Last updated 10 October 2026 · SARMs Store editorial team. Products on this site are supplied strictly for laboratory research and are not for human consumption. This guide summarises published research; it is not medical advice and contains no instructions for use. 18+ only.
GHK-Cu at a glance
| Class | Tripeptide (glycyl-L-histidyl-L-lysine) bound to copper(II) |
|---|---|
| First isolated | Loren Pickart, 1973, from human albumin |
| Highest evidence | Small human trials of topical creams; cell-culture gene expression data; no injected human trial |
| Studied for | Skin firmness, wound healing, collagen and antioxidant gene expression |
| Format | Lyophilised vial (50mg, 100mg), blue powder |
| Storage | 2 to 8°C unopened, away from light; avoid chelating agents |
| UK status 2026 | Lawful cosmetic ingredient; as a research peptide not a licensed medicine |
What GHK-Cu is
GHK-Cu is a tripeptide, glycyl-L-histidyl-L-lysine, bound to a copper(II) ion. It occurs naturally in human plasma, saliva and urine, and its concentration falls with age, from roughly 200 ng/ml at 20 to about 80 ng/ml at 60. Loren Pickart isolated it in 1973 from human albumin. It is the most widely used peptide in the cosmetics industry and one of the few research peptides with a substantial body of published human skin data, although almost all of that data is for topical application.
GHK-Cu names you will see
GHK-Cu is sold and studied under several names: GHK copper, copper peptide, copper tripeptide-1 (the ingredient name used on cosmetic labels), glycyl-L-histidyl-L-lysine copper and, in the drug development literature, prezatide copper acetate. GHK on its own, without the copper, is a separate material: the same three amino acids with no metal bound. Searches for "ghk cu", "ghk-cu" and "copper peptide" almost always mean the copper complex, and a certificate of analysis should name the complex rather than the peptide alone, because the two did not behave the same way in the cell studies.
What the research found
Skin and wounds. Topical GHK-Cu has been studied in several small human trials since the 1990s: improved skin firmness and elasticity, reduced fine lines, and faster healing of surgical and chronic wounds have all been reported, mostly in studies of 20 to 70 subjects funded by cosmetic manufacturers. Pickart and Margolina's 2018 review in the International Journal of Molecular Sciences collects the human and animal work.
Gene expression. The most cited modern finding comes from the Broad Institute's Connectivity Map data, in which GHK was reported to alter the expression of roughly a third of human genes in cultured cells, with effects on collagen, elastin and antioxidant pathways. This is a cell culture result, not a clinical one, and has been interpreted more expansively in marketing than the data supports.
Hair. Copper peptides have been studied in mouse and small human trials for hair follicle size and growth, with mixed results.
What is missing. There is no controlled human trial of injected GHK-Cu for any purpose. The lyophilised vials sold for research are a different question from the creams in the trials.
How GHK-Cu works in the published studies
Most of the mechanism work was done in cultured cells. Maquart and colleagues reported in 1988 that GHK-Cu stimulated collagen synthesis in fibroblast cultures (FEBS Letters), and later work from the same group in Reims extended this to glycosaminoglycans and small proteoglycans such as decorin, the components of the matrix that holds skin and connective tissue together. Other studies describe effects on the enzymes that break down and rebuild that matrix, and on the movement of immune and blood vessel cells towards a wound. The copper matters here. GHK binds copper(II) very tightly, and one proposed role for the complex is delivering copper to cells in a usable form, since several of the enzymes that cross-link collagen depend on it.
The wound studies in people
Before the cosmetic work, GHK-Cu was developed as a wound treatment under the name prezatide copper acetate. The US company ProCyte ran clinical studies of a topical gel in the 1990s, including a trial in diabetic foot ulcers reported by Mulder and colleagues in Wound Repair and Regeneration in 1994. The programme did not lead to a licensed medicine. Those studies tested a gel applied to open wounds, which is a long way from a lyophilised research vial, and they are the closest thing to clinical trial data that GHK-Cu has.
Cosmetic grade versus research grade
GHK-Cu in a moisturiser is typically at 0.1 to 1 percent in a formulated base and is a regulated cosmetic. Research-grade GHK-Cu is the pure peptide-copper complex, supplied lyophilised and measured by HPLC. The two are the same molecule at very different purities and concentrations, and the cosmetic evidence cannot be transferred to the research vial without that caveat.
Stability, storage and handling
GHK-Cu is a blue powder because of the copper. Keep unopened vials refrigerated at 2 to 8 degrees Celsius, away from light. It is more stable than most peptides in dry form but, once reconstituted, it should be used within days and protected from light, and it is sensitive to chelating agents that strip the copper. The certificate should show HPLC purity and mass spectrometry identity for the complex.
