GHK-Cu

GHK-Cu is the copper(II) complex of the tripeptide glycyl-L-histidyl-L-lysine (GHK). The peptide sequence is three amino acids long — glycine, histidine and lysine — and the histidine imidazole together with the peptide backbone nitrogen atoms provide coordination sites that bind a copper ion. The resulting complex is commonly written GHK-Cu and carries CAS number 89030-95-9.

Because copper coordination changes the molecule's charge distribution, spectroscopic profile and solubility behaviour, GHK and GHK-Cu are treated as distinct research materials in the literature. Analytical laboratories therefore confirm identity by mass spectrometry and assess purity chromatographically rather than assuming equivalence between the free peptide and the complex.

As supplied for research, the material is a lyophilised solid intended for reconstitution in a laboratory setting by qualified personnel. It is a reference and test article for in-vitro experiments only.

The GHK sequence was first described in the 1970s in work on human plasma fractions, and the copper-binding behaviour of the tripeptide became the focus of subsequent biochemical study. Interest in the molecule has largely been driven by copper's role as a cofactor in enzymatic chemistry and by the observation that small peptides can act as copper-binding ligands in solution.

Much of the published work on GHK-Cu is therefore coordination chemistry and cell-biology research: how strongly the peptide binds copper, how stable the complex is across pH ranges, and what happens in defined cell-culture systems when the complex is present in the medium.

Peptiora Labs does not conduct this research. The literature referenced here is the work of its original authors and is summarised for educational context only.

Published in-vitro research involving GHK-Cu has examined endpoints such as fibroblast behaviour in culture, extracellular-matrix protein expression, gene-expression profiling in cell lines, and antioxidant or copper-transport chemistry in cell-free systems.

Analytical and stability research forms a second cluster: investigators have characterised the complex by UV-visible spectroscopy, HPLC and LC-MS, and have looked at how temperature, light and buffer composition affect the copper-peptide equilibrium over time.

A third area is methodological — GHK-Cu is sometimes used as a model copper-binding peptide when validating analytical methods for metal-peptide complexes, because its stoichiometry and spectral behaviour are well documented.

The distinction matters and is often blurred in non-scientific writing. Findings reported in cell culture or in animal models describe what happened in a specific, controlled experimental system. They do not demonstrate an effect in humans, and they are not clinical evidence.

Established human clinical evidence would require adequately powered, controlled trials in people with pre-registered endpoints, independent replication and regulatory review. Statements on this page are not claims of that kind, and no such claim should be inferred from the availability of this material.

Each lot supplied by Peptiora Labs is released against a written specification with HPLC purity data and LC-MS identity confirmation, and the batch number is recorded on the label and in the accompanying documentation.

Standard laboratory practice applies: keep the vial sealed in its original packaging until use, store under the stated cold-chain conditions, record the lot number and receipt condition in your inventory log, and handle the material under your institution's safety procedures. No dosage, administration, human-use or veterinary information is provided.