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Longevity & bioregulatorsPeptideEvidence C4 cited

Epitalon

Epithalamin Tetrapeptide

aka Epithalon · AEDG peptide · Ala-Glu-Asp-Gly · epithalamin synthetic

A tetrapeptide researched for telomerase activation and potential influence on cellular ageing and circadian rhythms.

Molecular wt
390.35g/mol
Formula
C14H22N4O9
CAS
307297-39-8
Half-life
3 h
estimated
Tmax
1 h
Route
Subcutaneous injection
PubChem
219042

Sequence

One-letter4 residues

AEDG

Three-letter

Ala-Glu-Asp-Gly

Read this before quoting the sequence
Linear tetrapeptide (also spelled Epithalon/Epithalone), synthesised on the basis of the amino-acid composition of Epithalamin, a bovine pineal gland extract. Sequence stated identically in PubChem (synonym 'Ala-Glu-Asp-Gly' for CID 219042) and in the peer-reviewed literature (Araj 2025: 'a tetrapeptide, Ala-Glu-Asp-Gly (AEDG)'). Note Epitalon (the tetrapeptide) is distinct from Epithalamin (the crude extract), although PubChem's synonym list for CID 219042 wrongly includes 'Epithalamin'.
Source ↗

Mechanism of action

Epitalon is believed to work by activating telomerase, an enzyme that adds protective caps called telomeres to the ends of chromosomes, which may slow down cellular aging. It may also influence the pineal gland to regulate melatonin production, impacting circadian rhythms. Additionally, it might modulate immune function by affecting the thymus gland.

What the evidence actually shows

Grade C

2025 Biogerontology study (Brunel University): dose-dependent telomere extension via hTERT upregulation in normal cells. In cancer cells, extension via ALT pathway (not telomerase) — important safety finding. Still no Western clinical trials.

Regulatory status

Status
Not approved as a medicine in any jurisdiction identified. No entry in Drugs@FDA or the EMA medicines register.
Clinical stage
Preclinical/early research. Retrievable primary evidence is in vitro and animal work, predominantly from a single Russian research group. No registered controlled human trials identified.
WADA
Not named on the WADA 2026 Prohibited List. S0 (Non-Approved Substances) prohibits at all times 'any pharmacological substance ... with no current approval by any governmental regulatory health authority for human therapeutic use', which on its face covers Epitalon.
UK
research_compound

In the UK, Epitalon is not approved for medical use and is considered a research compound.

Source ↗

Pharmacokinetics

Half-life
3 h
Tmax
1 h
Absorption
subcutaneous
Elimination
renal
Washout
1 days
Low-confidence pharmacokinetics
These figures are recorded as estimated rather than measured in a published PK study. Treat them as an order of magnitude. Anything downstream of them — accumulation, steady state, washout — inherits that uncertainty.

Dosing — what backs each figure

Epitalon (Epithalon, AEDG, Ala-Glu-Asp-Gly) is a synthetic tetrapeptide modelled on the composition of the bovine pineal extract Epithalamin. Its published evidence is in vitro and rodent; the human geroprotection literature that gets attributed to it (12- and 15-year Russian coronary-patient studies) used the Epithalamin extract, not the tetrapeptide, and no dose or route is stated in those abstracts. There is no established human dose for Epitalon.

PreclinicalAnimal studies — not a human dose

  • Epithalon added to telomerase-negative human fetal fibroblast culture induced hTERT expression, telomerase activity and telomere elongation; concentration in full text

    human fetal lung fibroblasts (in vitro) · cell culture · PMID 12937682

  • Epithalon added to ageing human fetal fibroblast cultures elongated telomeres and allowed ~10 extra population doublings past the Hayflick limit

    human fibroblasts (in vitro) · cell culture · PMID 15455129

  • Injections of epithalon (with cortagen) decreased lipid peroxidation products and oxidative protein modification in serum and cerebral cortex; dose not stated in abstract

    rat · injection (route not specified in abstract) · PMID 18239817

Animal doses do not convert to human doses by body weight alone. Route matters too — a compound dosed intraperitoneally in mice tells you little about subcutaneous use.

Commonly circulatedNot established by any study
Dose
Research literature cites ~5 to 10 mg/day short courses
Frequency
10-20 days
Cycle
10-20 day cycles· unsourced

Why this isn't evidence
There is no ClinicalTrials.gov record and no retrievable published human trial of the synthetic AEDG tetrapeptide with a stated dose; the long-term Russian gerontology trials that are usually cited for Epitalon actually used Epithalamin, a bovine pineal gland peptide EXTRACT, and their abstracts state no dose either.

This figure is shown because it is what circulates and what people search for — not because it is supported. Cycle lengths in particular tend to be convention copied between compounds rather than anything derived from a compound's own pharmacokinetics.

No established human dose
No approved label or completed human trial establishes a dosing regimen for this compound. Anything presented as a standard protocol for it — anywhere — is someone's convention rather than a finding.

Handling and storage

No compound-specific stability data exists
No compound-specific storage data exists in any regulatory label, pharmacopoeia or published stability study that could be retrieved. Epitalon has no marketing authorisation. Only generic lyophilised-peptide handling guidance would apply. General peptide handling still applies — reconstitute gently, keep it cold, keep it dark — but any specific figure you see quoted for this compound elsewhere is someone's assumption, not a measurement.
→ Reconstitution walkthrough→ Reconstitution calculator

Safety

Commonly reported
  • ·Mild injection site irritation
Rarely reported
  • ·Allergic reactions
Contraindications
  • ·Pregnancy
  • ·Breastfeeding
Drug interactions
  • ·None well-documented

Limited human data; generally well tolerated in studies

Reported combinations

Reported as synergistic
  • ·Melatonin
Reported as antagonistic
  • ·None well-documented

Combination claims in this dataset are largely unsourced and should be treated as folk knowledge until a citation appears beside them.

References (4)

Data provenance

Chemistry and citations on this page were checked against primary sources on 2026-08-14. Values that could not be verified were left blank rather than filled with a plausible guess.

Could not verify
storage, reconstitution

Research use only
This profile is educational reference material. It is not medical advice, not a prescription, and not an endorsement of self-administration. Compounds discussed here are research chemicals and most are not approved for human therapeutic use.

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