With another GH/IGF-axis medicine
Safety flag
Duplicate GH/IGF-axis stimulation may amplify IGF-1 elevation, edema, joint symptoms, and glucose intolerance.
Interaction evidence source All research profiles
Investigational GH secretagogue
GHRP-2
Prepared by the ezGLP team. Sources last checked . Profile reviewed .
Also known as Pralmorelin
Routes represented in the knowledgebase: Subcutaneous (SubQ).
Educational overview
Not FDA-approved for human use in the U.S.; long-term efficacy and safety are not established.
GHRP-2, known generically as pralmorelin, is a synthetic six-amino-acid peptide from the growth hormone-releasing peptide family developed by Cyril Bowers and colleagues in the 1980s and 1990s. It is an agonist of the growth hormone secretagogue receptor GHS-R1a, the same receptor later identified as the target of the stomach hormone ghrelin, and it acts on both the pituitary and hypothalamus to release growth hormone. Because it mimics ghrelin, GHRP-2 also raises prolactin, ACTH, cortisol, and appetite, which distinguishes it from GHRH analogues such as sermorelin and from the more selective secretagogue ipamorelin.
Human evidence consists of small physiology and pharmacology studies rather than outcome trials. Arvat and colleagues in 1997 compared GHRP-2 and hexarelin effects on GH, prolactin, ACTH, and cortisol in healthy adults; Pihoker and colleagues published phase I pharmacokinetics in growth hormone-deficient children in 1998; Mericq and colleagues reported eight months of graded dosing in the same population that year, observing increased growth velocity; and Laferrère and colleagues showed in 2005 that GHRP-2, like ghrelin, increased food intake in healthy men. Long-term safety, effects on body composition in healthy adults, and any wellness or anti-aging benefit remain unstudied in controlled trials.
GHRP-2 is not approved as a treatment in the United States, the European Union, or comparable jurisdictions. Its only marketing authorisation has been in Japan, where pralmorelin was approved as a diagnostic agent for growth hormone deficiency. In the United States it is available only as a compounded or research-labelled injectable, and the FDA lists GHRP-2 among bulk drug substances that may present significant safety risks, noting an unnatural amino acid, immunogenicity potential from aggregation and impurities, and reports of increased insulin requirements, infection, pancreatitis, and death. WADA names GHRP-2 (pralmorelin) on its Prohibited List under section S2.2.4, banned at all times.
Compounded GHRP-2 is generally supplied as a lyophilised powder reconstituted with bacteriostatic water for subcutaneous injection, though oral and nasal preparations have also been marketed. No approved United States label governs storage, in-use stability, or beyond-use dating, so the compounding pharmacy's documentation is the only formal reference. Because the peptide is short-acting and its ghrelin-like effects on appetite and cortisol are time-linked to each administration, dose logs for GHRP-2 commonly record the time of administration relative to meals and sleep, along with lot number, reconstitution date, resulting concentration, and storage temperature.
- Category
- Investigational GH secretagogue
- Routes represented
- Subcutaneous (SubQ)
- Storage context
- Follow the dispensed product or pharmacy label; storage and beyond-use time vary by formulation.
Published literature
No verified PubMed or DOI link is available for this entry.
Safety evidence
Serious or important: peptide immunogenicity, aggregation, or impurity concerns.
Route-specific human safety and long-term adverse effects are not established.
Safety evidence sourceInteraction evidence
These are general, pairwise evidence notes. Green identifies the potential-synergy category, while Lv3/Lv2/Lv1 communicates evidence strength; it does not guarantee benefit or cancel a safety warning.
Common questions
Is GHRP-2 FDA approved?
No. GHRP-2 has never been approved by the FDA for any indication. It exists in the United States only as a compounded or research-use product, and the FDA has placed it in the group of bulk drug substances that may present significant safety risks in compounding, citing immunogenicity, peptide impurities, and adverse-event reports. The only regulatory approval anywhere has been in Japan, where pralmorelin is used as a diagnostic test for growth hormone deficiency.
What is the difference between GHRP-2 and GHRP-6?
Both are hexapeptide agonists of the ghrelin receptor developed by Bowers and colleagues. GHRP-2 contains D-alanine and D-2-naphthylalanine substitutions and is generally described as the more potent growth hormone releaser per unit mass, while GHRP-6 is noted for a pronounced effect on hunger. Both raise cortisol and prolactin to some degree, and both appear on the FDA compounding risk list and the WADA Prohibited List.
Does GHRP-2 increase appetite and cortisol?
Yes, in published human studies. Laferrère and colleagues reported in 2005 that GHRP-2 infusion increased food intake in healthy men, consistent with its ghrelin-mimetic action. Arvat and colleagues in 1997 documented increases in prolactin, ACTH, and cortisol alongside the growth hormone response, effects that ipamorelin was later designed to avoid. These endocrine actions are acute and dose-related in the studies available.
Is GHRP-2 banned in sport?
Yes. The World Anti-Doping Agency Prohibited List names GHRP-2 (pralmorelin) as an example of a growth hormone-releasing peptide under section S2.2.4, growth hormone-releasing factors, together with GHRP-6, hexarelin, and related peptides. The class is prohibited at all times and is treated as non-specified for sanctioning. WADA has published laboratory guidance for detecting these peptides in urine samples.
Further reading
- Arvat et al., Peptides 1997 (GHRP-2 and hexarelin effects on GH, prolactin, ACTH, and cortisol)
- Pihoker et al., J Clin Endocrinol Metab 1998 (GHRP-2 phase I pharmacokinetics and pharmacodynamics in children)
- Mericq et al., J Clin Endocrinol Metab 1998 (eight months of GHRP-2 in GH-deficient children)
- Laferrère et al., J Clin Endocrinol Metab 2005 (GHRP-2 increases food intake in healthy men)
- Bowers et al., J Clin Endocrinol Metab 1990 (GH-releasing peptide stimulates GH release in normal men)
- FDA, Certain bulk drug substances for use in compounding that may present significant safety risks
- World Anti-Doping Agency, The Prohibited List (section S2.2)
Summarised from published literature for reference only, with citations to the source. Evidence is graded as reported and is not a recommendation to combine, dose, or use any compound.
For personal tracking and education only. Not medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment, and not a medical device. Peptides may be prescription-only or unapproved where you live. Consult a licensed healthcare professional.