GHK copper is a peptide that has recently piqued my interest. Initially, I thought it was just a cosmetic peptide. In regenerative medicine, I'm more concerned about things like discs, ligaments, and tendons, but the more I dug into this peptide, I saw other dramatic

benefits, including longevity benefits. I'm going to overview the main benefits I've seen looking into this peptide. I could spend hours talking about this, but not today. Just for some background, this peptide was discovered in 1973 by a PhD, Lauren Pickart, who has really pioneered

the science with this peptide. I hear he uses this peptide every day on himself. Here's a picture of him now in his 80s. Just kidding, this is really what he looks like. So, back in the 70s, they were treating old liver cells with young

blood plasma. They saw that the old liver cells rejuvenated with this plasma. So, as they tried to tease out what the difference was between the old and the young plasma, they found that this peptide was the difference. There was a significantly higher amount of this

peptide in the young blood versus the old plasma. At age 20, there's about 200 micrograms per liter in plasma versus at age 60, there's about 80 micrograms per liter in the plasma. This is a simple peptide with only three amino acids: Glycine, histidine,

and lysine. They have this unique ability to bind a copper ion. It is thought that the beneficial effect from this peptide is its ability to transport the copper ion into the cell. There's also some thought that it plays a role in gene transcription. The GHK peptide has shown

beneficial effects on skin fibroblasts, which synthesize structural elements of the skin but also produce a wide range of growth factors essential for skin repair. Most skin trials were about 12 weeks long and showed that it could tighten loose skin, reverse thinning of

aged skin, improve skin firmness, elasticity and clarity, reduce fine lines, depth of wrinkles, reduce photo damage and hyperpigmentation, protect cells from UV radiation. In addition to the benefits mentioned previously with the fibroblast, this peptide has shown to re-establish blood flow into damaged

tissue by angiogenesis, which is the creation of new blood vessels, anticoagulation and vasodilation. It also increases the expression of basic fibroblast growth factor and vascular endothelial growth factor. Interestingly, GHK is part of a protein in all tissues

that when it sustains tissue damage, the GHKs are released which then stimulates the healing of that local tissue. GHK is shown to improve nerve healing through increased nerve growth factor and neurotrophins. The brain requires a lot of copper, a diet deficient in copper

increases the risk for neurodegenerative changes. Copper deficiency may play a role in the development of Alzheimer's and other neurodegenerative disorders like Parkinson's. In addition to increasing copper delivery, GHK has antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties. GHK may also trigger

epigenetic pathways to improve cognitive impairments. They investigated this on rats, the treatment group were able to find the escape faster and they also had decreased brain inflammation. GHK also has potent anti-pain, anti-anxiety and anti-aggression benefits shown in rats.

less fever behaviors, less aggression after being shot, and less pain after touching a hot plate. Here are some of the pain-related genes that GHK influences. GHK has shown to suppress fibrinogen. Fibrinogen is a known risk factor for stroke and heart attack, so higher levels

of fibrinogen increase that risk. Damaged and broken fibroblasts from COPD lung tissue were normalized after the addition of the GHK peptide. Okay, that was a lot of information. Really, there's still a lot we need to know about this

peptide before we can promote its use in humans. This peptide is in a lot of over-the-counter cosmetic products. You can use it topically. Daily injections subcutaneously are required for some of these other non-cosmetic benefits. Like other peptides, these can be accessed

through a physician or online source, but ultimately these are still in the experimental realm where we really need more human trials to be able to say if they provide a significant benefit and with the optimal dosing. Should be until next time. [Music]

All About GHK-Cu Peptide | More Than Just Cosmetic

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