improve joint pain – how do we know that drug even gets to the affected area? Remember peptides are proteins which are subject to high rates of breakdown when digested into the GI tract. If a peptide is taken orally and then broken down by the body before absorption, the intervention has gone from something that could help injury recovery to a very high-priced amino acid supplement.
outpaced the science— underscoring the need for careful, controlled studies to inform best practices.
What do we know about BPC-157 & other popular peptides?
BPC-157 is one of the most popular peptides on social media. It stands for Body Protein Compound # 157 and is a synthetic peptide that resembles an enzyme from the lining of the stomach. There has been no novel research on BPC-157 for almost 20 years and there are no studies looking at its effects on the musculoskeletal system when taken by humans. Animal studies suggest that it might improve both the speed of and quality of tendon healing, but the mechanism of action, ideal route of administration, effective dose and potential side effects are still poorly understood. The doses used in published animal studies are highly variable, as are the routes of administration which are included directly into the tendon, intra-muscular(“ IM”) injection and intra-peritoneal( inside the stomach cavity) injection. The results of BPC-157 administration in animal studies have, however, consistently pointed to enhanced tendon healing. The drug holds promise but meaningful advice on best practices is still limited – which is why the REPAIR Collaborative * has begun to examine BPC-157 further and hopes to begin the first in-human safety trial soon.
Beyond BPC-157, other peptides are also attracting attention for tissue repair. TB-500( a fragment of thymosin beta-4) has also improved tissue healing in some animal studies.‘ Stacking’ peptides is also sometimes reported recreationally but is subject to even less scientific data. While all musculoskeletal repair peptides remain largely unproven in humans, the volume of anecdotal use has rapidly
* The REPAIR collaborative stands for REsearch on Performance enhancing drugs and other Agents for Injury Recovery. It is a multidisciplinary group of Canadian scientists, doctors, allied healthcare workers and athletes who are interested in advancing the scientific knowledge around performance enhancing substances and how they may be used to recover from injury.