GHK-Cu: What It Is & What It Does
A tiny peptide your body makes that carries copper. Studied for fifty years, mostly in skin and repair research.
In short
GHK-Cu is a very small peptide, only three building blocks long, joined to a single copper atom. Your body makes it and it circulates in your blood, though the amount drops as you get older. It is one of the most studied peptides there is, mostly in skin and wound repair research. The copper is what makes the powder deep blue. Pepcore supplies GHK-Cu as a lyophilised powder at 50 mg per vial, with a batch number on every one.
Related peptides. AHK-Cu · Glow Blend · Mixing guide
What does GHK-Cu do?
The short answer.
Its main job is carrying copper. Copper is essential to the body but dangerous loose, so it is never left floating free. GHK grabs hold of it and hands it between other carriers. That is the difference between GHK-Cu and a plain copper salt: one is a delivery system, the other is just copper.
What it is studied for is repair. In skin research it is looked at for collagen, for how tissue rebuilds itself, and for the balance between building new tissue and clearing out the old. There is also a body of work on ageing, on the basis that the amount in your blood falls over time.
Where it came from
A short history.
It was found in 1973 by an American researcher, Loren Pickart. He was looking at why liver cells survived longer in one blood sample than another, and tracked it down to something in the plasma of younger donors. That something turned out to be this three building block peptide.
The copper part came next. The middle building block holds onto copper unusually well, and by 1981 the chemistry of how the two lock together had been worked out in detail. Almost everything published since is about that copper version rather than the bare peptide.
The skin research that made it well known came in the 1990s, and it has been studied continuously ever since.
The numbers
What is in the vial.
| Name | GHK-Cu, the copper form of glycyl-L-histidyl-L-lysine |
| Building blocks | 3 amino acids, plus one copper atom |
| Molecular formula | C₁₄H₂₃CuN₆O₄⁺ |
| Molecular weight | ~402.9 g/mol |
| CAS number | 89030-95-5 |
| Purity | ≥ 99% HPLC |
| Supplied as | Lyophilised powder, 50 mg |
| Shipped from | The Netherlands, within the EU |
Sources
Where the above comes from. Titles are the originals, each links to PubMed.
Lau SJ et al. · 1981 · The Biochemical Journal
The interaction of copper(II) and glycyl-L-histidyl-L-lysine, a growth-modulating tripeptide from plasma
Maquart FX et al. · 1993 · The Journal of Clinical Investigation
In vivo stimulation of connective tissue accumulation by the tripeptide-copper complex glycyl-L-histidyl-L-lysine-Cu2+ in rat experimental wounds
Siméon A et al. · 2000 · Life Sciences
The tripeptide-copper complex glycyl-L-histidyl-L-lysine-Cu2+ stimulates matrix metalloproteinase-2 expression by fibroblast cultures
Pickart L et al. · 2012 · Oxidative Medicine and Cellular Longevity
The human tripeptide GHK-Cu in prevention of oxidative stress and degenerative conditions of aging: implications for cognitive health
Pickart L et al. · 2015 · BioMed Research International
GHK Peptide as a Natural Modulator of Multiple Cellular Pathways in Skin Regeneration
Pickart L et al. · 2018 · International Journal of Molecular Sciences
Regenerative and Protective Actions of the GHK-Cu Peptide in the Light of the New Gene Data
GHK-Cu, AHK-Cu or Glow?
Three ways to buy a copper peptide.
| Product | What it is | Amount |
|---|---|---|
| GHK-Cu | The copper peptide on its own. This is the one the research is about | 50 mg |
| AHK-Cu | A close cousin, one building block different, studied far less | 100 mg |
| Glow Blend | GHK-Cu mixed with BPC-157 and TB-500 in one vial | 70 mg total |
Storage and mixing
Copper means one extra rule.
Keep the dry powder cold. At -20 °C it lasts a long time, and a normal fridge is fine for short periods. To mix it, add bacteriostatic water slowly down the inside wall of the vial. Never onto the powder, and never shake it. Roll it gently until it dissolves.
The extra rule is light. Copper compounds break down in light, so once mixed, keep the vial somewhere dark. Our mixing guide goes through it step by step, and the peptide calculator works out the concentration.
Frequently asked
What comes up most often.
What is GHK-Cu?
A very small peptide, three building blocks long, joined to one copper atom. Your body makes it and it is present in your blood, in smaller amounts as you age. It has been studied since 1973, mostly in skin and repair research. All Pepcore products are for laboratory research only.
Why is GHK-Cu blue?
The copper. Copper compounds are blue, and the powder takes its colour from the copper atom held in the middle of the peptide. If a GHK powder is white, it has no copper in it, so the blue is a useful sign that you have the right thing.
What is the difference between GHK and GHK-Cu?
GHK on its own is the bare peptide, white. GHK-Cu is the same peptide holding a copper atom, blue. Nearly all the published research is on the copper version.
How do I store and mix it?
Keep the dry powder cold, at -20 °C for the long term. Add bacteriostatic water slowly down the inside wall of the vial, never straight onto the powder, and never shake it. Copper is sensitive to light, so keep mixed vials in the dark. The peptide calculator works out concentrations.
GHK-Cu at Pepcore
Lyophilised powder, 50 mg per vial, ≥ 99% HPLC purity, certificate of analysis on request. Shipped within the EU from the Netherlands.
All Pepcore products are intended for laboratory research only. They are not for human or veterinary consumption.
For laboratory research use only – not for human or veterinary use. All Pepcore products are sold strictly as research materials for in vitro use. They are not medicines, supplements, foods or cosmetics. Sold only to adults aged 18 and over.