Research library

GH Secretagogues

GHRP-6

Preclinical, limited human dataGrowth hormone secretagogue, ghrelin receptor agonist

Also published as Growth hormone releasing peptide 6

The first of the growth hormone releasing peptides and the compound that led to the discovery of the ghrelin receptor before ghrelin itself was identified. It produces the strongest appetite response of the class.

Where it came from

Developed by Cyril Bowers in the 1980s. The search for its endogenous ligand ended with the identification of ghrelin in 1999.

What the literature examines

  • Growth hormone release and ghrelin receptor pharmacology
  • Appetite stimulation in animals and humans
  • Cytoprotection and tissue repair, in a substantial Cuban research programme at CIGB
  • Cardiac and hepatic injury models

State of the evidence

Furthest it has gotPreclinical, limited human data

Human endocrine studies exist from the 1990s. The Cuban cytoprotection work has progressed further than most Western readers realise.

What a buyer should know

Marked appetite stimulation is the defining practical feature, and it is often presented as a benefit without noting it is a systemic ghrelin receptor effect. It raises cortisol and prolactin alongside growth hormone.

Handling and stability

Lyophilised, water soluble.

Sequence

His-D-Trp-Ala-Trp-D-Phe-Lys-NH2

Read it yourself

We do not publish a curated citation list, because a hand picked list of papers is a sales tool. These links run a live query against the public databases, so you see everything, including the results that do not suit us.

Supplied for laboratory research use only. Nothing on this page is a dose, a protocol or a claim of effect in humans, and nothing here is medical advice. Read our research use policy.