A practical reference on AEDG: what it is, how it behaves, what the literature reports, and where the honest uncertainties sit.
Reviewed 2026-04-12. Anything still debated is marked as such rather than presented as settled.
Storage and handling follow conventional peptide practice. Lyophilized epitalon is typically kept refrigerated or frozen, protected from moisture and light, and allowed to equilibrate to room temperature before opening to avoid condensation. Once dissolved, aqueous solutions are usually stored cold and used within a short period, since dilute peptide solutions can support microbial growth and may slowly degrade. The absence of cysteine and methionine reduces, but does not eliminate, oxidation concerns during long-term storage.
Regulatory status varies by country and is not harmonized. Epitalon is not an approved drug in major Western jurisdictions. In some countries it is sold as a research chemical, and in others it has appeared in products marketed for other categories. This inconsistent status means that purity, labeling accuracy, and documentation differ widely between suppliers, and verification of identity and purity through independent analysis is the usual way buyers assess a given lot.
The peptide is a synthetic analogue of epithalamin, a preparation extracted from bovine pineal glands. Investigators sought a short, chemically defined molecule that would reproduce some of the endocrine and gerontological observations attributed to the glandular extract. Proposed mechanisms centre on induction of telomerase activity, an effect reported in cultured human somatic cells in the early 2000s, together with influences on melatonin secretion and neuroendocrine regulation. Those mechanisms remain incompletely characterised, and the reported telomerase response has not been consistently reproduced by independent groups working in comparable systems.
Published work on this compound consists mainly of in vitro experiments, animal studies, and small clinical investigations, a substantial share of which appeared in Russian-language journals. Sample sizes are generally small, control conditions differ between studies, and several endpoints rely on markers whose clinical meaning is itself debated. Reviews of the longevity field treat the peptide as an early example of telomerase-directed research rather than an established intervention. Regulatory treatment varies by country: some jurisdictions place it under prescription controls, others treat it as a laboratory material, and importation may be restricted regardless of local status.
Epitalon is a synthetic tetrapeptide whose sequence is alanine–glutamate–aspartate–glycine, commonly abbreviated AEDG. It was developed in Russia during the 1980s and 1990s by investigators associated with the St. Petersburg Institute of Bioregulation and Gerontology, who studied short peptides as regulators of gene expression and tissue function. The alternative spelling epithalon appears interchangeably in the literature, and the two names refer to the same molecule. Outside Russia it is encountered chiefly as a research chemical rather than a licensed medicine, and it holds no approval from the United States Food and Drug Administration or the European Medicines Agency.
| Property | Value | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Purity assessment | RP-HPLC | Reported as percent area, often ≥95% |
| Identity confirmation | Mass spectrometry | Observed mass compared with ~390 Da |
| Typical storage temperature | -20 °C or below | Lyophilized powder, desiccated |
| Reconstitution solvent | Sterile water or buffer | Acidic residues aid dissolution |
| Common synonyms | AEDG; epithalon | Spelling varies in literature |
Reference material is normally supplied as a lyophilised powder in a sealed vial. Product literature typically recommends storage at minus twenty degrees Celsius or colder, protected from light and moisture. Freeze-thaw cycling is usually avoided because repeated condensation can introduce water into the vial. Working solutions are commonly prepared fresh, aliquoted, and kept cold for short periods rather than stored at ambient temperature. Labelling the date of opening helps track how long a vial has been in use.
Solubility is high in water, phosphate-buffered saline and normal saline, a pattern that follows from the two acidic residues in the chain. The peptide dissolves poorly in non-polar solvents such as hexane or chloroform. Stock solutions are often prepared in water first and then diluted into the buffer of interest. Because the molecule is small and hydrophilic, filtration through a low-protein-binding membrane is usually straightforward, and visible particulates are uncommon in freshly made solutions.
