Peptide Central
What GHK-Cu is, how copper binds to the GHK tripeptide, how it is classified, and what published research does and does not establish.
GHK-Cu is the copper(II) complex of GHK, the tripeptide glycyl-L-histidyl-L-lysine. GHK occurs naturally in human plasma and binds copper(II) with an affinity similar to the copper-transport site on albumin. The complex it forms is what the name GHK-Cu refers to.
It is a three-residue peptide complex: not a protein, not a hormone and not a licensed medicine.
"GHK-Cu", "ghkcu", "copper peptide" and "copper tripeptide" all point at this one complex. In cosmetic ingredient lists it appears as copper tripeptide-1. The phrase "copper peptides" also covers other copper-binding peptides, which are different molecules (see below).
Lyophilised powder in a 50mg single-compound vial, listed on the GHK-Cu 50mg product page. The catalogue record gives about 403.9 Da for the copper complex. The GHK-Cu buying guide covers the catalogue side.
GHK-Cu is not a licensed medicine in the UK and has no marketing authorisation for human use. Copper tripeptide-1 is used as an ingredient in cosmetic products, which sit under separate cosmetics rules. That is a different material, grade and purpose from a research reagent, and nothing on this page implies the catalogue item is for cosmetic or any other human use.
Most of the literature is cell-culture and animal work, plus gene-expression analyses run against public reference databases. Reviews describe GHK-Cu changing collagen and glycosaminoglycan synthesis in fibroblast cultures and modulating metalloproteinase activity. Those are findings in cells and animals, not outcomes in people.
Several of the most-cited reviews come from the same research group, writing from a company research and development department. Read them as one body of work, not as independent confirmations of each other.
The reviews describe small studies of topical cosmetic formulations applied to skin. They concern a cosmetic product, not a research reagent, and the results cannot be carried across.
| Name | What it is |
|---|---|
| GHK-Cu | The GHK tripeptide bound to copper(II) |
| GHK | The same tripeptide without copper |
| AHK-Cu | Copper complex of a different tripeptide, alanyl-L-histidyl-L-lysine |
The GHK-Cu research overview goes through the published literature in more detail, and the copper and skin category lists the rest of this group.
The product record lists batch 100238 with an HPLC purity of 99.843%, and its certificate states the GHK-Cu content and the copper fraction separately. The report is in the COA library.
A certificate reports identity and measured purity for the batch tested. It says nothing about biological effect and does not extend to other batches. The guides to reading a peptide COA and understanding HPLC purity explain the limits, and current prices are listed separately.
Materials sold on this site are supplied solely for non-clinical in-vitro laboratory research. They must not be ingested, injected, inhaled, applied or otherwise administered to a human or animal.
We do not provide dosing, routes of administration, treatment guidance, cosmetic-use guidance or in-vivo protocols. Preparation, storage and handling must follow a validated institutional SOP, the material documentation and an appropriate risk assessment.
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Site materials are supplied solely for non-clinical in-vitro laboratory research. They must not be used in or on humans or animals. We do not provide dosing, routes of administration, treatment, cosmetic-use or in-vivo guidance. Read the legal and research-use terms.
