha-1 is a 28-residue peptide, N-acetylated, formula C129H215N33O55, mass 3108.3, first isolated from calf thymus by Goldstein and colleagues in 1977.
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Repair & Recovery
Thymalin research guide
Thymalin is the name of a bovine thymus peptide preparation from the St Petersburg bioregulator programme, not a single defined sequence.
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Growth Hormone Axis
CJC-1295 (no DAC) research guide
CJC-1295 without DAC, also called modified GRF(1-29), is a 29-residue analogue of growth-hormone-releasing hormone: the active N-terminal fragment with four substitutions, D-alanine at position 2, glutamine at 8, alanine at 15 and leucine at 27, that resist enzymatic cleavage.
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Growth Hormone Axis
Sermorelin research guide
Sermorelin is the first 29 residues of human growth-hormone-releasing hormone, C-amidated, formula C149H246N44O42S, mass 3357.9, the shortest fragment with full activity at the GHRH receptor.
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Growth Hormone Axis
IGF-1 LR3 research guide
IGF-1 LR3, Long R3 IGF-1, is an 83-residue recombinant analogue of insulin-like growth factor 1: the 70-residue hormone with arginine replacing glutamate at position 3 and a 13-residue N-terminal extension.
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Growth Hormone Axis
Kisspeptin-10 research guide
Kisspeptin-10 is the ten-residue C-terminal fragment of kisspeptin, the KISS1 gene product, formula C63H83N17O14, mass 1302.4, C-amidated.
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Longevity & Skin
Melanotan-1 research guide
Melanotan-1 is the synthetic alpha-MSH analogue [Nle4, D-Phe7]-alpha-MSH, thirteen residues, formula C78H111N21O19, mass 1646.8, known in pharmacology as afamelanotide.
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Longevity & Skin
Melanotan-2 research guide
Melanotan-2 is a cyclic lactam heptapeptide analogue of alpha-melanocyte-stimulating hormone, formula C50H69N15O9, mass 1024.2, designed by Hruby and colleagues in 1989 as a potent, long-acting melanotropin.
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Longevity & Skin
SNAP-8 research guide
SNAP-8 is acetyl octapeptide-3, the eight-residue peptide Ac-Glu-Glu-Met-Gln-Arg-Arg-Ala-Asp-NH2, formula C41H70N16O16S, mass 1075.2, CAS 868844-74-0, an elongation of the hexapeptide argireline designed to mimic the N-terminal region of the SNARE protein SNAP-25.
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Longevity & Skin
L-Glutathione research guide
L-Glutathione is the tripeptide gamma-glutamyl-cysteinyl-glycine, formula C10H17N3O6S, mass 307.33, CAS 70-18-8, the principal low-molecular-weight thiol in cells and a substrate in phase II conjugation.
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Longevity & Skin
Humanin research guide
Humanin is a 24-residue peptide, formula C119H204N34O32S2, mass 2687.2, encoded by a short open reading frame within the mitochondrial 16S ribosomal RNA gene, one of the first mitochondrial-derived peptides identified.
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Longevity & Skin
PT-141 research guide
PT-141, known in pharmacology as bremelanotide, is a cyclic lactam heptapeptide analogue of alpha-melanocyte-stimulating hormone, formula C50H68N14O10, mass 1025.2, the free-acid metabolite of melanotan-2.
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Nootropics & Neuro
Semax research guide
Semax is the heptapeptide Met-Glu-His-Phe-Pro-Gly-Pro, formula C37H51N9O10S, mass 813.9: the ACTH(4-7) fragment joined to a Pro-Gly-Pro tail that was added for stability.
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Nootropics & Neuro
Selank research guide
Selank is the heptapeptide Thr-Lys-Pro-Arg-Pro-Gly-Pro, formula C33H57N11O9, mass 751.9: the natural tetrapeptide tuftsin extended with the same Pro-Gly-Pro tail used in semax.
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Nootropics & Neuro
P-21 research guide
P-21, written P021 in the literature, is a small peptide derived from ciliary neurotrophic factor, built on the tetrapeptide Asp-Gly-Gly-Leu with an N-terminal acetyl, a C-terminal amide and an adamantyl group added for metabolic stability.
