Peptide Dosage Reference Chart
Overview
This chart compiles dosage parameters reported in published preclinical and clinical research for commonly studied research peptides and small molecules. All values are drawn directly from primary literature — animal efficacy studies, pharmacokinetic trials, or Phase I/II/III clinical trials — and are presented here as reference data for study design purposes.
Research use only: These compounds are sold strictly for in vitro and laboratory research purposes. The dosage data below reflects parameters used in published scientific studies and is not intended to guide, inform, or suggest any human or veterinary administration protocol. This is a data compilation tool, not medical or clinical guidance.
Key concepts for interpreting dosage literature:
- Species scaling: Rodent doses are not linearly translatable to human equivalents. Body surface area scaling (e.g., Km factor) must be applied — a 10 µg/kg rat dose does not equal 10 µg/kg in humans
- Route dependency: Subcutaneous bioavailability for many peptides is lower than intraperitoneal or IV administration. Published SC doses are often adjusted upward from IP doses to maintain equivalent exposure
- Dose-response relationships: Several peptides (e.g., BPC-157, GHK-Cu) exhibit non-monotonic or bell-shaped dose-response curves in certain assays — higher is not necessarily more efficacious
- Frequency vs. dose: For compounds with short half-lives, dosing frequency often matters more than per-dose magnitude in maintaining relevant plasma concentrations
Repair Peptides
This category includes peptides primarily studied for tissue repair, wound healing, and anti-inflammatory activity in preclinical models.
| Compound | Study Context | Dose Range | Route | Frequency | Source | Profile |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| BPC-157 | Tendon/ligament healing (rat) | 10 µg/kg | IP / SC | Daily × 14 days | Chang et al. 2011 | View → |
| BPC-157 | Muscle healing (rat) | 10 µg/kg | IP / SC | Daily × 7 days | Staresinic et al. 2006 | View → |
| BPC-157 | GI ulcer healing (rat) | 10–100 µg/kg | IP / Oral (drinking water) | Daily × 7–14 days | Sikiric et al. 2018 | View → |
| TB-500 (Tβ4 frag.) | Cardiac repair (mouse) | 150 µg / animal | IP | Twice weekly × 4 weeks | Smart et al. 2007 | — |
| Thymosin Beta-4 | Cardiac repair (mouse) | 150–500 µg / animal | IP / IV | Twice weekly × 4–8 weeks | Bock-Marquette et al. 2004 | — |
| GHK-Cu | Wound healing (mouse) | 1–10 µg/cm² (topical) | Topical | Once daily × 7–14 days | Pickart et al. 2015 | — |
| GHK-Cu | Collagen synthesis (in vitro) | 1–1000 nM | Cell culture | Single treatment | Pickart & Margolina 2018 | — |
GH Axis Peptides
Growth hormone-related peptides include GHRH analogs, GHRPs, and IGF-1 variants. Dosage data ranges from rodent preclinical work to human clinical trials, with the latter providing the most translationally relevant parameters.
| Compound | Study Context | Dose Range | Route | Frequency | Source | Profile |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tesamorelin | HIV lipodystrophy (human, Phase III) | 2 mg / day | SC | Once daily × 26–52 weeks | Falutz et al. 2007, 2010 | View → |
| CJC-1295 (with DAC) | GH pulsatility (human) | 30–60 µg/kg | SC | Once weekly (long half-life) | Ionescu & Frohman 2006 | — |
| CJC-1295 (no DAC) | GH secretion (rodent/human) | 1–2 µg/kg | SC / IV | 2–3× daily (short half-life) | Inferred from GHRH analog PK data | — |
| Ipamorelin | GH secretion, anti-aging (rat) | 200–300 µg/kg | IV / SC | Once daily or 3× daily | Johansen et al. 1999 | — |
| GHRP-2 | GH release (human) | 1 µg/kg (bolus) | IV | Single / 3× daily | Bowers et al. 1994 | — |
| IGF-1 LR3 | Muscle hypertrophy (rodent) | 50–100 µg/kg | IP / SC | Daily × 7–28 days | Adams & McCue 1998 | — |
| AOD-9604 | Obesity (human, Phase II) | 1 mg / day (oral) | Oral / SC | Once daily × 12 weeks | Heffernan et al. 2001 | — |
| Fragment 176-191 | Adipolysis (rodent) | 250–500 µg/kg | SC | Daily × 14–28 days | Ng et al. 2000 | — |
Metabolic Compounds
This category includes GLP-1 receptor agonists with extensive clinical trial dosage data, as well as the small molecule triple reuptake inhibitor tesofensine. These compounds have the highest quality dosage data in the table, drawn directly from FDA-filing or Phase II–III clinical trials.
| Compound | Study Context | Dose Range | Route | Frequency | Source | Profile |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Semaglutide | T2DM glycemic control (human, Phase III) | 0.5–1 mg | SC | Once weekly × 30–68 weeks | Marso et al. 2016 (SUSTAIN-6) | — |
| Semaglutide | Obesity (human, Phase III STEP) | 2.4 mg | SC | Once weekly × 68 weeks | Wilding et al. 2021 (STEP-1) | — |
| Tirzepatide | T2DM & obesity (human, Phase III SURMOUNT) | 5 / 10 / 15 mg | SC | Once weekly × 72 weeks | Jastreboff et al. 2022 (SURMOUNT-1) | — |
| Retatrutide | Obesity (human, Phase II) | 1–12 mg | SC | Once weekly × 24–48 weeks | Jastreboff et al. 2023 | — |
| Tesofensine | Obesity (human, Phase II TIPO-1) | 0.25 / 0.5 / 1 mg | Oral | Once daily × 24 weeks | Astrup et al. 2008 (Lancet) | — |
CNS & Nootropic Peptides
CNS-active peptides present particular dosage complexity because effective concentrations at the target site (CNS) may differ substantially from peripheral plasma concentrations. Most data here is from rodent studies, with limited human PK characterization.
