GHK-Cu Copper Peptide | 60mg | 3ml

GHK-Cu — also written GHK Cu, GHKCu, copper tripeptide-1 or simply the copper peptide — is the tripeptide glycyl-L-histidyl-L-lysine bound to a divalent copper ion. It occurs naturally in human plasma, where its concentration declines with age, and it binds copper tightly enough to hold it in a defined, deliverable form, which is what makes it useful at the bench: it lets a laboratory study signalling driven by the peptide and by copper biochemistry at the same time. Ours is supplied pre-mixed as a solution in a sealed 3 ml vial, 60mg of GHK-Cu per vial, HPLC-verified with a batch Certificate of Analysis, synthesised and dispatched from our UK facility. A 100mg kit with the reusable pen and needles in the box is also available.

Research use only. GHK-Cu is supplied strictly for in-vitro laboratory research. This page describes chemistry, format, quality and handling. It does not describe dosing, administration or use in humans or animals, and makes no therapeutic or cosmetic claims.

GHK-Cu at a glance

What GHK-Cu is, chemically

The peptide half is three residues long — glycine, histidine, lysine — and on its own it is called GHK, the apo-peptide, at 340.4 g/mol. The copper half is a single Cu²⁺ ion coordinated by the histidine imidazole ring, the glycine amino terminus and the peptide backbone, which is why the complex is written GHK-Cu and weighs 401.9 g/mol. That coordination is also why the solution is blue: the colour is the copper complex itself, and a colourless liquid sold as GHK-Cu is a sign that the copper is absent or has been lost.

The distinction matters when buying. Some suppliers sell GHK without copper and label it loosely; the two are different reagents with different behaviour in a copper-dependent assay. Everything on this page refers to the copper complex.

How GHK-Cu is studied

Published in-vitro and preclinical work uses GHK-Cu in three overlapping areas: as a copper carrier in studies of copper transport, binding and the cuproenzymes that depend on it (lysyl oxidase and superoxide dismutase among them); in extracellular-matrix models, where fibroblast cultures are used to examine collagen and glycosaminoglycan synthesis and matrix-remodelling signalling; and in gene-expression profiling, where the complex has been used to probe transcriptional responses in cultured cells. Because the peptide and the metal both contribute, control arms in this literature typically compare GHK-Cu against the apo-peptide and against a simple copper salt. These are laboratory observations that vary with concentration, exposure time and model, and they are not established effects in humans or animals. The GHK-Cu guide goes through the literature in more depth.

GHK-Cu on its own or in a blend

GHK-Cu is the largest component by mass of two of our blends: GLOW (BPC-157, TB-500 and 50mg of GHK-Cu, 70mg in total) and KLOW (the same plus KPV, 80mg). A blend is a research convenience for multi-pathway work; the single vial is the right choice when the question is about copper-dependent signalling specifically, when a control arm needs the peptide alone, or when the ratio in the blends does not suit the study. All three are supplied pre-mixed.

Pre-mixed GHK-Cu vs lyophilised

Most UK suppliers ship GHK-Cu as a lyophilised powder that has to be reconstituted before use. Ours is supplied already in solution, so there is no bacteriostatic water to buy and no reconstitution step, and the concentration shown in the key facts above is the concentration in the vial for the whole batch. The trade-off is that a solution must stay cold: every vial ships chilled in an insulated pouch, goes into a 2–8 °C refrigerator on arrival, and should be used within the storage window on the label rather than kept as shelf stock.

Quality: HPLC purity and the Certificate of Analysis

This is one of the products whose chemistry on this page is taken directly from the laboratory certificate rather than from reference tables. Every batch is verified by HPLC at 99%+ purity, the certificate records the value measured for that batch together with the appearance, and a batch-specific COA ships with every order. Sample certificates are viewable in the COA library before you buy.

Storage and handling

• Refrigerate at 2–8 °C on arrival; keep the vial sealed and protected from light; do not freeze.
• The copper stays bound in the near-neutral solution it is supplied in. Strongly acidic diluents can release it, so dilute into a buffer rather than an acid, and treat a loss of the blue colour as a sign the complex has changed.
• Draw from the vial with standard aseptic laboratory technique.

Buying GHK-Cu in the UK: what to check

1. Copper-bound or not. GHK-Cu and apo-GHK are different reagents; the certificate should name the copper complex and the solution should be blue.
2. Mass per vial, not just a size name — ours is stated on the label and the certificate, and the 100mg kit is a separate listing.
3. A batch-specific Certificate of Analysis naming the batch, the method and the appearance, viewable before you order.
4. Format. Powder needs reconstitution; a pre-mixed solution needs cold-chain delivery and a refrigerator.
5. Legal status. GHK-Cu is lawful to buy and possess in the UK for laboratory research. It is not a licensed medicine, this vial is not a cosmetic product, and every vial is labelled for in-vitro research use only.