Peptides for Energy: What the Human Evidence Shows

Most of the evidence behind the energy claims on peptides comes from mice, cell studies and company press releases. So here is what each compound actually has.

No controlled human trial cited on this page shows a peptide raising energy. Some have hormone-level data. One has an FDA approval for a rare disease. The rest have animal work.

MOTS-c

MOTS-c is a peptide encoded in mitochondrial DNA. In young and aged mice, MOTS-c treatment improved exercise capacity. In people, high-intensity exercise raises MOTS-c in muscle and blood (1). That shows your body makes more of it when you exercise. It doesn’t show that taking it raises energy.

The only human results reported so far are for CB4211, a MOTS-c analog. CohBar reported a four-week trial in 20 obese people with fatty liver, 11 on CB4211 and 9 on placebo. ALT fell 21% against a 4% change on placebo, AST 28% against 11%, and glucose 6% against 0%. Liver fat fell by about the same in both groups (2). These are topline results from a company press release.

WADA prohibits MOTS-c under S4, which covers AMPK activators (3).

5-Amino-1MQ

5-Amino-1MQ isn’t a peptide. It’s a small molecule that blocks an enzyme called NNMT (4). In obese mice, it was reported to cut body fat and weight when paired with a switch to a low-fat diet (5). In cell studies it slowed the growth of cervical cancer cells (4). No human trial of it is registered on ClinicalTrials.gov, so nothing shows it burns fat or raises energy in people.

CJC-1295 and ipamorelin

CJC-1295 and ipamorelin work on different receptors, so people stack them. The only published controlled human trials of CJC-1295 tested the DAC version alone in healthy adults. Those trials measured growth hormone and IGF-1 levels (6). Ipamorelin wasn’t in them, and no published trial has paired the two. For the full breakdown, see our CJC-1295 and ipamorelin guide.

FDA lists CJC-1295 among withdrawn nominations and notes serious adverse events, including increased heart rate. In July 2026 FDA’s compounding advisory committee voted to recommend BPC-157, TB-500 and MOTS-c for the 503A bulks list (24). The votes are advisory, and none of these compounds is FDA-approved. It lists ipamorelin in Category 2 for 503B facilities and in the withdrawn table, citing a published report of serious adverse events including death with intravenous use (7). WADA prohibits both under S2 (3).

Sermorelin

FDA approved sermorelin as Geref for growth hormone deficiency in children. Its maker discontinued it in 2008, and in 2013 FDA ruled the products weren’t withdrawn for reasons of safety or effectiveness (8). The approval wasn’t for energy. WADA prohibits sermorelin under S2 (3).

BPC-157

BPC-157 is popular with athletes, but almost all the evidence is from animals. A 2026 systematic review found three human studies covering 30 people. One was a knee-pain study of 16 people, one a bladder-pain pilot of 12 and one an intravenous safety pilot of 2. The authors rated the certainty of the evidence very low and said it shouldn’t be used clinically outside regulated trials (9). A 2025 review of orthopaedic use found 36 studies, 35 of them preclinical (10). None of the human studies looked at energy.

FDA says it found no or only limited safety information for the proposed routes (7). USADA says WADA prohibits BPC-157 as a non-approved substance (11). Our BPC-157 guide goes deeper.

Humanin and SHLP2

Humanin was first described in 2001, in cell studies, as a factor that protected neurons from Alzheimer’s-related toxicity (12). A 2020 study reports higher circulating humanin in children of centenarians. It also reports lower cerebrospinal fluid humanin in 4 Alzheimer’s patients than in 3 controls (13). Those are tiny observational findings. No interventional trial of humanin is registered on ClinicalTrials.gov.

SHLP2 is a related mitochondrial-derived peptide. In male mice, it protected against high-fat-diet obesity and improved insulin sensitivity. It activated hypothalamic POMC neurons, which suppressed food intake and promoted thermogenesis, and it bound the receptor CXCR7 (14). The work so far is in mice.

NAD+

NAD+ is a coenzyme that some peptide vendors also sell. In a 2025 randomized trial of 58 people with long COVID, nicotinamide riboside (NR), a NAD+ precursor, raised blood NAD+ 2.6 to 3.1-fold. It didn’t beat placebo for fatigue, sleep, cognition or mood. The trial was partly funded by Niagen Bioscience (15).

NADPARK, a Phase I trial in 30 people with Parkinson’s, found NR well tolerated and raised brain NAD levels variably. It wasn’t built to show a motor benefit (16). A 2024 systematic review of 10 NMN trials with 437 people found nonsignificant improvements in strength and aerobic performance. It said the optimal dose is unclear (17). Our NAD guide covers the details.

Elamipretide (SS-31)

FDA granted accelerated approval to elamipretide (Forzinity) on 19 September 2025. It’s approved only for Barth syndrome, in patients weighing at least 30 kg, to improve muscle strength (18). In primary mitochondrial myopathy, the Phase 3 MMPOWER-3 trial of 218 people missed both primary endpoints, walking distance and fatigue (19).

Safety

Tesamorelin, an approved GHRH analog, shows what this class can do. In its trials, serious adverse events occurred in under 4% of patients. Most were injection-site reactions or effects known from growth hormone therapy, like joint pain, headache and fluid retention (20).

GHRH and its receptors turn up in several human cancers, and in mice GHRH antagonists slowed tumor growth (21). Whether GHRH analogs affect cancer risk in people is unknown. Thymosin beta-4 is overexpressed in colorectal cancer tissue and, in cells, increased invasion and migration (22). Whether TB-500, a fragment of it, does anything in people is unknown. Anyone with a cancer history should talk to a clinician first.