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Nootropics & Neuro
PE-22-28 research guide
PE-22-28 is a seven-residue fragment of spadin, the sortilin-derived peptide, formula C35H55N11O9, mass 773.9, CAS 1801959-12-5.
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Nootropics & Neuro
Adamax research guide
Adamax is a synthetic peptide described by its sellers as semax carrying an adamantane-containing group.
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Nootropics & Neuro
DSIP research guide
Delta sleep-inducing peptide is the nine-residue peptide Trp-Ala-Gly-Gly-Asp-Ala-Ser-Gly-Glu, formula C35H48N10O15, mass 848.8, isolated from rabbit cerebral venous blood by Schoenenberger and Monnier in 1977 and named for the EEG pattern it was reported to induce.
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Bioregulators
Epithalon research guide
Epithalon, also written epitalon, is the tetrapeptide Ala-Glu-Asp-Gly, formula C14H22N4O9, mass 390.35, the synthetic counterpart of the pineal preparation epithalamin from the St Petersburg bioregulator programme.
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Bioregulators
Pinealon research guide
Pinealon is the tripeptide Glu-Asp-Arg, formula C15H26N6O8, mass 418.4, one of the short synthetic peptides designed by the St Petersburg bioregulator programme to reproduce the composition of a pineal extract.
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Bioregulators
Prostamax research guide
Prostamax is the tetrapeptide Lys-Glu-Asp-Pro, formula C20H33N5O9, mass 487.5, CAS 473578-47-1, one of the short synthetic peptides from the St Petersburg bioregulator programme, associated in that literature with prostate tissue models.
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Bioregulators
Testagen research guide
Testagen is the tetrapeptide Lys-Glu-Asp-Gly, from the St Petersburg bioregulator programme, associated in that literature with endocrine tissue models.
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Bioregulators
Vesugen research guide
Vesugen is the tripeptide Lys-Glu-Asp, formula C15H26N4O8, mass 390.39, CAS 204271-66-9, from the St Petersburg bioregulator programme, associated in that literature with vascular tissue models.
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Bioregulators
Vilon research guide
Vilon is the dipeptide Lys-Glu, formula C11H21N3O5, mass 275.3, the shortest peptide in this catalogue.
Read the guide →Comparisons
Which compound fits the question?
Measured, not claimed
How are peptide vendor websites actually built?
Twenty-two vendor homepages loaded in the same browser and measured by the same script: weight, load time, headings, structured data, and whether a certificate is mentioned at all. No ranking, no opinion, a date on every number.
Latest from the blog
Notes from the bench
Buying, handling and research-design questions as they come up. All posts →
Buying · 13 October 2026
What to verify before ordering PEP-RTA-3 for a study
A due-diligence checklist for sourcing PEP-RTA-3 as a research reagent — certificate, lot linkage, content versus label, vial size arithmetic, and what price differences usually encode.
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Reference · 13 October 2026
What "reta" means on a peptide label, and how to read the rest of the vial
Reta, reta/cagri, RETA10-0803. What the abbreviations on a PEP-RTA-3 label and lot code actually encode, and which parts are vendor shorthand rather than chemistry.
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Reference · 13 October 2026
PEP-RTA-3 identity: the formula, the mass, and what LC-MS actually confirms
C221H342N46O68 and 4731.2 g/mol. What a mass spectrum confirms about PEP-RTA-3 identity, what the charge-state envelope means, and what identity testing cannot rule out.
Read the post →How long do peptides last in storage?
Sealed lyophilized vials keep for years at -20°C. Once water is added, the clock starts. The windows below are conservative defaults; they are our defaults, not a figure the certificate carries.
| State | Temperature | Window |
|---|---|---|
| Lyophilized, sealed | -20°C, dark | 24 months |
| Lyophilized, sealed | 2-8°C | 6 months |
| Reconstituted with bacteriostatic water | 2-8°C | 28 days |
| Reconstituted, GLP-1 class | 2-8°C | 28 days, protect from light |
| Any state | Room temperature | Hours, not days |