| Compound | Study Context | Dose Range | Route | Frequency | Source | Profile |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Selank | Anxiolytic / cognitive (rat) | 100–300 µg/kg | IP / Intranasal | Once daily × 5–14 days | Semenova et al. 2010 | — |
| Semax | Cognitive enhancement (rat / human) | 50–100 µg/kg (rodent); 200–600 µg/day (human) | IP / Intranasal | Once daily × 5–10 days | Dolotov et al. 2006; Shadrina et al. 2010 | — |
| DSIP | Sleep regulation (rat / cat) | 25–100 µg / animal | IV / ICV | Single or short course | Schoenenberger et al. 1977 | — |
| Epitalon | Lifespan / telomere (mouse) | 0.1–1 µg/kg | IP | Every other day × 2 weeks (cyclic) | Anisimov et al. 2003 | — |
| PT-141 | Sexual dysfunction (human, Phase II) | 1.25–10 mg | SC / Intranasal | Single dose (as-needed) | Diamond et al. 2005 | — |
Melanocortin Peptides
The melanocortin peptide Melanotan II has an unusually robust human clinical dataset compared to most research peptides in this library, including Phase I dose-finding and Phase II efficacy trials.
| Compound | Study Context | Dose Range | Route | Frequency | Source | Profile |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Melanotan II | Melanogenesis / tanning (human, Phase I) | 0.01–0.16 mg/kg | SC | Daily × 10 days | Dorr et al. 1996 | — |
| Melanotan II | Erectile function (human, Phase II) | 0.025 mg/kg | SC | Single dose (as-needed) | Wessells et al. 2000 | — |
| α-MSH | Anti-inflammatory (rodent) | 100–500 µg/kg | IV / IP | Single or repeat dosing | Bhardwaj et al. 2010 | — |
Reading the Data
Data quality tiers
Dosage data in this table falls into three quality tiers, which should influence how heavily the values are relied upon for any given research application:
| Tier | Source Type | Examples in This Table | Translatability |
|---|---|---|---|
| Tier 1 | Human Phase II / III clinical trials with registered endpoints | Tesamorelin, Semaglutide, Tirzepatide, Retatrutide, Tesofensine, Melanotan II (Phase I/II) | Highest — human PK and PD characterized |
| Tier 2 | Rodent preclinical efficacy studies with clear dose-response | BPC-157, TB-500, Tβ4, IGF-1 LR3, Fragment 176-191, Selank | Moderate — requires species-appropriate scaling |
| Tier 3 | Inferred from half-life data, dosing interval logic, or single exploratory studies | CJC-1295 (no DAC), DSIP, MOTS-c | Low — use as starting approximation only |
Allometric scaling note
When extrapolating from rodent data to other model organisms, researchers commonly apply body surface area (BSA) scaling using the FDA's 2005 guidance formula. The human equivalent dose (HED) from a rodent dose is calculated as: HED = Animal Dose (mg/kg) × (Animal Km / Human Km), where Km for rats ≈ 6, mice ≈ 3, humans ≈ 37. A 10 µg/kg rat dose translates to approximately 1.6 µg/kg HED, not 10 µg/kg.
Using the Peptide Calculator
Once a target dose in µg/kg is established from the literature, use the Alpha Tides Peptide Calculator to determine the exact reconstitution volume needed based on vial concentration and desired draw volume. This eliminates manual dilution calculations and reduces pipetting error.
References
- Chang CH, et al. The promoting effect of pentadecapeptide BPC 157 on tendon healing involves tendon outgrowth, cell survival, and cell migration. J Appl Physiol. 2011;110(3):774–780. PMID: 21148156
- Falutz J, et al. Metabolic effects of a growth hormone-releasing factor in patients with HIV. N Engl J Med. 2007;357(23):2359–2370. PMID: 18057339
- Astrup A, et al. Effect of tesofensine on bodyweight loss, body composition, and quality of life in obese patients: a randomised, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial. Lancet. 2008;372(9653):1906–1913. PMID: 18950853
- Jastreboff AM, et al. Tirzepatide once weekly for the treatment of obesity. N Engl J Med. 2022;387(3):205–216. PMID: 35658024
- Wilding JPH, et al. Once-weekly semaglutide in adults with overweight or obesity. N Engl J Med. 2021;384(11):989–1002. PMID: 33567185
- Dorr RT, et al. Evaluation of melanotan-II, a superpotent cyclic melanotropic peptide in a pilot phase-I clinical study. Life Sci. 1996;58(20):1777–1784. PMID: 8666914
- Wessells H, et al. Melanocortin receptor agonists, penile erection, and sexual motivation: human studies with Melanotan II. Int J Impot Res. 2000;12(Suppl 4):S74–79. PMID: 10845756
- Smart N, et al. Thymosin β4 induces adult epicardial progenitor mobilization and neovascularization. Nature. 2007;445(7124):177–182. PMID: 17293857
- Bock-Marquette I, et al. Thymosin β4 activates integrin-linked kinase and promotes cardiac cell migration, survival and cardiac repair. Nature. 2004;432(7016):466–472. PMID: 15343342
- Pickart L, et al. GHK peptide as a natural modulator of multiple cellular pathways in skin regeneration. Biomed Res Int. 2015;2015:648108. PMID: 26065009