peptide wiki

GHK-Cu

aka Glycyl-L-histidyl-L-lysine Copper

Healing & Recovery

Mechanism

GHK-Cu is the copper(II) complex of a human tripeptide found in plasma. It is a well-established topical cosmetic ingredient for photoaged skin and is NOT an FDA-approved drug.

Identification

CAS number89030-95-5
Molecular formulaC14H22CuN6O4
SequenceGHK
Typical dose1–2 mg/day subcutaneous (research use)
Half-life~30 minutes (plasma); tissue-bound activity reported 24–72 hours

Vendors selling GHK-Cu

VendorSizePriceListed purityTrust
Peptide Partners 200 mg $150.00 99
Glacier Aminos 50 mg $41.99 99
Glacier Aminos 100 mg $41.99 99
Moglabs 50 mg $30.00 96
Crush Research 100 mg $99.00 95
Orbitrex Peptides 50 mg $39.99 95
Profound Aminos 50 mg $49.00 95
Reta One Labs 100 mg $49.00 95
Reta One Labs 50 mg $29.00 95
Licensed Peptides 50 mg $61.99 95
Licensed Peptides 100 mg $61.99 95
Prime Peptides 100 mg $65.00 95
Peptide Tech $38.99 94
Mile High Compounds $49.99 94
Mile High Compounds $119.99 94
Forge Performance Co. 100 mg $50.00 94
Amino Club 50 mg $29.99 93
Riptide Wellness $49.99 92
Hydro Research Peptides 100 mg $0.45 91
Skye Peptides 50 mg $49.00 90
Peptidology 2.56 mg $114.99 89
Peptide Plugs 100 mg $40.00 89
Sunrise Bioresearch 50 mg $23.72 88
Qihang Peptide 87
Simple Peptide 100 mg $55.00 85
Peptidegurus 50 mg 84
Reta Peptide 83
Cocer Peptides 50 mg $55.00 82
Cocer Peptides 100 mg $80.00 82
Blank Peptides 100 mg $75.00 81
OROS Research 50 mg 79
Crystal Peptides 50 mg $29.99 66
Crystal Peptides 100 mg $44.99 66
Qing Li Peptide 63
Certified Peptides 100 mg $59.00 62
Nox Amino 50 mg $45.00 55
Peptiatlas 100 mg 51
Peptiatlas 51
Taishijie 51
Taikangbio 50
Zjpeptix 50
Hkuppeptide 50 mg $10.00 50
Hkuppeptide 100 mg $10.00 50
MEI-PEPETIDE 50 mg $32.00 48
DongCheng Peptide 46
Mandy 50 mg $18.00 43
HongDa Peptide $34.00 43
zztai Peptide Ltd 43
MJT peptides 50 mg $30.00 39
HK Peptide Ltd (hk peptides) 37
Alpha Peptides
Apollo Peptide Sciences $119.99
Cernum Biosciences 50 mg $39.99
Cernum Biosciences 100 mg $59.99
NG Peptide 50 mg $20.00
Ruo Bio 50 mg $28.00
Alpha Omega 100 mg $55.00
Amino Sequence 100 mg $55.00
Arcane Peptides $35.00
Felix Chemical Supply 50 mg $54.99
Felix Chemical Supply 100 mg $59.99
Flawless Compounds
Ignite Peptides 100 mg $60.00
Kimera Chems 50 mg $36.99
Lumi Peptides $40.00
Modern Research Peptides 100 mg $37.49
Nova Peptides 50 mg $39.99
Nova Peptides 100 mg $39.99
Oasis Labs 50 mg $38.50
Oasis Labs 100 mg $38.50
Oneday Compounds 50 mg $54.99
Peptira 50 mg $39.00
Peptira 100 mg $59.00
Platinum Lion 100 mg $39.99
Platinum Lion 50 mg $39.99
Polaris Peptides 50 mg $35.00
Puratek Peptides $28.95
S1 Research 100 mg $28.00
Soma Peptides 50 mg $59.00
Soma Peptides 100 mg $59.00
Southern Aminos 100 mg $36.75
True Peptide 100 mg $45.00
True Peptide 50 mg $45.00
Welli Labs $26.99
Welli Labs $34.99
Wellness Peptides $35.00

Research

Two-Part Study of the Effects of the X39 Patch on Circulating GHK and GHK-Cu Levels in Healthy Adults
· ClinicalTrials.gov (2027) · rct

The goal of this clinical trial is to investigate GHK and GHK-Cu blood levels pre- and post-intervention in healthy adults, and to investigate the efficacy of X39 patch on GHK and GHK-Cu blood levels in healthy adults compared to a placebo.

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The Laccase-like Property of GHK-Cu and Its Applications in Colorimetric Sensing of Phenolic Compounds
Chen JS, Zhu H, Chai TQ, Yang FQ. · Biosensors (2026) ·

Laccase plays an important role in the detection and degradation of phenolic compounds, but it is limited by its cost and stability. In this study, the laccase-like property of copper peptide (GHK-Cu) has been revealed.

