Growth Hormone: nootropics and compounds | sci-wiki

CJC-1295 / Ipamorelin

CJC-1295 / Ipamorelin is a classic synergistic peptide pairing that combines a long-acting GHRH analogue with a highly selective growth hormone secretagogue. Together they stimulate growth hormone release through two complementary pathways, amplifying the natural, pulsatile GH signal cleanly and without raising stress hormones. For those exploring GH-axis support, this stack is among the most refined and popular combinations.

3 outlets

Peptide

Capromorelin

Capromorelin is a potent, orally active ghrelin receptor agonist and the first appetite stimulant of its class to earn FDA approval. By mimicking the body's own hunger hormone, it reliably drives food intake, body-weight gain, and growth hormone release. It is a well-characterized, clinically validated tool for stimulating appetite and supporting healthy weight.

1 outlet

Peptide

CJC-1295

CJC-1295 is a long-acting growth hormone-releasing hormone analogue engineered to stimulate the body's own pulsatile release of growth hormone and IGF-I for days from a single dose. In clinical studies it produced sustained, dose-dependent increases in GH and IGF-I while preserving natural secretion patterns. For research into the GH-IGF-I axis, CJC-1295 is a uniquely long-lasting and elegant GHRH analogue.

6 outlets

Peptide

GHRP-2

GHRP-2 (pralmorelin) is a synthetic growth hormone secretagogue, a ghrelin-mimetic that binds the ghrelin receptor (GHS-R1a) to trigger a pulse of the body's own growth hormone, and it also stimulates appetite and, to a lesser degree, ACTH and cortisol. Its growth-hormone response is reliable enough that it has been used clinically as a formal test of growth-hormone reserve, and it remains active by oral and intranasal routes. It is studied in the context of growth hormone deficiency, body composition, and recovery, and is used as a research peptide.

6 outlets

Peptide

GHRP-6

GHRP-6 is one of the original growth hormone-releasing hexapeptides, a ghrelin-receptor agonist that prompts a pulse of the body's own growth hormone along with a marked increase in appetite. A distinct and much-studied second property is growth-hormone-independent cytoprotection: acting through the scavenger receptor CD36, it has reduced oxidative damage and necrosis in animal models of myocardial infarction and other tissue injury. It is used as a research peptide and has been employed diagnostically in tests of growth-hormone secretion.

6 outlets

Peptide

Hexarelin

Hexarelin (examorelin) is a synthetic hexapeptide growth hormone secretagogue that binds the ghrelin receptor (GHS-R1a) to trigger a potent, reproducible, and largely somatostatin-resistant pulse of endogenous growth hormone, an effect that is strongest in pubertal children and young adults and blunted in the very young and elderly. What distinguishes it from other secretagogues is a second receptor: hexarelin binds the cardiac scavenger receptor CD36, through which it exerts growth-hormone-independent cardiovascular actions, including protection against ischemia-reperfusion injury, attenuation of post-infarction heart failure via PTEN and Akt/mTOR modulation, and CD36-PPAR-gamma signaling relevant to lipid and energy metabolism. Some growth hormone secretagogues, including hexarelin, additionally show angiotensin-converting-enzyme-inhibiting activity that may contribute to their vascular effects. As a result it is one of the most thoroughly characterized peptides in its class, studied both as a growth hormone provocative agent and as an experimental cardioprotective compound.

3 outlets

Growth Hormone

HGH

Human growth hormone, abbreviated HGH and also called somatotropin, is a peptide hormone of 191 amino acids produced by the somatotroph cells of the anterior pituitary gland. It drives growth during childhood and regulates metabolism throughout life, acting largely by prompting the liver and other tissues to make insulin-like growth factor 1 (IGF-1). A recombinant form, somatropin, is used medically to treat growth hormone deficiency and several other conditions, and it is also misused for anti-aging and athletic purposes.

2 outlets

Peptide

Ipamorelin

Ipamorelin is a selective growth hormone secretagogue, a pentapeptide that activates the ghrelin receptor to prompt a clean, pulsatile release of growth hormone [1]. Its signature advantage is selectivity: unlike earlier growth hormone-releasing peptides, it raises GH without meaningfully increasing cortisol or prolactin, even at doses far above those needed for GH release [1]. This clean profile, together with documented effects on metabolism and gastrointestinal motility, has made ipamorelin one of the most sought-after research peptides in its class [1][2][3].

