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Compounds 3 min read

What is GHK-Cu?

GHK-Cu is the smallest peptide in our range and the only one that carries a metal. It is also the one most people have met without knowing it, on a cosmetics label.

HP Written by the Hello Peptides lab team · Updated October 2026

What it is

GHK is a tripeptide: glycine, histidine and lysine, in that order. It binds copper ions very strongly, and GHK-Cu is the resulting complex of the peptide with copper. The copper gives a solution of it a distinctive blue colour.

PropertyValue
TypeCopper complex of a tripeptide
SequenceGly-His-Lys, with copper(II)
Cosmetic ingredient nameCopper tripeptide-1
Also writtenGHK Cu, GHK-copper, copper peptide

Where it came from

GHK was isolated from human plasma in 1973 by the biochemist Loren Pickart. Unlike most research peptides it occurs naturally in the body.

What it has been studied for

  • Copper transport and copper-dependent enzymes
  • Collagen and extracellular-matrix production by fibroblasts in culture
  • Gene-expression studies, where it has been reported to shift the activity of a large number of genes
  • Peptide and metal binding chemistry

This is cell-based and preclinical research. No effect in people is claimed here.

Cosmetic GHK-Cu and research GHK-Cu

Most searches for GHK-Cu lead to serums and creams. Those are cosmetic products containing a small percentage of copper tripeptide-1 for use on skin. A research vial is a different thing: a defined mass of the compound, in solution, with a certificate stating its purity, supplied for laboratory work. One is not a substitute for the other.

GHK with and without copper

GHKGHK-Cu
What it isThe tripeptide aloneThe tripeptide holding a copper ion
In solutionColourlessBlue
Peptide molecular weightAbout 340 g/molThe same peptide, plus copper
Sold asGHK, or GHK basicGHK-Cu, copper peptide, copper tripeptide-1

The two are not interchangeable in an experiment. Much of the published work concerns the copper complex specifically, so a study that calls for GHK-Cu needs the copper form.

The colour is a quick check

Because the blue comes from the copper, a vial of GHK-Cu in solution should be clearly blue, and deeper at higher concentrations. It is a rough check, not a measurement. The certificate is the measurement. Copper peptides explained covers the naming and how a serum differs from a research vial.

GHK-Cu in the laboratory

Our GHK-Cu 50mg vial is supplied pre-mixed in 3ml, at 16.67mg per ml. GHK-Cu is also the largest component of both the glow and klow stacks, at 50mg in each. Refrigerate at 2–8°C and do not freeze.

GHK-Cu is not a controlled drug and is not a licensed medicine. It is sold here as a research compound for laboratory use. See are peptides legal in the UK?

Research use onlyProducts are supplied for laboratory research and are not for human or animal consumption, diagnosis or treatment. Questions about a batch? Contact the lab with the batch number.
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