GHK-Cu (Copper Peptide) — Canada Research Brief

Discovery and structure

GHK-Cu is the copper(II) complex of the tripeptide glycyl-L-histidyl-L- lysine. Loren Pickart first isolated GHK from human plasma albumin in 1973 while studying why plasma from young donors supported more robust liver-cell growth in culture than plasma from older donors. The "aging factor" turned out to be the amount of free GHK, which declines steadily with age.

The copper-bound form, GHK-Cu, is the physiologically relevant species. The histidine imidazole and the N-terminal glycine chelate a copper(II) ion, forming a square-planar complex that can shuttle copper into cells via plasma transport proteins.

Sequence: Gly-His-Lys (Cu²⁺). Molecular weight: 463.98 g/mol (copper complex). CAS: 49557-75-7.

Research pathways

Pickart and colleagues have published extensively on GHK-Cu's biological activities across four decades. The most-cited pathways:

1. Copper delivery. GHK-Cu is a physiological copper transport peptide; many of its downstream effects are explained by the cellular copper it delivers rather than by the peptide itself.
2. Collagen and glycosaminoglycan synthesis. In dermal fibroblast cultures GHK-Cu has been reported to upregulate collagen and glycosaminoglycan synthesis — the basis for its extensive literature in skin research.
3. Anti-inflammatory signalling. In vitro work suggests GHK-Cu attenuates several pro-inflammatory cytokine pathways, though in vivo human confirmation is limited.
4. Wound healing. Multiple rodent and ex vivo human skin models report accelerated wound closure in the presence of topical GHK-Cu.

Research-use framing in Canada

GHK-Cu is not a Health Canada approved drug, not a prescription, and — when sold as a research chemical — not a cosmetic. The specific form OVIOPEPTIDES sells is for non-clinical laboratory research use only. For the full Canadian regulatory posture, see our peptides in Canada guide.

Storage

GHK-Cu is sensitive to oxidation. Store the lyophilised product at -20°C protected from light. Once reconstituted, keep refrigerated at 2-8°C and minimise exposure to ambient light during handling. Copper-peptide solutions typically show visible degradation (colour change, precipitate) before chemical analysis confirms loss of activity — visual inspection is a useful first check.