GHK-Cu compared with the other repair peptides
| Peptide | What it is | Main research area | Human data | In our range |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| GHK-Cu | Copper-binding tripeptide | Skin, wound and matrix models | Small topical studies; no injected trial | GHK-Cu 50mg and 100mg vials |
| BPC-157 | Gastric-derived pentadecapeptide | Tendon, gut and blood vessel models | No completed controlled trial | BPC-157 vials and capsules |
| TB-500 | Fragment of thymosin beta-4 | Cell migration, wound and cardiac models | Full protein only, phase II | TB-500 vials and capsules |
| KPV | Tripeptide from alpha-MSH | Inflammation models, mostly gut | None published | KPV vial |
GHK-Cu is also one of the three peptides in the GLOW blend, with BPC-157 and TB-500, and one of the four in the KLOW blend, which adds KPV. No published study has tested GHK-Cu in combination with any of them.
What a GHK-Cu certificate should show
Because GHK-Cu is a complex of a peptide and a metal, a useful certificate goes slightly further than for most peptides. Look for identity by mass spectrometry, purity by HPLC, and a clear statement that the material is the copper complex rather than free GHK; some laboratories also report the copper content. Colour is a quick first check. The complex is blue to violet, and a white powder sold as GHK-Cu is either the copper-free peptide or something else. As with every vial, the batch number on the certificate should match the one printed on the vial.
Legal status in the UK, 2026
GHK-Cu is not a controlled substance under the Misuse of Drugs Act 1971. As a cosmetic ingredient it is lawful in topical products under the UK Cosmetics Regulation. As a lyophilised research peptide it is not a licensed medicine and cannot be sold or advertised for human use; it is supplied strictly for laboratory research. It is not specifically named on the WADA Prohibited List, but growth-factor-related peptides can fall under section S2 and athletes should treat it as prohibited.
What to check before buying
Milligrams per vial, HPLC purity, mass spectrometry identity, batch number matching the certificate, and cold-chain shipping. Every Origin Peptides batch is independently tested and its certificate of analysis is published on the product page and the Lab Testing page.
Frequently asked questions
Why is GHK-Cu blue?
The copper(II) ion gives the complex its colour. A colourless product is a warning sign.
Is GHK-Cu the same as the copper peptide in skincare?
Same molecule, different purity and format. The trials are of creams, not vials.
Has GHK-Cu been tested in humans?
Yes, topically, in small trials. Not by injection.
Is GHK-Cu legal in the UK?
Lawful as a cosmetic ingredient; as a research peptide it is legal to buy and possess but not to sell or advertise for human consumption.
Is GHK-Cu banned in sport?
It is not named on the WADA Prohibited List, but peptides related to growth factors can fall under section S2, so anyone subject to testing should treat it as prohibited.
What is the difference between GHK and GHK-Cu?
GHK is the tripeptide on its own. GHK-Cu is the same tripeptide bound to a copper ion. Most of the published work used the copper complex, and the two are not interchangeable in the cell studies.
Is GHK-Cu the same as prezatide copper?
Prezatide copper acetate is the name the copper complex was given when it was developed as a topical wound treatment in the 1990s. It is the same molecule, but no medicine containing it was ever licensed.
Is GHK-Cu a hormone or a SARM?
Neither. It is a copper-binding peptide. It does not act on the androgen receptor and it is not a hormone.
Key references
Pickart L, Margolina A. Regenerative and protective actions of the GHK-Cu peptide in the light of the new gene data. International Journal of Molecular Sciences. 2018;19(7):1987. Pickart L, Vasquez-Soltero JM, Margolina A. GHK peptide as a natural modulator of multiple cellular pathways in skin regeneration. BioMed Research International. 2015;2015:648108. Pickart L, Thaler MM. Tripeptide in human serum which prolongs survival of normal liver cells and stimulates growth in neoplastic liver. Nature New Biology. 1973;243(124):85-87.
Maquart FX, Pickart L, Laurent M, Gillery P, Monboisse JC, Borel JP. Stimulation of collagen synthesis in fibroblast cultures by the tripeptide-copper complex glycyl-L-histidyl-L-lysine-Cu2+. FEBS Letters. 1988;238(2):343-346.
Mulder GD, Patt LM, Sanders L, et al. Enhanced healing of ulcers in patients with diabetes by topical treatment with glycyl-l-histidyl-l-lysine copper. Wound Repair and Regeneration. 1994;2(4):259-269.
Related guides
- SARMs vs peptides: what the research compares
- BPC-157 research guide
- TB-500 research guide
- How to read a certificate of analysis
- SARMs 101 hub
Research products: Origin Peptides GHK-Cu 50mg · GHK-Cu 100mg · GLOW blend (BPC-157, TB-500 and GHK-Cu) · Full Origin Peptides range · Lab Testing