Informational only. Not medical advice.INFORMATIONAL PLATFORM ONLY — NOT MEDICAL ADVICE, DIAGNOSIS, OR TREATMENT
Informational only. Not medical advice.INFORMATIONAL PLATFORM ONLY — NOT MEDICAL ADVICE, DIAGNOSIS, OR TREATMENT
Head-to-head comparison of GHK and SS-31 — mechanism, dosing, side effects, legal status, and pricing.
GHK is the parent tripeptide Gly-His-Lys, originally isolated from human plasma by Loren Pickart (1973) as an activity that caused aged hepatocytes to synthesize proteins like younger tissue. It is DISTINCT from GHK-Cu, the 1:1 copper(II) complex tracked as a separate entry — but GHK binds copper readily in vivo, so in physiological environments the bare peptide rapidly associates with available Cu(II). Not FDA-approved for any indication; used in cosmetic and research contexts only.
SS-31 (elamipretide) is a mitochondria-targeted tetrapeptide (D-Arg-Dmt-Lys-Phe-NH2) developed by Hazel Szeto (Cornell) and clinically advanced by Stealth BioTherapeutics. It concentrates in the inner mitochondrial membrane by binding cardiolipin. In September 2025, the FDA granted accelerated approval to elamipretide (brand name FORZINITY) as the first therapy for Barth syndrome — the first FDA-approved mitochondria-targeted drug. It remains investigational for other indications.
GHK
SS-31
Category
Legal Status
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COA-verified vendors · trust score ≥70 required · single-vial price — bulk/bundle deals may be lower
GHK
SS-31
COA corpus from Disclosed Labs — independently tested batches only.
GHK
No COA data yet.
Submit testing data →SS-31
65
COAs
99.8%
Avg purity
12
Labs
GHK is among peptides under FDA review for the Category 1 (503A) list; if added, it would require a prescription to be compounded by registered 503A/503B pharmacies — not yet authorized. SS-31 remains research-only. In April 2026 the FDA removed 12 peptides from Category 2, which does not place them on the Category 1 list or authorize compounding. The FDA's Pharmacy Compounding Advisory Committee is advisory and meets July 23–24, 2026 to review nominations and make recommendations to the FDA.
The overwhelming majority of GHK research uses the GHK-Cu complex; direct studies of copper-free GHK are limited. Pickart (J Biomater Sci Polym Ed, 2008, PMID 18644225) reviewed GHK's role in tissue remodeling and wound healing. Pickart et al. (Oxid Med Cell Longev, 2012, PMID 22666519) reviewed GHK-Cu in oxidative stress and cognitive aging. Pickart, Vasquez-Soltero & Margolina (BioMed Res Int, 2014, PMID 25302294; 'GHK and DNA: Resetting the Human Genome to Health') summarized microarray data indicating GHK modulates expression of thousands of human genes. No human clinical trials exist for injected bare GHK; cosmetic formulations typically use topical GHK or GHK-Cu at ~50–200 ppm.
Key references
The original SS-peptide class was described by Zhao, Szeto and colleagues (J Biol Chem 2004, PMID 15178689), showing ~1000-fold concentration at the inner mitochondrial membrane and protection against oxidative cell death. Szeto's 2014 review (Br J Pharmacol, PMID 24117165) reframed the mechanism as cardiolipin-binding rather than antioxidant scavenging. The TAZPOWER trial (NCT03098797) in Barth syndrome, with its 168-week open-label extension (Thompson et al., Genet Med 2024, PMID 38602181), supported FDA accelerated approval of FORZINITY in September 2025 at 40 mg SubQ daily. The Phase 3 MMPOWER-3 trial in primary mitochondrial myopathy (Karaa et al., Neurology 2023, PMID 37268435) FAILED co-primary endpoints of 6-minute walk test and fatigue score, though a post-hoc nuclear-DNA subgroup showed improvement. Phase 2 ReCLAIM-2 in geographic atrophy missed primary endpoints but reduced ellipsoid-zone attenuation; a Phase 3 trial is ongoing. Earlier heart failure trials (PROGRESS-HF) showed only modest signals.
GHK (Cosmetic) and SS-31 (Recovery) are in different categories and target different biological pathways. This is a common pattern in multi-compound research protocols. Researchers should monitor the biomarkers from both profiles and watch for interactions listed in each compound’s contraindications. Consult a licensed healthcare provider before combining any research compounds.
This platform provides informational tools only, not medical advice. This comparison is for educational purposes only. Consult a licensed provider.
Frequency
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Key references
Disclosed Labs