In brief
A brief 2003 report from the St Petersburg group that developed Epithalon (Ala-Glu-Asp-Gly). Adding the tetrapeptide to cultured human fetal fibroblasts that did not express telomerase induced expression of the enzyme's catalytic subunit, measurable telomerase activity and elongation of telomeres. The authors read this as reactivation of the telomerase gene in ordinary somatic cells and suggest it points to a way of extending the replicative life of a cell population and, in their words, of the whole organism.
Study design
Human fetal fibroblast culture that was telomerase-negative; Epithalon added, telomerase expression and telomere length measured.
What it does not show
A very short paper from a single laboratory, in one cell type, with no independent replication cited. The step from telomere length in a dish to organism lifespan is the authors' speculation, not a result.
Cells in culture are not a tissue and not an organism. Concentrations, exposure times and the absence of circulation, immunity and metabolism mean a dish result says only that the molecule can act on that cell type under those conditions.
Where this paper is cited
- Epithalon — Human fetal fibroblast cultures: the tetrapeptide induced telomerase activity and telomere elongation.
Other papers cited for Epithalon
- Animal study Effect of Epitalon on biomarkers of aging, life span and spontaneous tumor incidence in female Swiss-derived SHR mice Anisimov et al. (2003), Biogerontology
Further reading
- Research library: every paper cited on this site, by compound and by study type.
- Cognitive and longevity peptide comparison
- How to read a certificate of analysis
- Lyophilised peptide storage and stability
How this page was made: the citation was retrieved from PubMed by PMID and checked against the title on the product page; the summary was written from the paper's abstract and reports only what the abstract reports. Read the paper itself before relying on any figure here.