Epithalon is a synthetic tetrapeptide (AEDG) based on pineal peptide Epithalamin. The most studied peptide bioregulator for telomerase activation and telomere length maintenance in aging research.
Epithalon (also spelled Epitalon) is a synthetic tetrapeptide with the sequence Ala-Glu-Asp-Gly (AEDG), designed to replicate the telomerase-activating properties of Epithalamin, a peptide extract originally isolated from the pineal gland by Professor Vladimir Khavinson at the St. Petersburg Institute of Bioregulation and Gerontology. The transition from crude extract to defined synthetic tetrapeptide enabled reproducible, mechanistically focused research and has made Epithalon the most extensively studied member of the Khavinson short peptide bioregulator family.
The primary mechanism of research interest is Epithalon’s reported ability to activate the enzyme telomerase, specifically the catalytic subunit human telomerase reverse transcriptase (hTERT). Telomerase is a ribonucleoprotein enzyme that adds TTAGGG hexanucleotide repeats to chromosome ends (telomeres), counteracting the progressive telomere shortening that occurs with each cell division — a process central to the Hayflick limit of cellular replicative senescence. Published studies by Khavinson and colleagues have documented telomerase activation and telomere elongation in human fetal lung fibroblasts (IMR-90), human pulmonary endothelial cells, and retinal pigment epithelial cells following Epithalon exposure, with treated cells exceeding their expected replicative lifespan.
Beyond telomerase activation, Epithalon research encompasses several additional domains of aging biology. The peptide has been studied for its effects on melatonin synthesis and circadian rhythm normalization — consistent with its pineal gland origin — through upregulation of serotonin N-acetyltransferase (AANAT), the rate-limiting enzyme in melatonin biosynthesis. Published research also includes investigation of antioxidant enzyme expression (superoxide dismutase, glutathione peroxidase), tumor suppressor gene regulation, and neuroendocrine aging in animal longevity models. Chronic administration studies in rodent models have documented statistically significant lifespan extension in multiple independent experiments.
Supplied as a lyophilized powder with ≥99% purity. Store at -20°C desiccated. For telomere biology and aging research only.
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