Free 24-hour delivery over £75 · Same-day despatchOrder before 2pm - same-day despatch · Free 24-hour delivery over £75
Research use only
All lyophilised (powdered) products and any related items sold by Kovalabs are strictly for scientific research purposes. No dosing guidelines are supplied with any product. We comply with all local regulations governing research-only sales within the United Kingdom. We are not a pharmacy and do not endorse, offer, or provide advice for human or animal consumption. International customers are responsible for checking their own local laws and regulations before purchasing.
You must be 18 or over and purchasing for scientific research only.
By clicking ‘I agree’ you confirm you have read and accepted the terms set out in this disclaimer.
Research use only
· 7 min read
CJC-1295 and ipamorelin get named in the same breath so often that it is easy to assume they are variations on one theme. Chemically they are nothing alike. One is a 29-residue analogue of growth-hormone-releasing hormone; the other is a five-residue ghrelin-mimetic. They do not share a sequence, a size, a developer, or a receptor. The only thing they genuinely share is the axis they sit in - the somatotropic axis - and even there they act through two different doors. This page sets out that molecular distinction at the receptor level. It is a comparison of mechanisms and identity, not a combination, protocol, or recommendation for any use. Both are supplied by Kovalabs strictly as research reagents; everything below describes what published studies investigated, not any human use, benefit or outcome.
| Property | CJC-1295 (modified GRF 1-29) | Ipamorelin |
|---|---|---|
| Class | GHRH analogue (GHRH-receptor agonist) | Ghrelin-mimetic growth-hormone secretagogue |
| Receptor target | GHRHR (class B secretin-family GPCR) | GHS-R1a (ghrelin receptor, class A GPCR) |
| Sequence length | 29 residues (no-DAC base) | 5 residues (Aib-His-D-2-Nal-D-Phe-Lys-NH2) |
| Molecular formula | C152H252N44O42 (no-DAC) / C165H269N47O46 (DAC) | C38H49N9O5 |
| Molecular weight | 3367.9 (no-DAC) / 3647.2 (DAC) g/mol | 711.9 g/mol |
| CAS number | 863288-34-0 (no-DAC) / 446262-90-4 (DAC) | 170851-70-4 |
| PubChem CID | 56841945 (no-DAC) / 91971820 (DAC) | 9831659 |
| Developer code | DAC:GRF | NNC-26-0161 |
The reason these two compounds are studied side by side is also the reason they are not interchangeable: they act on different receptors in the same axis.
CJC-1295 is a GHRH analogue. Its base peptide, modified GRF 1-29, is a tetrasubstituted version of the first 29 residues of growth-hormone-releasing hormone, and it engages the GHRH receptor (GHRHR) - a class B, secretin-family G-protein-coupled receptor on anterior-pituitary somatotroph cells. That is the same receptor native GHRH uses, and the same one sermorelin (unmodified GHRH(1-29)) uses. Jette et al. (Endocrinology, 2005; PMID 15817669) characterised how this class of hGRF(1-29) bioconjugate ligand activates the GRF receptor in rat pituitary cells.
Ipamorelin is a ghrelin-mimetic secretagogue. It is a pentapeptide, Aib-His-D-2-Nal-D-Phe-Lys-NH2, that engages a completely different receptor: the growth-hormone-secretagogue receptor (GHS-R1a), the class A GPCR later identified as the ghrelin receptor. Raun et al. (Eur J Endocrinol, 1998; PMID 9849822) characterised ipamorelin as a selective growth-hormone secretagogue at that receptor. Same axis, different door.
This is why the catalogue groups them by receptor pharmacology rather than by any shared purpose: a GHRHR agonist and a GHS-R1a agonist are two distinct molecular tools that happen to converge on the same physiological system. Describing that convergence is a statement of receptor biology - not a statement that the two should be used, combined, dosed or administered in any way.
| Axis dimension | CJC-1295 | Ipamorelin |
|---|---|---|
| Endogenous ligand it mimics | GHRH (growth-hormone-releasing hormone) | Ghrelin |
| Receptor class | Class B (secretin family) | Class A |
| Peptide family | GHRH analogues | Growth-hormone-releasing peptides (GHRPs) |
| Catalogue neighbours | Sermorelin, tesamorelin (GHRH analogues) | GHRP-6 (GHS-R agonist) |
The identifiers below were cross-checked against PubChem. Each compound has its own full reference page; this section is the identity summary for the comparison.
