Which has more human data?

Going by the research status on each profile (Ipamorelin: Phase 1 / early human; CJC-1295 (no DAC): Preclinical (animal)), Ipamorelin is furthest along in human testing. Research status describes the stage of the published evidence, not whether a compound works or is safe.

What are the half-lives?

Ipamorelin: 2 hours. CJC-1295 (no DAC): No published PK data found. Figures are as reported in the cited studies, with the species where stated.

Are they FDA-approved?

Ipamorelin: research status “Phase 1 / early human”. Not FDA-approved. Ipamorelin is not among the peptides the 2026 PCAC voted on. CJC-1295 (no DAC): research status “Preclinical (animal)”. See the FDA peptide regulatory tracker for sourced compounding status.

How are they administered in the research?

Ipamorelin: Subcutaneous injection. CJC-1295 (no DAC): Subcutaneous injection. This describes the published studies and is not a recommendation for human use.

How do their proposed mechanisms differ?

Ipamorelin: In plain terms: It acts like the hunger hormone ghrelin to trigger growth hormone release, and in animal studies it did not raise stress hormones. Selective ghrelin-receptor (growth hormone secretagogue) agonist that stimulates pituitary GH release. In swine, unlike GHRP-2 and GHRP-6, it did not raise ACTH or cortisol above GHRH-stimulated levels, even at doses over 200-fold the effective dose (Raun 1998); in healthy volunteers it produced a single episode of GH release (Gobburu 1999). CJC-1295 (no DAC): In plain terms: It is expected to prompt the pituitary gland to release growth hormone, based on similar compounds; it has not been studied directly. Proposed mechanism, inferred from related GHRH analogues (no published studies of this compound were found): a GHRH-receptor agonist expected to stimulate pituitary GH release. The related GHRH analogue sermorelin (GRF 1-29) stimulates GH secretion from the anterior pituitary (Prakash 1999). These are mechanisms proposed in the cited research, at the research stage listed for each compound.

Ipamorelin vs CJC-1295 (no DAC): Research Comparison

Built from the Ipamorelin, CJC-1295 (no DAC) research profiles · Profiles last updated October 1, 2026 · Reviewed by The Peptide Dispatch Editorial Team

TL;DR

This page compares Ipamorelin and CJC-1295 (no DAC) using only their research-profile data. Ipamorelin (research stage: Phase 1 / early human; half-life: 2 hours). It acts like the hunger hormone ghrelin to trigger growth hormone release, and in animal studies it did not raise stress hormones. CJC-1295 (no DAC) (research stage: Preclinical (animal); half-life: Not established in published research). It is expected to prompt the pituitary gland to release growth hormone, based on similar compounds; it has not been studied directly. Educational summary, not medical advice.

Where each point comes from: Clinicalhuman trials and FDA labels Lab / animalrodent, cell and ex vivo studies Community-reporteduser experience and commonly used protocols, not from clinical studies

Educational summary. Everything below is taken from each compound's research profile and describes what was reported in the cited studies — not a promise of results, a dose recommendation, or an endorsement for human use. Not medical advice. Full disclaimer.

Side-by-side comparison

	Ipamorelin	CJC-1295 (no DAC)
Category	Growth Hormone	Growth Hormone
Research status	Phase 1 / early human	Preclinical (animal)
Regulatory note (as of Sept 2026)	Not FDA-approved. Ipamorelin is not among the peptides the 2026 PCAC voted on. Regulatory tracker →	— Regulatory tracker →
Half-life	2 hours	No published PK data found
Administration route	Subcutaneous injection	Subcutaneous injection
Dosing used in published research (not a recommendation)	Healthy men: i.v. infusion of 4.21-140.45 nmol/kg over 15 min, n=8 per dose (Gobburu 1999). That is roughly 3-100 µg/kg. Rats and swine were dosed in nmol/kg (Raun 1998).	No published studies of Mod GRF(1-29)/CJC-1295 no DAC found. CJC-1295 with DAC: 30 or 60 µg/kg s.c. single/weekly doses in healthy adults. Sermorelin: 1 µg/kg i.v. as a diagnostic GH stimulation test in children.
Community-reported protocol (not from clinical studies)	Community-reported100–300 mcg, subcutaneous injection	Community-reported100–200 mcg, subcutaneous injection
How it works (as summarized from the cited research)	In plain terms: It acts like the hunger hormone ghrelin to trigger growth hormone release, and in animal studies it did not raise stress hormones. Selective ghrelin-receptor (growth hormone secretagogue) agonist that stimulates pituitary GH release. In swine, unlike GHRP-2 and GHRP-6, it did not raise ACTH or cortisol above GHRH-stimulated levels, even at doses over 200-fold the effective dose (Raun 1998); in healthy volunteers it produced a single episode of GH release (Gobburu 1999).	In plain terms: It is expected to prompt the pituitary gland to release growth hormone, based on similar compounds; it has not been studied directly. Proposed mechanism, inferred from related GHRH analogues (no published studies of this compound were found): a GHRH-receptor agonist expected to stimulate pituitary GH release. The related GHRH analogue sermorelin (GRF 1-29) stimulates GH secretion from the anterior pituitary (Prakash 1999).
Effects reported in research (study subjects as stated)	ClinicalIn a human dose-escalation study: GH release modelled in healthy volunteers (Gobburu 1999)	Lab / animalIn animal studies: enhanced GH release Body composition, recovery, sleep and anti-aging effects are hypothesized based on GHRH pharmacology; no published studies of this compound
Potential side effects	Human safety data limited to short-term PK/PD studies	No published human safety data for the no-DAC form ClinicalFor CJC-1295 with DAC: injection-site reactions and no serious adverse events in 28-49 day trials (PMID 16352683)
Profile description	A selective growth hormone secretagogue that stimulates GH release. In swine, it did not raise ACTH or cortisol at doses >200x the GH ED50 (Raun 1998).	Modified Growth Hormone Releasing Factor (1-29), proposed to provide more stable GH release when combined with GHRPs (no primary study found). Also known as Mod GRF 1-29.
References cited on the profile	2	2

