GHRP-6 10 mg

GHRP-6 10 mg research-grade lyophilized peptide powder in a glass vial. Also known as Growth Hormone Releasing Peptide-6 (GHRP-6) or growth hormone releasing hexapeptide, this synthetic secretagogue potently activates the ghrelin / growth hormone secretagogue receptor (GHS-R) and is used in laboratory models of GH secretion, appetite regulation and metabolic signaling.

Research Overview

GHRP-6 is a synthetic growth hormone secretagogue and ghrelin receptor (GHS-R) agonist. In experimental systems it is used as a tool compound to study pulsatile growth hormone release, pituitary responsiveness and ghrelin-mediated appetite and metabolic signaling pathways.

Primary Research Areas

• Growth hormone (GH) secretion: pituitary and hypothalamic models examining GH pulses, secretagogue synergy and receptor-mediated signaling [1,7].
• Ghrelin / GHS-R pathway research: studies of ghrelin receptor activation, downstream intracellular cascades and endocrine network effects [7].
• Appetite & energy-balance models: experimental frameworks exploring changes in food intake, body-weight dynamics and metabolic markers.
• Muscle & recovery research: lab models assessing GH/IGF-axis–related signaling in skeletal muscle and post-stress adaptation.
• Cortisol, ACTH and flushing: in healthy young men, repeated intravenous doses raised growth hormone, ACTH and cortisol together with the amount of stage 2 sleep. In 20 adults given it as a pituitary test, the only side effect seen was flushing. Raised cortisol works against the muscle and recovery outcomes growth hormone is wanted for [1,7].
• The route decides whether anything happens: given to healthy young men as enteric-coated capsules by mouth, it left growth hormone, ACTH and cortisol unchanged, while sprayed into the nose it raised growth hormone across the whole night. Injected into a vein in nine healthy men, the distribution half-life was about 7.6 minutes and the elimination half-life about 2.5 hours [1,2].
• Organ injury when blood flow returns: rats whose liver vessels were clamped and released had heavy liver and gut injury; one dose of GHRP-6 into the abdomen beforehand cut those measures by 50 to 85%, and lung and kidney injury fell too. This is pre-treatment in animals, which is a long way from treating a person after the event [3].
• Stress ulcers in the stomach: rats held in water-immersion restraint for six hours developed stomach erosions, around 82 mm² against none in unstressed controls; GHRP-6 injected into the abdomen two hours beforehand prevented the lesions, while the same dose into the brain ventricles did not. This is prevention beforehand, not healing of an ulcer that already exists [4].
• Heart damage from a cancer drug: rats given doxorubicin kept their heart muscle fibres and their pumping function when GHRP-6 was given alongside it; damage to other organs, interstitial scarring and overall mortality fell as well. This is prevention in rats given at the same time as the toxic drug, and nothing comparable has been done in patients [5].
• Brain injury after a stroke: gerbils had both carotid arteries clamped for 15 minutes; GHRP-6 at 600 µg/kg with 100 µg/kg of EGF, given up to four hours after flow returned, improved survival and neurological scores and shrank the dead area of brain. This is not a result for GHRP-6 on its own [6].

References

1. Frieboes RM, Murck H, Antonijevic IA, et al. Effects of growth hormone-releasing peptide-6 on the nocturnal secretion of GH, ACTH and cortisol and on the sleep EEG in man: role of routes of administration. J Neuroendocrinol. 1999;11(6):473-8. PMID 10336729. doi:10.1046/j.1365-2826.1999.00364.x
2. Cabrales A, Gil J, Fernández E, et al. Pharmacokinetic study of Growth Hormone-Releasing Peptide 6 (GHRP-6) in nine male healthy volunteers. Eur J Pharm Sci. 2013;48(1-2):40-6. PMID 23099431. doi:10.1016/j.ejps.2012.10.006
3. Cibrián D, Ajamieh H, Berlanga J, et al. Use of growth-hormone-releasing peptide-6 (GHRP-6) for the prevention of multiple organ failure. Clin Sci (Lond). 2006;110(5):563-73. PMID 16417467. doi:10.1042/CS20050374
4. Guo S, Gao Q, Jiao Q, et al. Gastric mucosal damage in water immersion stress: mechanism and prevention with GHRP-6. World J Gastroenterol. 2012;18(24):3145-55. PMID 22791951. doi:10.3748/wjg.v18.i24.3145
5. Berlanga-Acosta J, Cibrian D, Valiente-Mustelier J, et al. Growth hormone releasing peptide-6 (GHRP-6) prevents doxorubicin-induced myocardial and extra-myocardial damages by activating prosurvival mechanisms. Front Pharmacol. 2024;15:1402138. PMID 38873418. doi:10.3389/fphar.2024.1402138
6. Subirós N, Pérez-Saad HM, Berlanga JA, et al. Assessment of dose-effect and therapeutic time window in preclinical studies of rhEGF and GHRP-6 coadministration for stroke therapy. Neurol Res. 2016;38(3):187-95. PMID 26311576. doi:10.1179/1743132815Y.0000000089
7. Petersenn S, Jung R, Beil FU. Diagnosis of growth hormone deficiency in adults by testing with GHRP-6 alone or in combination with GHRH: comparison with the insulin tolerance test. Eur J Endocrinol. 2002;146(5):667-72. PMID 11980622. doi:10.1530/eje.0.1460667