EDUCATIONAL AND RESEARCH REFERENCE ONLY — NOT MEDICAL ADVICE — NOT FDA APPROVED
hormonal20 studies

Ipamorelin Dosing Protocol: GH Secretagogue Research

Also known as: NNC 26-0161

What is a Peptide?

A short chain of amino acids (2-50) linked by peptide bonds. Smaller than proteins. Your body produces thousands of peptides naturally as signaling molecules that regulate everything from appetite to healing. Therapeutic peptides mimic or enhance these natural signals.

Bottom Line Up Front

Ipamorelin is a selective growth hormone secretagogue that stimulates GH release without significantly affecting cortisol or prolactin. Considered one of the "cleaner" GHRPs with fewer side effects than GHRP-6 or GHRP-2.

Best evidence for

Growth hormone stimulation, recovery

Weakest evidence for

Significant muscle growth in healthy adults

Pharma equivalent

None

Studies on file

20 (7 human)

Research reference only. Ipamorelin is not FDA approved for human use (unless specified above). This information does not constitute medical advice.

Overview

Ipamorelin is a growth hormone secretagogue that selectively stimulates the pituitary gland to release growth hormone. It is one of the most selective GHRPs studied.

Mechanisms of Action

  • Selective GH release
  • Minimal cortisol/prolactin increase
  • Ghrelin receptor agonist
  • Preserves natural GH pulsatility

Research Protocols

Summaries of published research. For educational purposes only.

Protocol NameSourceDoseFrequencyDurationRouteEvidenceLinkSave
GH Release Study
clinical trial
100 μg3x daily4 weeksSubcutaneoushumanSign in to Save

Related Studies

7 Human13 Animal

Although preclinical studies are promising, there is a current lack of clinical trials. This review integrates current mechanistic insights with orthopaedic relevance, emphasizing safety, efficacy, and future directions for responsible integration into musculoskeletal care.

Limitations: No placebo control reported. Review article — no new primary data.

2026|Journal of the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons. Global research & reviews
PubMed

BPC-157 demonstrated potential benefits in tendon and muscle repair, but these findings are largely unvalidated in human trials. A single human case series reported improvements in pain after intra-articular knee injections of BPC-157, although significant methodological flaws and a lack of controls limit its applicability and reliability.

Limitations: No placebo control reported. Review article — no new primary data.

2026|The American journal of sports medicine
PubMed

Furthermore, the concentrations of luteinizing hormone (LH) and 11-ketotestosterone (11-KT) in the serum of fish treated with either 5 or 30 µg of IPA were significantly elevated in comparison to the control group. Collectively, these findings suggest that the administration of ghrelin enhances the development of germ cells during the meiosis-I phase and that this effect might be mediated via the stimulation of 11-KT and androgen receptors at the testicular level and LH at the pituitary level in the tilapia.

Limitations: Animal study only — human translation uncertain.

2024|Animal reproduction science
PubMed

had beneficial effects in alleviating cisplatin-induced weight loss during delayed phase, and these effects were seen when centrally administered anamorelin. Anamorelin inhibited cisplatin-induced acute emesis following intracerebroventricular but not intraperitoneal administration, suggesting that brain penetration is important for its anti-emetic mechanism of action.

Limitations: Animal study only — human translation uncertain.

2024|Physiology & behavior
PubMed

All are potent GH and IGF-1 stimulators that can significantly improve body composition while ameliorating specific hypogonadal symptoms including fat gain and muscular atrophy. However, a paucity of data examining the clinical effects of these compounds currently limits our understanding of GHS' role in the treatment of men with hypogonadism, but does open opportunities for future investigation.

Limitations: No placebo control reported. Review article — no new primary data.

2020|Translational andrology and urology
PubMed

The structure of these peptides was characterised by means of high resolution (tandem) mass spectrometry, and for Gly-Ipamorelin and Gly-GHRP-2 their identity was additionally confirmed by custom synthesis. Further, established in-vitro experiments provided preliminary information considering the potential metabolism after administration.

Limitations: Preliminary/pilot study — needs larger trials. No placebo control reported.

2018|Growth hormone & IGF research : official journal of the Growth Hormone Research Society and the International IGF Research Society
PubMed

Abdominal surgery caused a delay in gastric emptying with 78% &#xb1; 5% of the meal remaining in the stomach in vehicle controls. Ipamorelin (0.014 &#xb5;mol/kg intravenous) resulted in a significant acceleration (P < 0.05 vs vehicle-treated rat) of gastric emptying with 52% &#xb1; 11% of the meal remaining in the stomach compared to nonsurgical control animals with 44% &#xb1; 6%.

Limitations: Animal study only — human translation uncertain.

2016|Journal of experimental pharmacology
PubMed

The method was fully validated, calibration curves of targeted analytes were obtained and excretion curves of GHRPs and their metabolites were plotted. Our results confirm that the detection window after GHRPs administration depends on individual metabolism, drug preparation form and the way of administration.

Limitations: No placebo control reported.

2016|Drug testing and analysis
PubMed

One hundred seventeen patients were enrolled, of whom 114 patients composed the safety and modified intent-to-treat populations. Demographic and disease characteristics were balanced between groups.