Key differences in the published research

Research status: Ipamorelin — Phase 1 / early human; CJC-1295 (no DAC) — Preclinical (animal).
Category: the same on every profile (Growth Hormone).
Reported half-life: Ipamorelin — 2 hours; CJC-1295 (no DAC) — No published PK data found.
Administration route in the literature: the same on every profile (Subcutaneous injection).
Evidence cited: Ipamorelin’s profile lists 2 references; CJC-1295 (no DAC)’s profile lists 2 references.

Regulatory status

Ipamorelin: Not FDA-approved. Ipamorelin is not among the peptides the 2026 PCAC voted on. Details →
CJC-1295 (no DAC): No regulatory note on its profile. Details →

For the sourced, dated status of every peptide in FDA's 2026 compounding actions, see the FDA peptide regulatory tracker.

Frequently Asked Questions

Which has more human data?: Going by the research status on each profile (Ipamorelin: Phase 1 / early human; CJC-1295 (no DAC): Preclinical (animal)), Ipamorelin is furthest along in human testing. Research status describes the stage of the published evidence, not whether a compound works or is safe.
What are the half-lives?: Ipamorelin: 2 hours. CJC-1295 (no DAC): No published PK data found. Figures are as reported in the cited studies, with the species where stated.
Are they FDA-approved?: Ipamorelin: research status “Phase 1 / early human”. Not FDA-approved. Ipamorelin is not among the peptides the 2026 PCAC voted on. CJC-1295 (no DAC): research status “Preclinical (animal)”. See the FDA peptide regulatory tracker for sourced compounding status.
How are they administered in the research?: Ipamorelin: Subcutaneous injection. CJC-1295 (no DAC): Subcutaneous injection. This describes the published studies and is not a recommendation for human use.
How do their proposed mechanisms differ?: Ipamorelin: In plain terms: It acts like the hunger hormone ghrelin to trigger growth hormone release, and in animal studies it did not raise stress hormones. Selective ghrelin-receptor (growth hormone secretagogue) agonist that stimulates pituitary GH release. In swine, unlike GHRP-2 and GHRP-6, it did not raise ACTH or cortisol above GHRH-stimulated levels, even at doses over 200-fold the effective dose (Raun 1998); in healthy volunteers it produced a single episode of GH release (Gobburu 1999). CJC-1295 (no DAC): In plain terms: It is expected to prompt the pituitary gland to release growth hormone, based on similar compounds; it has not been studied directly. Proposed mechanism, inferred from related GHRH analogues (no published studies of this compound were found): a GHRH-receptor agonist expected to stimulate pituitary GH release. The related GHRH analogue sermorelin (GRF 1-29) stimulates GH secretion from the anterior pituitary (Prakash 1999). These are mechanisms proposed in the cited research, at the research stage listed for each compound.

References

Ipamorelin

Pharmacokinetic-pharmacodynamic modeling of ipamorelin, a growth hormone releasing peptide, in human volunteers
Gobburu JV, Agersø H, Jusko WJ, Ynddal L. Pharmaceutical research. 1999. PMID: 10496658.
Study type: Human dose-escalation, 5 doses x n=8.
DOI: 10.1023/a:1018955126402 · PubMed
Ipamorelin, the first selective growth hormone secretagogue
Raun K, Hansen BS, Johansen NL, Thøgersen H, Madsen K, Ankersen M et al. European journal of endocrinology. 1998. PMID: 9849822.
Study type: Rat + swine.
DOI: 10.1530/eje.0.1390552 · PubMed

CJC-1295 (no DAC)

Prolonged stimulation of growth hormone (GH) and insulin-like growth factor I secretion by CJC-1295, a long-acting analog of GH-releasing hormone, in healthy adults
Teichman SL, Neale A, Lawrence B, Gagnon C, Castaigne JP, Frohman LA. The Journal of clinical endocrinology and metabolism. 2006. PMID: 16352683.
Study type: Two randomized placebo-controlled ascending-dose trials in healthy adults (DAC form).
DOI: 10.1210/jc.2005-1536 · PubMed
Sermorelin: a review of its use in the diagnosis and treatment of children with idiopathic growth hormone deficiency
Prakash A, Goa KL. BioDrugs : clinical immunotherapeutics, biopharmaceuticals and gene therapy. 1999. PMID: 18031173.
Study type: Drug review (GRF 1-29 analog).
DOI: 10.2165/00063030-199912020-00007 · PubMed

Read the full profiles

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Educational content — not medical advice. Effects described are drawn from cited research in study subjects.

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