Understanding peptides, openly.
General educational content on peptides, biohacking, and how the body works, drawn from publicly available material.
What a peptide actually is
Before the map, the vocabulary. These four ideas explain most of what you will read on any compound page, here or anywhere else.
Amino acids linked in sequence form a peptide. Longer chains, generally past fifty residues, are called proteins. The sequence is the identity: change one residue and it is a different molecule with different behavior.
A peptide folds into a specific three-dimensional shape. That shape determines which receptor it fits, the way a key fits one lock. This is why two compounds with similar size can act on completely unrelated systems.
Many research peptides are analogs: a naturally occurring sequence modified on purpose. A common modification is acylation, attaching a fatty acid chain so the molecule binds albumin and clears more slowly than the native hormone.
Most are supplied as a white lyophilized powder. Water is removed under vacuum so the molecule stays stable in storage. It is reconstituted with a solvent before use in a laboratory setting.
The terms you will keep seeing
- Receptor agonist
- A molecule that binds a receptor and activates it, producing the response that receptor normally produces. An antagonist binds the same site and blocks it instead.
- Dual and triple agonist
- A single molecule engineered to activate two or three different receptors at once, rather than one. The receptor names are listed in each entry.
- Acylation
- A fatty acid chain attached to the peptide backbone. It promotes albumin binding, which slows enzymatic clearance relative to the unmodified sequence.
- Potency
- The mass of compound in the vial, stated in milligrams. It describes vial content, not strength of effect.
- Bioregulator
- A class of very short peptides, often two to four amino acids, studied for tissue-specific signaling activity.
- Certificate of Analysis
- The third-party laboratory report for a production lot, showing identity and purity testing. Where one exists for a compound, it is linked on that product page.
Compounds by body system
Every compound currently published, grouped by the system it is studied in. Select any entry to read what it is and how it is described in the literature. This list is generated from the live catalog, so it reflects what is actually available.
Where the interest comes from
The word covers a wide range of self-directed experimentation, from sleep and light exposure to nutrition, training, and measurement.
The consistent thread across serious practitioners is baseline data. Without a measured starting point, no change can be attributed to anything.
Changing several inputs together makes the result uninterpretable. The discipline that separates experimentation from guessing is isolation.
A compound described by its receptor and its clearance behavior tells you more than one described by a promised outcome. Read the mechanism.
The compounds catalogued here are supplied for in vitro and laboratory research. This library exists to explain what they are, not to direct their use.
Specifications, potency options, certificates of analysis, and current availability for every compound.
Browse the catalog