Limitations: Standard limitations apply. Check original paper for full discussion.

2015|International journal of colorectal disease
PubMed

In contrast, repetitive dosing of ipamorelin (0.1 or 1 mg/kg) significantly increased the cumulative fecal pellet output, food intake, and body weight gain. The results suggest that postsurgical intravenous infusions of ipamorelin may ameliorate the symptoms in patients with POI.

Limitations: Animal study only — human translation uncertain.

2009|The Journal of pharmacology and experimental therapeutics
PubMed

Ipamorelin evoked significant (p<0.04) increases in insulin secretion from the pancreas of normal and diabetic rats. Either diltiazem or yohimbine or propranolol or a combination of atropine, propranolol and yohimbine inhibited IPA-evoked insulin secretion significantly (p<0.03) from the pancreas of normal and diabetic rats.

Limitations: Animal study only — human translation uncertain.

2005|Neuro endocrinology letters
PubMed

Only in the Ipamorelin group did Ipamorelin (10(-8) M), GHRP 6 (10(-8) M) and GHRH (10(-8) M) prompt increased intracellular GH content. These data suggest that, at least in the young female rat, the GHS Ipamorelin is able to exert a dynamic control effect on the somatotroph population and on GH hormone content.

Limitations: Animal study only — human translation uncertain.

2003|Histology and histopathology
PubMed

The maximum tetanic tension was increased significantly, and the periosteal bone formation rate increased four-fold in animals injected with GC and GHS in combination, compared with the group injected with GC alone. In conclusion, the decrease in muscle strength and bone formation found in GC-injected rats was counteracted by simultaneous administration of the growth hormone secretagogue.

Limitations: Animal study only — human translation uncertain.

2002|Growth hormone &amp; IGF research : official journal of the Growth Hormone Research Society and the International IGF Research Society
PubMed

A series of NN703 analogues with lysine mimetics combined with naphthyl- or biphenylalanine in the core has been prepared and tested in vitro in a rat pituitary cell based assay and subsequently in vivo in pigs in a single dose at 50 nmol/kg. Re-introduction of certain pharmacophores in the C-terminal of NN703, which were originally removed during optimisation for oral bioavailability, led to unexpectedly potent compounds in vitro as well as in vivo.

Limitations: Animal study only — human translation uncertain.

2001|Bioorganic &amp; medicinal chemistry letters
PubMed

We conclude that treatment of adult female rats with the GHSs ipamorelin and GHRP-6 increases BMC as measured by DXA in vivo. The results of in vitro measurements using pQCT and Archimedes' principle, in addition to ash weight determinations, show that the increases in cortical and total BMC were due to an increased growth of the bones with increased bone dimensions, whereas the volumetric BMD was unchanged.

Limitations: Animal study only — human translation uncertain.

2000|The Journal of endocrinology
PubMed

The pituitary GH content was unchanged by ipamorelin treatment. Whether ipamorelin or other GH secretagogues may have a place in the treatment of children with growth retardation requires demonstration in future clinical studies.

Limitations: Animal study only — human translation uncertain.

1999|Growth hormone &amp; IGF research : official journal of the Growth Hormone Research Society and the International IGF Research Society
PubMed

The PK parameters showed dose-proportionality, with a short terminal half-life of 2 hours, a clearance of 0.078 L/h/kg and a volume of distribution at steady-state of 0.22 L/kg. The time course of GH stimulation by ipamorelin showed a single episode of GH release with a peak at 0.67 hours and an exponential decline to negligible GH concentration at all doses.

Limitations: No placebo control reported.

1999|Pharmaceutical research
PubMed

Higher bioavailabilities of approximately 50% were determined for NNC 26-0235, NNC 26-0194 and GHRP-2, whereas the nasal absorption of GHRP-6 was somewhat lower. Thus, the peptides could be easily transported across the nasal epithelium suggesting that the nasal route seems promising for systemic delivery of this family of peptidyl growth hormone secretagogues.

Limitations: Animal study only — human translation uncertain.

1999|Xenobiotica; the fate of foreign compounds in biological systems
PubMed

In conclusion, ipamorelin is the first GHRP-receptor agonist with a selectivity for GH release similar to that displayed by GHRH. The specificity of ipamorelin makes this compound a very interesting candidate for future clinical development.

Limitations: Animal study only — human translation uncertain.

1998|European journal of endocrinology
PubMed

NNC 26-0235 demonstrated a 10% oral bioavailability in dogs, and NNC 26-0235 and ipamorelin were able to increase basal GH level by more than 10-fold after oral administration of a dose of 1.8 and 2.7 mg/kg, respectively. The tripeptide NNC 26-0323 (3-(aminomethyl)benzoic acid-N-Me-D-2Nal-N-Me-D-Phe-ol) which showed moderate in vitro potency but lacked in vivo potency demonstrated a 20% oral bioavailability in rats.

Limitations: Animal study only — human translation uncertain.

1998|Journal of medicinal chemistry
PubMed

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Important Warnings

  • Hormone modulation requires monitoring
  • Not for unsupervised use

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