GHK-Cu and KPV Together: What Is Known
GHK-Cu and KPV taken together: what each one is, how each is regulated, and what is known about combining them.
Medically reviewed by Juan Pablo Frías, MD · · DisclosureUpdated
Interaction notes
Timing, interactions and safety
Evidence for the combination
No studies tested these together (PubMed search: 2 results, 2 Oct 2026).
Neither is FDA approved for use in people, and we have no sourced data on combining them.
Each component
Side by side
Showing 10 of 12 fields where the two differ. WADA, Half-life are the same or both unknown.
| Field | GHK-Cu | KPV |
|---|---|---|
| Class | Copper tripeptide | Anti-inflammatory tripeptide |
| Also called | copper peptide, copper tripeptide-1, GHK | Lys-Pro-Val, alpha-MSH fragment |
| Category | Skin & hair | Healing & recovery |
| FDA status | Injectable off Category 2 (Apr 2026) | PCAC voted 8–6 for 503A (Jul 2026) |
| PCAC vote, Jul 2026 | Not on the Jul 2026 agenda | PCAC voted 8–6 for the 503A list (Jul 2026); not finalized |
| WADA | WADA status unclearGHK-Cu: This is not named on the 2026 list. The catch-all class S0 prohibits any drug with no approval anywhere for human use, so it would be banned if no health authority has approved it, but we have not verified that for this substance. | WADA status unclearKPV: This is not named on the 2026 list. The catch-all class S0 prohibits any drug with no approval anywhere for human use, so it would be banned if no health authority has approved it, but we have not verified that for this substance. |
| Half-life | No published half-life foundPubMed search, 2 Oct 2026 | No published half-life foundPubMed search, 2 Oct 2026 |
| Evidence strength | Human RCT evidence, 4 of 4Strongest: Archives of facial plastic surgery 2006, PMID 16847171 | Animal evidence, 2 of 4Strongest: Inflammatory bowel diseases 2008, PMID 18092346 |
| Human studies we summarised | 4 human (2 randomized or controlled) of 14 summarised | 0 human (0 randomized or controlled) of 9 summarised |
| Typical study doses |
| Not reported in study abstractsPubMed search, 2 Oct 2026 |
| Vial sizes sold | 50 mg, 100 mg, 200 mg | 5 mg, 10 mg, 20 mg |
| US searches per month | 234,100 · +340% searches | 14,800 · +565% searches |
Related tools
Sold pre-mixed too
Some vials combine these peptides. The blend calculator shows the dose of each component per draw.
What people search
- ghkcu kpv320/mo
- ghkcu kpv blend260/mo
- ghkcu and kpv140/mo
- kpv ghkcu110/mo
- kpv and ghk cu70/mo
- kpv ghk cu blend40/mo
US monthly searches, Google Keyword Planner, Oct 2026. Shown so you can see which questions this page answers.
Sources
- 1FDA gives notice that 12 peptides will be removed from Category 2 (nominations withdrawn)FDA · 2026fda.govAccessed 2 Oct 2026
- 2World Anti-Doping Code International Standard Prohibited List 2026World Anti-Doping Agency · 2026wada-ama.orgAccessed 2 Oct 2026
- 3Effects of topical copper tripeptide complex on CO2 laser-resurfaced skin.Archives of facial plastic surgery · 2006PMID 16847171Accessed 2 Oct 2026
- 4Tripeptide-copper complex GHK-Cu (II) transiently improved healing outcome in a rat model of ACL reconstruction.Journal of orthopaedic research : official publication of the Orthopaedic Research Society · 2015PMID 25731775Accessed 2 Oct 2026
- 5PubMed search: ("GHK-Cu"[tiab] OR GHK[tiab] OR "copper tripeptide"[tiab] OR "copper peptide"[tiab] OR "copper peptides"[tiab] OR "glycyl-L-histidyl-L-lysine"[tiab] OR "glycyl-histidyl-lysine"[tiab] OR "Gly-His-Lys"[tiab]) (431 results)PubMed · 2026pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.govAccessed 2 Oct 2026
- 6PubMed search: ("GHK-Cu"[tiab] OR GHK[tiab] OR "copper tripeptide"[tiab] OR "copper peptide"[tiab] OR "copper peptides"[tiab] OR "glycyl-L-histidyl-L-lysine"[tiab] OR "glycyl-histidyl-lysine"[tiab] OR "Gly-His-Lys"[tiab]) AND (humans[mh] OR patients[tiab] OR volunteers[tiab]) (150 results)PubMed · 2026pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.govAccessed 2 Oct 2026