CJC-1295. The name is used for two related molecules: the no-DAC base (modified GRF 1-29; CID 56841945, CAS 863288-34-0, C152H252N44O42, 3367.9 g/mol) and the long-acting DAC-conjugated form (CID 91971820, CAS 446262-90-4, C165H269N47O46, 3647.2 g/mol). The roughly 279 g/mol difference is the albumin-binding Drug Affinity Complex. Full detail is in the CJC-1295 (No DAC) and CJC-1295 with DAC references and the DAC vs No-DAC comparison.
Ipamorelin. A single defined pentapeptide: Aib-His-D-2-Nal-D-Phe-Lys-NH2, PubChem CID 9831659, CAS 170851-70-4, molecular formula C38H49N9O5, average molecular weight 711.9 g/mol, developer code NNC-26-0161. Full detail is in the ipamorelin catalogue entry.
Each item below is stated as study design and the named endpoint only; no result, effect size or benefit is reproduced.
Listed as research context, not as findings a reader should expect to hold.
The notes below are general bench information only - not dosing, administration or use instructions, and nothing here describes a preparation for use in humans or animals.
Both are supplied as white lyophilised powders (commonly acetate salts), both are hydrophilic and cysteine-free, and both follow standard short-peptide practice: store sealed, desiccated, cold and out of light (frozen for long-term storage); reconstitute in an appropriate aqueous laboratory solvent; aliquot to avoid freeze-thaw cycles. See the reconstitution guide. The sizes differ markedly - ipamorelin is a 711.9 g/mol pentapeptide, CJC-1295 a roughly 3,400-3,650 g/mol conjugated 29-mer - so molar reconstitution maths differs between them even at equal masses. Confirm identity and mass for each lot against its certificate of analysis. Both sit within the GH-axis research category.
CJC-1295 and ipamorelin are supplied by Kovalabs strictly as research chemicals for laboratory research use only. Neither is a medicine, supplement or veterinary product, neither is for human or veterinary use, and nothing on this page constitutes a medicinal, therapeutic, efficacy, dosing or human-outcome claim, nor any recommendation to combine or administer them. Neither has been evaluated by the MHRA or any comparable regulator for safety or efficacy in humans or animals. The descriptions above are restricted to chemistry and to study designs and endpoint names. Every batch is third-party tested with a certificate of analysis. Full terms are on the research disclaimer page.
They act on different receptors. CJC-1295 (modified GRF 1-29) is a GHRH analogue at the GHRH receptor (GHRHR); ipamorelin is a ghrelin-mimetic growth-hormone secretagogue at the GHS-R1a (ghrelin) receptor. They also differ in size - ipamorelin is a 5-residue peptide (711.9 g/mol), CJC-1295 a 29-residue analogue (3367.9 g/mol base, 3647.2 g/mol with DAC). They share the somatotropic axis but engage distinct receptors. This is a receptor-pharmacology distinction, not a combination or use recommendation.
Because they are the two best-known examples of the two distinct receptor routes into the same axis - a GHRH analogue and a ghrelin-mimetic secretagogue. That makes them a natural pairing in the research literature for studying the somatotropic axis. Discussing that pairing at the receptor level is a statement of pharmacology; it is not a protocol, dose or recommendation for any use.
Ipamorelin: PubChem CID 9831659, CAS 170851-70-4, C38H49N9O5, 711.9 g/mol, sequence Aib-His-D-2-Nal-D-Phe-Lys-NH2. CJC-1295 no-DAC: CID 56841945, CAS 863288-34-0, C152H252N44O42, 3367.9 g/mol. CJC-1295 with DAC: CID 91971820, CAS 446262-90-4, C165H269N47O46, 3647.2 g/mol.
No. Both are supplied as research chemicals for laboratory use only, are not approved as medicines by the MHRA or any comparable regulator, are not for human or veterinary use, and nothing on this page is a medicinal, therapeutic or efficacy claim. See the research disclaimer for full terms.
The publication titles below are the original authors' own titles, reproduced so each citation can be verified against PubMed and the cited DOI. They are not statements, conclusions or claims by Kovalabs, and the body of this page describes each study by its design and endpoint name only.