Epitalon is a synthetic tetrapeptide with the sequence alanine–glutamate–aspartate–glycine, commonly abbreviated AEDG. Its design traces to epithalamin, a peptide fraction prepared from bovine pineal gland extracts that researchers in Saint Petersburg began investigating in the 1970s. The compound has a molecular formula of C14H22N4O9 and a nominal molecular mass near 390 daltons. It holds no approved drug status in the United States or the European Union, and material sold under this name is generally offered as a research chemical rather than a finished pharmaceutical product.
Proposed mechanisms centre on cell-culture observations rather than a defined receptor interaction. Several reports describe increased expression of the telomerase catalytic subunit after exposure of cultured human cells, and the authors attributed the effect to short peptide fragments entering the nucleus and influencing gene transcription. No receptor for the tetrapeptide has been identified, and the free peptide is expected to be degraded rapidly by plasma peptidases. Whether any measurable fraction reaches intact tissues after administration remains an unresolved question rather than an established finding.
The published literature is dominated by a small number of research groups, much of it in Russian-language journals, and independent replication outside those groups is limited. Studies are typically small, use cultured cells or rodent models, and report endpoints that differ between papers, which makes comparison difficult. Large randomised human trials have not appeared in the indexed literature. Questions about absorption, distribution and clearance are therefore still treated as open in reviews that mention the compound.
Identity and purity are checked by reversed-phase high-performance liquid chromatography, usually with ultraviolet detection near 214 nanometres, where the peptide bond absorbs. Mass spectrometry confirms the expected mass and reveals whether truncation products or adducts are present. Acid hydrolysis followed by amino acid analysis gives the residue ratio, which should approximate one alanine, one glutamate, one aspartate and one glycine. Counter-ions such as acetate or trifluoroacetate remain in the dried product and lower net peptide content, so a stated purity figure on a label does not by itself describe how much peptide a vial holds.
Regulatory treatment differs by country. No formulation of epitalon holds a marketing authorisation as a medicine in the United States or the European Union, where material sold for laboratory use is handled as a research chemical and is not intended for human consumption. In Russia, several short peptide preparations from the same institute's peptide series are registered medicinal products, and epitalon appears in that national context. Elsewhere it is frequently offered as a cosmetic ingredient, a category with lighter requirements. Advertising claims about longevity or disease prevention are restricted in most jurisdictions, which limits how sellers describe the compound.
=== MeSH D12.644.233 – glycopeptides === MeSH D12.644.233.050 – acetylmuramyl-alanyl-isoglutamine MeSH D12.644.233.110 – bleomycin MeSH D12.644.233.110.690 – peplomycin MeSH D12.644.233.110.710 – phleomycins MeSH D12.644.233.594 – peptidoglycan MeSH D12.644.233.697 – ristocetin MeSH D12.644.233.800 – sialoglycoproteins MeSH D12.644.233.800.174 – antigens, cd43 MeSH D12.644.233.800.350 – glycophorin MeSH D12.644.233.900 – teicoplanin MeSH D12.644.233.925 – vancomycin
=== Europe === In the European Union (EU), the European Medicines Agency (EMA) defines a drug as "orphan" if it is intended for the diagnosis, prevention or treatment of a life-threatening or chronically and seriously debilitating condition affecting not more than 5 in 10,000 EU people. EMA also qualifies a drug as orphan if – without incentives – it would be unlikely that marketing the drug in the EU would generate sufficient benefit for the affected people and for the drug manufacturer to justify the investment.