- 7PubMed search: ("GHK-Cu"[tiab] OR GHK[tiab] OR "copper tripeptide"[tiab] OR "copper peptide"[tiab] OR "copper peptides"[tiab] OR "glycyl-L-histidyl-L-lysine"[tiab] OR "glycyl-histidyl-lysine"[tiab] OR "Gly-His-Lys"[tiab]) AND (randomized[tiab] OR clinical trial[pt] OR split-face[tiab]) (8 results)PubMed · 2026pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.govAccessed 2 Oct 2026
- 8PubMed search: ("GHK-Cu"[tiab] OR GHK[tiab] OR "copper tripeptide"[tiab] OR "copper peptide"[tiab] OR "copper peptides"[tiab] OR "glycyl-L-histidyl-L-lysine"[tiab] OR "glycyl-histidyl-lysine"[tiab] OR "Gly-His-Lys"[tiab]) AND (wound[tiab] OR hair[tiab] OR skin[tiab] OR wrinkle*[tiab]) (123 results)PubMed · 2026pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.govAccessed 2 Oct 2026
- 9PubMed search: ("GHK-Cu"[tiab] OR GHK[tiab] OR "copper tripeptide"[tiab] OR "copper peptide"[tiab] OR "copper peptides"[tiab] OR "glycyl-L-histidyl-L-lysine"[tiab] OR "glycyl-histidyl-lysine"[tiab] OR "Gly-His-Lys"[tiab]) AND (half-life[tiab] OR pharmacokinetic*[tiab]) (2 results)PubMed · 2026pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.govAccessed 2 Oct 2026
- 10PubMed search: ("GHK-Cu"[tiab] OR GHK[tiab] OR "copper tripeptide"[tiab] OR "copper peptide"[tiab] OR "copper peptides"[tiab] OR "glycyl-L-histidyl-L-lysine"[tiab] OR "glycyl-histidyl-lysine"[tiab] OR "Gly-His-Lys"[tiab]) AND (rat[tiab] OR mice[tiab] OR rats[tiab] OR animal[tiab]) (80 results)PubMed · 2026pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.govAccessed 2 Oct 2026
- 11PubMed search: ("GHK-Cu"[tiab] OR "copper tripeptide"[tiab] OR "copper peptide"[tiab] OR "copper peptides"[tiab] OR "glycyl-L-histidyl-L-lysine"[tiab] OR "glycyl-histidyl-lysine"[tiab] OR "Gly-His-Lys"[tiab]) AND (facial[tiab] OR cream[tiab] OR photodamage[tiab] OR volunteers[tiab] OR women[tiab]) (6 results)PubMed · 2026pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.govAccessed 2 Oct 2026
- 12PubMed search: ("GHK-Cu"[tiab] OR "copper tripeptide"[tiab] OR "copper peptide"[tiab] OR "copper peptides"[tiab] OR "glycyl-L-histidyl-L-lysine"[tiab] OR "glycyl-histidyl-lysine"[tiab] OR "Gly-His-Lys"[tiab]) AND (hair[tiab] OR alopecia[tiab]) (16 results)PubMed · 2026pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.govAccessed 2 Oct 2026
- 13Melanocortin-derived tripeptide KPV has anti-inflammatory potential in murine models of inflammatory bowel disease.Inflammatory bowel diseases · 2008PMID 18092346Accessed 2 Oct 2026
- 14PubMed search: (KPV[tiab] OR "Lys-Pro-Val"[tiab] OR "lysine-proline-valine"[tiab]) (132 results)PubMed · 2026pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.govAccessed 2 Oct 2026
- 15PubMed search: (KPV[tiab] OR "Lys-Pro-Val"[tiab] OR "lysine-proline-valine"[tiab]) AND (alpha-MSH[tiab] OR melanocortin[tiab] OR colitis[tiab] OR inflammat*[tiab]) (95 results)PubMed · 2026pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.govAccessed 2 Oct 2026
- 16PubMed search: (KPV[tiab] OR "Lys-Pro-Val"[tiab] OR "lysine-proline-valine"[tiab]) AND (half-life[tiab] OR pharmacokinetic*[tiab]) (2 results)PubMed · 2026pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.govAccessed 2 Oct 2026
- 17PubMed search: (KPV[tiab] OR "Lys-Pro-Val"[tiab] OR "lysine-proline-valine"[tiab]) AND (clinical trial[pt] OR randomized[tiab] OR patients[tiab]) (9 results)PubMed · 2026pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.govAccessed 2 Oct 2026
- 18PubMed search: ("GHK-Cu"[tiab] OR GHK[tiab] OR "copper tripeptide"[tiab] OR "copper peptide"[tiab] OR "copper peptides"[tiab] OR "glycyl-L-histidyl-L-lysine"[tiab] OR "glycyl-histidyl-lysine"[tiab] OR "Gly-His-Lys"[tiab]) AND (KPV[tiab] OR "Lys-Pro-Val"[tiab] OR "lysine-proline-valine"[tiab])PubMed · 2026pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.govAccessed 2 Oct 2026
- 19Advisory committee backs 6 of 7 peptides for the 503A listNCPA · 2026ncpa.org
Found an error? Report a correction.