GHK-Cu (Copper Peptide)

Copper-binding tripeptide

What It Is

A naturally occurring small peptide that binds copper; its levels in human plasma decline with age. Best known as an ingredient in topical cosmetic skincare products, distinct from most other compounds in this database which are discussed mainly as injectables.

Proposed Mechanism

Proposed roles include supporting collagen/elastin production pathways and antioxidant activity in skin — an area with a comparatively larger cosmetic-science research base than most peptides here, though still not equivalent to drug-level clinical evidence.

Areas Researchers Are Investigating

• Topical skin appearance/anti-aging outcomes
• Wound healing (mostly preclinical/animal and some small human studies)
• Hair-related research (early-stage)

Human Evidence

More human data exists here than for most compounds in this database, largely from cosmetic-industry-sponsored studies on topical skin appearance measures — this is a different (and generally lower bar) evidence category than FDA drug-approval trials, and should be described as such.

Animal / Preclinical Evidence

Wound-healing research in animal models has been a common preclinical research area.

Current FDA / Regulatory Status

Regulated as a cosmetic ingredient, not as an FDA-approved drug. Cosmetics in the US are not "FDA-approved" the same way drugs are — the FDA does not pre-approve most cosmetic ingredients before marketing. This distinction should always be made explicit: "used in FDA-regulated cosmetic products" is accurate; "FDA-approved" is not.

Known Safety Information

Widely used topically in commercial skincare at low concentrations. General topical-cosmetic safety information only — no injectable-use safety claims should be made, and any non-topical use is a different risk category entirely and outside this business's scope.

Limitations of Evidence

Many topical studies are cosmetic-industry funded and use surrogate measures (skin appearance scores) rather than hard clinical endpoints.