Quality

Quality varies between sellers. In a 2024 test purchase of online semaglutide vials, purity ranged from 7.7% to 14.37% against 99% claimed (23). A certificate of analysis shows what one lot contained. See how to verify a peptide COA, then compare sellers in the best peptide vendors guide.

The bottom line

Elamipretide is approved only for Barth syndrome, and its Phase 3 in mitochondrial myopathy didn’t improve fatigue. MOTS-c has mouse data and an analog trial reported by its company. CJC-1295 has hormone-level data from the DAC version. BPC-157 has three small human studies covering 30 people. Humanin, SHLP2 and 5-Amino-1MQ have cell and mouse research. NAD+ precursors raised blood NAD+ but didn’t beat placebo for fatigue in long COVID.

No trial cited here shows a peptide raising energy.

Frequently Asked Questions

References

1. Woodhead JST, Merry TL. Mitochondrial-derived peptides and exercise. Biochim Biophys Acta Gen Subj. 2021;1865(12):130011. doi:10.1016/j.bbagen.2021.130011
2. CohBar. Positive topline results from the Phase 1a/1b study of CB4211 (company press release)
3. WADA 2026 Prohibited List, sections S2 and S4, as reproduced by DSHS Cologne.
4. Akar S et al. Small molecule inhibitor of nicotinamide N-methyltransferase shows anti-proliferative activity in HeLa cells. J Obstet Gynaecol. 2021;41(8):1240-5. doi:10.1080/01443615.2020.1854696
5. Dimet-Wiley A et al. Reduced calorie diet combined with NNMT inhibition establishes a distinct microbiome in DIO mice. Sci Rep. 2022;12(1):484. doi:10.1038/s41598-021-03670-5
6. Teichman SL et al. Prolonged stimulation of growth hormone and insulin-like growth factor I secretion by CJC-1295, a long-acting analog of GH-releasing hormone, in healthy adults. J Clin Endocrinol Metab. 2006;91(3):799-805. doi:10.1210/jc.2005-1536
7. FDA. Certain bulk drug substances for use in compounding that may present significant safety risks
8. FDA. Determination that GEREF (sermorelin acetate) injection was not withdrawn from sale for reasons of safety or effectiveness. 78 Fed Reg 14095, 4 March 2013
9. Poolton JT, Minett J, Kazmi A. Human evidence for BPC-157 in orthopaedic and regenerative medicine: a systematic review of efficacy and safety. Acta Orthop Belg. 2026;92(3). doi:10.52628/92.3.15837
10. Vasireddi N et al. Emerging use of BPC-157 in orthopaedic sports medicine: a systematic review. HSS J. 2025;21(4):485-95
11. USADA. BPC-157: experimental peptide creates risk for athletes
12. Hashimoto Y et al. A rescue factor abolishing neuronal cell death by a wide spectrum of familial Alzheimer’s disease genes and Abeta. Proc Natl Acad Sci USA. 2001;98(11):6336-41. doi:10.1073/pnas.101133498
13. Yen K et al. The mitochondrial derived peptide humanin is a regulator of lifespan and healthspan. Aging (Albany NY). 2020;12(12):11185-99. doi:10.18632/aging.103534
14. Kim SK et al. Mitochondria-derived peptide SHLP2 regulates energy homeostasis through the activation of hypothalamic neurons. Nat Commun. 2023;14(1):4321. doi:10.1038/s41467-023-40082-7
15. Wu CY et al. Effects of nicotinamide riboside on NAD+ levels, cognition, and symptom recovery in long-COVID: a randomized controlled trial. EClinicalMedicine. 2025;89:103633. doi:10.1016/j.eclinm.2025.103633
16. Brakedal B et al. The NADPARK study: a randomized phase I trial of nicotinamide riboside supplementation in Parkinson’s disease. Cell Metab. 2022;34(3):396-407. doi:10.1016/j.cmet.2022.02.001
17. Wen J et al. Improved physical performance parameters in patients taking nicotinamide mononucleotide (NMN): a systematic review of randomized control trials. Cureus. 2024. doi:10.7759/cureus.65961
18. FDA. FDA grants accelerated approval to first treatment for Barth syndrome. 19 September 2025
19. Karaa A et al. Efficacy and safety of elamipretide in individuals with primary mitochondrial myopathy: the MMPOWER-3 randomized clinical trial. Neurology. 2023. doi:10.1212/WNL.0000000000207402
20. Dhillon S. Tesamorelin: a review of its use in the management of HIV-associated lipodystrophy. Drugs. 2011;71(8):1071-91. doi:10.2165/11202240-000000000-00000
21. Schally AV, Varga JL, Engel JB. Antagonists of growth-hormone-releasing hormone: an emerging new therapy for cancer. Nat Clin Pract Endocrinol Metab. 2008;4(1):33-43. doi:10.1038/ncpendmet0677
22. Piao Z et al. Thymosin beta4 induces invasion and migration of human colorectal cancer cells through the ILK/AKT/beta-catenin signaling pathway. Biochem Biophys Res Commun. 2014;452(3):858-64. doi:10.1016/j.bbrc.2014.09.012
23. Ashraf AR et al. Multifactor quality and safety analysis of semaglutide products sold by online sellers without a prescription. J Med Internet Res. 2024;26:e65440. doi:10.2196/65440
24. Pharmaceutical Executive. Coverage of the July 2026 FDA advisory committee vote on peptides for compounding.