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Middle-aged mice treated with GHK-Cu peptide administered intraperitoneally or intranasally show behavioral rescue but divergent hippocampal aging programs
· Research square (2026) · animal
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The GHK-Cu delays aging in Caenorhabditis elegans via coordinated regulation of mitochondrial function and activation of DAF-16/SKN-1 pathways
Wen H, Zhao K, Luo X, Pu J, Li Y, Dou Y, He J, Nie X, Ke Y, Zhou W. · Biogerontology (2026) · animal

Aging is a complex biological process characterized by progressive functional decline across tissues and increased susceptibility to age-related diseases, with oxidative stress being a key contributing factor.

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Glycyl-L-histidyl-L-lysine-Cu2<sup>+</sup> (GHK-Cu) Attenuates CuSO<sub>4</sub> or LPS induced-inflammation in Zebrafish larvae model
Hu J, Zhang C, Wang F. · European journal of pharmacology (2026) · animal

Inflammation serves as a basic defense mechanism against both internal and external threats, while the unresolved or excessive inflammation can lead to irreversible tissue damage.

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Topical GHK-Cu Gel for Acute Skin Wound Healing
· ClinicalTrials.gov (2026) · rct

This study will evaluate whether a topical gel containing GHK-Cu (a copper(II)-peptide complex) can safely speed up healing of small, standardized skin wounds in healthy adults compared with a matching vehicle gel.

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Exploring the beneficial effects of GHK-Cu on an experimental model of colitis and the underlying mechanisms
Mao S, Huang J, Li J, Sun F, Zhang Q, Cheng Q, Zeng W, Lei D, Wang S, Yao J. · Frontiers in pharmacology (2025) · animal

Introduction Ulcerative colitis (UC) is a chronic inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) characterized by mucosal damage and impaired epithelial barrier function. While glycyl-l-histidyl-l-lysine-copper (GHK-Cu) exhibits known anti-inflammatory properties, its therapeutic mechanisms in UC remain undefined.

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An injectable hydroxyapatite microsphere filler loaded with GHK-Cu tripeptide for anti-Inflammatory and antioxidant
Hu D, Zhang X, Gong S, Ma W, Cheng B, Yang J, Yan L, Li B, Qiu T, Wang X. · Colloids and surfaces. B, Biointerfaces (2025) · animal

With the wide application of soft tissue fillers, implant material-induced inflammatory reactions have become a key factor affecting the therapeutic efficacy.

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Are We Ready to Measure Skin Permeation of Modern Antiaging GHK-Cu Tripeptide Encapsulated in Liposomes?
Ogórek K, Nowak K, Wadych E, Ruzik L, Timerbaev AR, Matczuk M. · Molecules (Basel, Switzerland) (2025) · review

Cosmetically active compounds (CACs), both of lipophilic and hydrophilic origin, have difficulty reaching the deeper layers of the skin, and this shortcoming significantly reduces their efficacy.

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Novel Applications of CE-ICP-MS/MS: Monitoring of Antiaging GHK-Cu Cosmetic Component Encapsulation in Liposomes
Zajda J, Wadych E, Ogórek K, Drozd M, Matczuk M. · Electrophoresis (2024) ·

The hyphenation of the separation technique with the high-sensitive mass spectrometry detection is one of the driving forces of modern analysis enabling measurements in complex matrices.

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Liposomes as Carriers of GHK-Cu Tripeptide for Cosmetic Application
Dymek M, Olechowska K, Hąc-Wydro K, Sikora E. · Pharmaceutics (2023) · in-vitro

Liposomes are self-assembled spherical systems composed of amphiphilic phospholipids. They can be used as carriers of both hydrophobic and hydrophilic substances, such as the anti-aging and wound-healing copper-binding peptide, GHK-Cu (glycyl-L-histidyl-L-lysine).

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Phenothiazine-Based Cu(II)-Selective Fluorescent Sensor: GHK-Cu Sensing Applications
Sahu R, Yadav S, Gunturu KC, Kapdi AR. · The Journal of organic chemistry (2023) ·

Sensing important metals in different environments is an important area and involves the development of a wide variety of metal-sensing materials. The employment of fluorescent sensors in metal sensing has been one of the most widely applied methodologies, and the identification of selective metal sensors is important.

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Synergy of GHK-Cu and hyaluronic acid on collagen IV upregulation via fibroblast and ex-vivo skin tests
Jiang F, Wu Y, Liu Z, Hong M, Huang Y. · Journal of cosmetic dermatology (2023) ·

Introduction GHK-Cu and HA are two commonly used skin care ingredients, both of which were reported to enhance collagen synthesis. This work aims to investigate their co-effect on collagen regulation.

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Trial Assessing the Impact on Facial Skin Quality, Hydration, and Skin Barrier of Three (3) Hydrafacial Treatments in Adults of All Skin Types.
· ClinicalTrials.gov (2023) · rct

This is a phase IV, unblinded, open-label study assessing the impact on skin quality, hydration, and barrier of three (3) Hydrafacial treatments in healthy adults of Fitzpatrick Skin Types I \& II, III, IV, V \& VI, 30 to 55 years of age.

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Efficient Ternary Polymer Solar Cells with Tunable Crystallinity and Phase Separation of Active Layers via Incorporating GHK-Cu
Huang J, Yu H. · ACS applied materials & interfaces (2021) ·

The crystallinity of a nonfullerene small-molecule acceptor plays an important function in the bimolecular recombination and carrier transfer of polymer solar cells (PSCs).

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