Also called Epithalon, Epithalone, AEDG peptide, Ala-Glu-Asp-Gly
A tiny peptide promoted for healthy aging, based mostly on Russian animal and cell studies.
Epitalon is a lab-made chain of just four amino acids. Russian scientists led by Vladimir Khavinson designed it in the 1980s–90s to copy the active part of epithalamin, an extract from cow pineal glands (the small gland that makes melatonin). It isn't approved as a medicine anywhere.
Lab studies suggest it switches on telomerase, an enzyme that rebuilds telomeres, the protective caps on the ends of chromosomes that shorten as cells age. Animal studies also suggest it helps restore your nightly melatonin rhythm and acts as an antioxidant, protecting cells from wear and tear. Whether any of this slows aging in people is unknown.
Mostly animal studies
In human cells in a dish, epitalon lengthened telomeres, but a 2025 UK lab study found it did this in breast cancer cells too. Russian studies reported longer average lifespans and fewer tumors in female mice. The human studies people quote mostly used the cow-gland extract, not epitalon, and came from one research group, and there are no large, independent, placebo-controlled trials of epitalon in people.
Why: This pattern copies the short, repeated courses used in Russian research. It hasn't been tested for safety or benefit in controlled human trials.
Start at the low end, and change one thing at a time. If you take medication or have a health condition, check with a doctor first.
Set up for a 10 mg vial. Change any number to match yours. New to this? Read how to mix a vial and mg vs mL vs units first.
Pick your dose and how long you'll run it. We'll count what you need.
Get help right away for swelling of the face or throat, trouble breathing, chest pain, or a spreading, hot, red injection site.
Powder: fridge or freezer. Once mixed: fridge, use within about 3–4 weeks.
FDA: Not approved. Epitalon was placed on FDA's compounding safety-concern list in 2023, then removed in April 2026 after the nomination was withdrawn. In July 2026 an FDA advisory committee voted 7–4 to recommend allowing it in compounding; FDA had not issued a final decision when last checked.
Sport (WADA): Not approved by any health authority, so it falls under WADA's S0 (non-approved substances): prohibited at all times.
That's been reported in mice, not shown in people. Human claims mostly come from studies of a related cow-gland extract.
Not always. Cancer cells depend on keeping their telomeres long, which is why anyone with a cancer history should avoid it.
That's how the Russian research was done, and it limits your exposure to something whose long-term effects are unknown.
Last checked 2026-10