6 outlets

Growth Hormone

MK-777

MK-777, also styled Acetamoren, is marketed as an orally active growth hormone secretagogue in the same putative family as the well-characterized Ibutamoren (MK-677), and is presented as a ghrelin receptor agonist intended to amplify natural growth hormone and IGF-1 output. No published scientific record specific to MK-777 could be identified, so it is best regarded as an experimental compound whose rationale rests entirely on the biology of the growth hormone secretagogue class rather than on any direct evidence. For that class, non-peptide secretagogues acting at the growth hormone secretagogue receptor can restore youthful pulsatile growth hormone secretion and raise IGF-1, as demonstrated for MK-677. The citations here are provided as class-level context and do not characterize MK-777 itself; independent verification of its identity, potency, and safety is lacking.

1 outlet

Growth Hormone

Modified GRF 1-29

Modified GRF 1-29 is a synthetic peptide analog of growth hormone-releasing hormone (GHRH), built from the first 29 amino acids of GHRH with four amino acid substitutions that make it more resistant to breakdown. It is closely related to sermorelin and to CJC-1295; in fact it is the short-acting form of CJC-1295, lacking the albumin-binding attachment (the drug affinity complex, or DAC) that gives the latter its long duration. Like other GHRH analogs it prompts the pituitary gland to release growth hormone, and it is handled as a research chemical rather than an approved medicine.

1 outlet

Peptide

Sermorelin

Sermorelin is a synthetic analogue comprising the first 29 amino acids of growth hormone-releasing hormone (GHRH), the shortest fragment that retains full biological activity at the pituitary GHRH receptor. Rather than supplying growth hormone directly, it stimulates the somatotrophs to secrete the body's own hormone, preserving the natural pulsatile rhythm and leaving intact the negative feedback that guards against overexposure. Once approved for the diagnosis and treatment of growth hormone deficiency, it is now used chiefly in compounding and research settings, where interest centers on recovery, body composition, and sleep. The broader GHRH-receptor family it belongs to is under active study for effects well beyond the pituitary, including agonist protection in heart failure and antagonist activity against prostatic hyperplasia, fibrosis, and tumor growth.

5 outlets

Peptide

Tesamorelin

Tesamorelin is a synthetic analog of growth hormone-releasing hormone and the first therapy approved by the FDA specifically to reduce excess visceral abdominal fat, in HIV-associated lipodystrophy. By stimulating the body's own pulsatile release of growth hormone it lowers deep abdominal fat and raises IGF-1; beyond that, trials have shown it reduces liver fat in fatty liver disease and, by restoring more youthful pulsatile GH signaling, has improved muscle mitochondrial function and measures of cognition. It is marketed as Egrifta and given by daily injection.

6 outlets

Dopaminergic

Bromocriptine

Bromocriptine is a dopamine receptor agonist derived from ergot, acting mainly at the dopamine D2 receptor. It is used to treat conditions linked to excess prolactin, such as prolactinomas and related infertility, as well as Parkinson disease, acromegaly, and, in a quick-release form, type 2 diabetes. Discovered by Sandoz in the 1960s, it was approved for medical use in the 1970s.

2 outlets

Peptide

Ghrelin

Ghrelin is a peptide hormone produced mainly by the stomach that stimulates appetite and the release of growth hormone, which has earned it the popular label of the hunger hormone. It was identified in 1999 as the natural ligand of the growth hormone secretagogue receptor, and its blood levels typically rise before meals and fall afterward [1][2]. Ghrelin must undergo an unusual fatty-acid modification to become active, and it plays broad roles in appetite, energy balance, and metabolism [1][2].

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Peptide

Somatostatin

Somatostatin, also called growth hormone-inhibiting hormone, is a cyclic peptide that acts as a widespread inhibitory signal, dampening the release of growth hormone, insulin, glucagon, and gastrointestinal secretions. It operates through five G-protein-coupled receptor subtypes (SSTR1 to SSTR5) that couple mainly to inhibition of adenylate cyclase and cyclic AMP, with additional signaling through ion channels and downstream kinases; notably, some subtypes such as SSTR3 exert constitutive, ligand-independent suppression of growth hormone synthesis. Its very short half-life in the circulation spurred the development of longer-acting analogues such as octreotide and lanreotide, which selectively target SSTR2 and SSTR5 to treat acromegaly and neuroendocrine tumors. The same gene also yields the related peptide neuronostatin, underscoring the system's role as a finely tuned regulator of endocrine and metabolic tone.

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