BPC-157

BPC-157 is a synthetic pentadecapeptide with the sequence GEPPPGKPADDAGLV, corresponding to a partial sequence of a protein first described in human gastric juice, supplied here as a laboratory reference material and not approved as a drug in any jurisdiction.

This material is for in vitro and laboratory research only. It is not for human or animal consumption, and nothing here describes a use in people or animals. See the research use policy.

Identity and specification

Formula and mass above describe the free base. Material made by solid-phase synthesis ships as a salt, so gross vial weight is not the weight of peptide inside. Net peptide content is always lower and should be reported separately on the certificate of analysis; our peptide calculator works from that figure rather than label weight.

Origin and nomenclature

The abbreviation BPC stands for body protection compound, the name a pharmacology group at the University of Zagreb gave to a protein fraction they reported isolating from human gastric juice in the early 1990s. BPC-157 is a synthetic 15-residue segment of that parent sequence. Sources disagree on whether the free pentadecapeptide occurs endogenously as a discrete species or only as a fragment of the larger protein; isolation of the free peptide from human tissue has not been widely reproduced outside the originating group. The ambiguity matters when reading literature that calls the compound naturally occurring.

Research history and the shape of the literature

The published record is large and unusually concentrated. Vasireddi et al. (2025) searched PubMed, Cochrane and Embase from inception to June 2024 for musculoskeletal work, identifying 544 records published between 1993 and 2024, of which 36 met inclusion criteria: 35 preclinical studies and one clinical study. A substantial share of the wider corpus originates from the Zagreb group and its collaborators, a structural limitation on how independently the findings have been replicated. Volume of papers and number of independent laboratories are different measures, and they diverge sharply here.

Mechanism as described in published work

No high-affinity receptor for BPC-157 has been identified. The mechanistic literature describes modulation of existing signalling pathways rather than binding to a dedicated target, and this remains an open question.

The most frequently cited mechanistic work concerns angiogenic signalling. Hsieh et al. (2017) reported, using chick chorioallantoic membrane and human endothelial tube-formation assays together with a rat hind-limb ischaemia model, increased vessel density and increased expression and internalisation of vascular endothelial growth factor receptor 2 (VEGFR2), with downstream activation of the VEGFR2-Akt-eNOS axis; the observed effects were suppressed by dynasore, an endocytosis inhibitor. In tendon-derived cell culture, Chang et al. (2011) reported increased explant outgrowth, cell survival and migration in vitro, and Chang et al. (2014) reported increased growth hormone receptor expression in cultured rat tendon fibroblasts. Reviewing the preclinical literature, McGuire et al. (2025) described VEGFR2 signalling together with nitric oxide synthesis via the Akt-eNOS axis as the pathways most often invoked in animal models. All of this work is preclinical; none of it establishes an effect in humans.

Pharmacokinetics complicate interpretation. Mateescu et al. (2026), reviewing the compound from a biopharmaceutical standpoint, described a plasma half-life under 30 minutes in preclinical species alongside reported effects persisting for hours to days, and called this pharmacokinetic-pharmacodynamic disconnect unresolved. The same review noted the absence of a validated pharmaceutical-grade formulation, of Biopharmaceutics Classification System data, and of excipient compatibility studies.

Study models at a glance

Human data

There is no published randomised controlled efficacy trial of BPC-157 for any indication. Vasireddi et al. (2025) identified a single clinical record in their systematic review, a retrospective series of 12 patients. McGuire et al. (2025) identified three human pilot studies in total. Mateescu et al. (2026) put the cumulative published human exposure at fewer than 30 subjects across three uncontrolled pilot studies, none of which used a standardised pharmaceutical preparation, and noted that no Phase II trial has been completed. Vasireddi et al. reported that preclinical safety studies showed no adverse effects across several organ systems, and that no clinical safety data were found. The human evidence base is thin in both directions: it establishes neither benefit nor safety.

Regulatory status

BPC-157 is not approved by the FDA, the EMA, or any comparable authority, for any indication, in any formulation.

• BPC-157 is not authorised for use in pharmacy compounding. In a notice published on 16 April 2026, the FDA announced a meeting of the Pharmacy Compounding Advisory Committee for 23 and 24 July 2026 to consider fourteen nominated bulk drug substances, including BPC-157 (free base) and BPC-157 acetate, for possible inclusion on the section 503A bulk drug substances list.
• Nomination and committee consideration are not approval, and neither is a finding of safety or efficacy. Adding a substance to the 503A bulks list requires notice-and-comment rulemaking. As of this writing no such rulemaking has concluded, and BPC-157 is not eligible for use in compounding.
• The compound is prohibited in sport. World Anti-Doping Agency class S0 covers substances not approved by any governmental regulatory health authority for human therapeutic use, and BPC-157 falls within that class; Vasireddi et al. (2025) describe its use as banned in professional sport.

Handling, storage and lot verification

The peptide is hygroscopic in lyophilised form and degrades faster in solution than dry. Vials should be kept sealed and desiccated at -20 C or colder, and allowed to reach room temperature before opening so atmospheric moisture does not condense onto cold powder. Further detail is in our notes on peptide storage and on preparing solutions from lyophilised material.

A lot should arrive with a certificate of analysis that reports HPLC purity with the chromatogram, identity confirmation by mass spectrometry against the expected 1419.5 g/mol free-base mass, net peptide content, counter-ion identity, and water content. Reports for our lots are published under lab testing. Independent published comparisons of acetate against arginine-salt stability in solution are limited, so vendor stability claims about salt form should be treated as unverified absent supporting data.

How should lyophilised BPC-157 be stored?

Sealed, desiccated, protected from light, at -20 C or colder. Solutions should be held at 2-8 C and treated as short-lived. Repeated freeze-thaw cycling is a common avoidable cause of purity loss in stored peptide solutions.

Does CAS 137525-51-0 cover the salt forms?

No. That registry number identifies the free base. Acetate, trifluoroacetate and basic amino acid salts have different masses and, where assigned, different registry numbers. A certificate of analysis should state which salt is present, because the counter-ion changes the relationship between vial weight and peptide weight.

What paperwork should accompany a research lot?

HPLC purity with the raw chromatogram rather than a summary figure, mass spectrometric identity confirmation, net peptide content, counter-ion, and water content by Karl Fischer or equivalent. A certificate without an attached chromatogram is a summary, not a test result.

Is BPC-157 legal to sell or approved for any use?

It is not an approved drug in any jurisdiction. It is distributed as a research chemical for laboratory use only, and it is prohibited in sport under WADA class S0. It is not eligible for use in pharmacy compounding: substances reach the section 503A bulks list only through notice-and-comment rulemaking, and no such rulemaking has concluded for BPC-157.