GHK-Cu
A copper-carrying peptide sold for skin and healing. It may be compounded only in non-injectable forms, and the human trials are about wounds, with mixed results.
- U.S. status
- Legal to compound
- "GHK-Cu (except for injectable routes of administration)" is in 503A Category 1 (list updated May 14, 2026). The injectable route is on no list.
- FDA source, read September 2026.
- Evidence cited here
- Recovery: Small studies2 controlled human studies cited here for recovery, the largest that reports its size with 13 people.
- Forms sold
- Oral · Sublingual · Topical
- Eligible only as topical, nasal spray, oral, sublingual. No injectable form is on any FDA list.
1. What GHK-Cu is
GHK-Cu is a copper complex of GHK, a three-amino-acid peptide found in human blood. It is sold in creams and serums for skin, and by some sellers as an injection.
The FDA's 503A Category 1 lists "GHK-Cu (except for injectable routes of administration)". A cream, spray or tablet may be compounded; an injection is on no list, so this site treats injectable GHK-Cu as research-only and links no seller for it.
2. How it works
In cell cultures, GHK-Cu switched on collagen production in skin fibroblasts at very low concentrations, and that lab finding is the root of the skin claims. The step from a fibroblast in a dish to a visible change in your skin depends on the peptide getting through the skin in useful amounts, which these studies did not measure.
Much of the wider literature, including claims that GHK changes the activity of thousands of genes, comes from gene-expression databases and from reviews by the scientist who first described it, whose affiliation is a company that sells it.
3. What the studies measured
In people with diabetic foot ulcers, a GHK-Cu gel on top of standard wound care closed more of the ulcer area than a plain gel: a median of 98.5% against 60.8%. The abstract does not give the number of patients.
After laser resurfacing around the mouth, 13 patients used skin products with or without GHK-Cu for 12 weeks. Blinded evaluators and computer analysis found no difference in redness, wrinkles or skin quality; only the patients' own rating of skin quality favored GHK-Cu.
4. What they did not measure
No placebo-controlled trial of GHK-Cu for facial aging or wrinkles has been published; an independent 2025 review calls this "a surprising absence of clinical studies."
No study in people has tested injected GHK-Cu, the form some sellers offer. That form is not eligible for compounding.
The studies behind this page
The evidence label above is computed from these papers: their design and how many people they enrolled.
- Randomized trial
Size not given in the abstract
Counts toward: Recovery
Median ulcer closure 98.5% against 60.8% on vehicle; infections 7% against 34%.
People with diabetic foot ulcers; topical GHK-Cu gel or vehicle gel with standard wound care.
Mulder GD, Patt LM, Sanders L, Rosenstock J, Altman MI, Hanley ME, Duncan GW (1994). Enhanced healing of ulcers in patients with diabetes by topical treatment with glycyl-l-histidyl-l-lysine copper. Wound Repair Regen. PMID 17147644
- Randomized trial
13 people
Counts toward: Recovery
No difference in redness, wrinkles or skin quality on objective measures; patient-rated skin quality favored GHK-Cu (P = .04).
Patients after CO2 laser resurfacing around the mouth; skin care with or without GHK-Cu for 12 weeks.
Miller TR, Wagner JD, Baack BR, Eisbach KJ (2006). Effects of topical copper tripeptide complex on CO2 laser-resurfaced skin. Arch Facial Plast Surg. PMID 16847171
- Lab (cell) study
No human participants
Counts toward: Recovery
Collagen synthesis rose from very low concentrations, peaking at 10⁻⁹ M.
Cultured skin fibroblasts.
Maquart FX, Pickart L, Laurent M, Gillery P, Monboisse JC, Borel JP (1988). Stimulation of collagen synthesis in fibroblast cultures by the tripeptide-copper complex glycyl-L-histidyl-L-lysine-Cu2+. FEBS Lett. PMID 3169264
- Review
No human participants
Counts toward no label
Describes "a surprising absence of clinical studies" of GHK-Cu in anti-wrinkle products.
Independent review of topical GHK and GHK-Cu.
Mortazavi SM, Mohammadi Vadoud SA, Moghimi HR (2025). Topically applied GHK as an anti-wrinkle peptide: Advantages, problems and prospective. Bioimpacts. PMID 39963574
GHK-Cu
Frequently asked questions
- Can GHK-Cu be prescribed as an injection?
- Not legally from a compounding pharmacy. FDA's 503A Category 1 covers GHK-Cu except for injectable routes, so creams, sprays and oral forms may be compounded and injections may not.
- Does GHK-Cu reduce wrinkles?
- No placebo-controlled trial has shown that. After laser resurfacing, blinded evaluators saw no difference in wrinkles between skin care with and without GHK-Cu.