The first scientists to determine relative atomic masses were John Dalton and Thomas Thomson between 1803 and 1805 and Jöns Jakob Berzelius between 1808 and 1826. Relative atomic mass (Atomic weight) was originally defined relative to that of the lightest element, hydrogen, which was taken as 1.00, and in the 1820s, Prout's hypothesis stated that atomic masses of all elements would prove to be exact multiples of that of hydrogen. Berzelius, however, soon proved that this was not even approximately true, and for some elements, such as chlorine, relative atomic mass, at about 35.5, falls almost exactly halfway between two integral multiples of that of hydrogen. Still later, this was shown to be largely due to a mix of isotopes, and that the atomic masses of pure isotopes, or nuclides, are multiples of the hydrogen mass, to within about 1%. In the 1860s, Stanislao Cannizzaro refined relative atomic masses by applying Avogadro's law (notably at the Karlsruhe Congress of 1860). He formulated a law to determine relative atomic masses of elements: the different quantities of the same element contained in different molecules are all whole multiples of the atomic weight and determined relative atomic masses and molecular masses by comparing the vapor density of a collection of gases with molecules containing one or more of the chemical element in question. In the 20th century, until the 1960s, chemists and physicists used two different atomic-mass scales.
== See also == Dimethoxyamphetamine Substituted methoxyphenethylamine DOx (psychedelics) Stimulant § Serotonin 5-HT2A receptor agonists Motivation-enhancing drug § Serotonin 5-HT2A receptor agonists 2,5-Dimethoxyphenethylamine (2C-H) 2,4,5-Trimethoxyamphetamine (2,4,5-TMA, TMA-2, or DOMeO) 5-HT2A receptor § Anti-inflammatory effects
Sources: en.wikipedia.org
== Brain and nervous system == Astrocytoma Anaplastic astrocytoma Brainstem glioma Choroid plexus carcinoma Craniopharyngioma Ependymoma Ganglioneuroma Glioblastoma Glioma Hemangioblastoma Medulloblastoma Meningioma Neuroblastoma Neurofibroma Oligodendroglioma Paraganglioma Pineal astrocytoma Pineocytoma Pineoblastoma Pituitary adenoma Pilocytic astrocytoma Primary central nervous system lymphoma Primitive neuroectodermal tumor Schwannoma Visual pathway and hypothalamic glioma
Paradoxical effects: In some cases, paradoxical effects can occur with benzodiazepines, such as increased hostility, aggression, angry outbursts, and psychomotor agitation. These effects are seen more commonly with lorazepam than with other benzodiazepines. Paradoxical effects are more likely to occur with higher doses, in people with pre-existing personality disorders and those with a psychiatric illness. Frustrating stimuli may trigger such reactions, though the drug may have been prescribed to help the person cope with such stress and frustration in the first place. As paradoxical effects appear to be dose-related, they usually subside on dose reduction or on complete withdrawal of lorazepam. Suicidality: Benzodiazepines are associated with an increased risk of suicide, possibly due to disinhibition. Higher dosages appear to confer greater risk. Amnesic effects: Among benzodiazepines, lorazepam has relatively strong amnesic effects, but people soon develop tolerance to this with regular use. An initial total daily lorazepam dose that does not exceed 2 mg may help avoid amnesia (or excess sedation) being a problem. This also applies to use for night sedation. Five participants in a sleep study were prescribed lorazepam 4 mg at night, and the next evening, three subjects unexpectedly volunteered memory gaps for parts of that day, an effect that subsided completely after two to three days' use. Amnesic effects cannot be estimated from the degree of sedation present, since the two effects are unrelated.
== Lewis acid strength in non-aqueous solutions == Lewis acids have been classified in the ECW model and it has been shown that there is no one order of acid strengths. The relative acceptor strength of Lewis acids toward a series of bases, versus other Lewis acids, can be illustrated by C-B plots. It has been shown that to define the order of Lewis acid strength at least two properties must be considered. For Pearson's qualitative HSAB theory the two properties are hardness and strength while for Drago's quantitative ECW model the two properties are electrostatic and covalent.
Sources: en.wikipedia.org
Identity is normally confirmed by mass spectrometry, which checks the measured mass against the expected value near 390 daltons. Reverse-phase high-performance liquid chromatography is used alongside it to assess purity. Amino acid analysis can provide additional composition data.
The powder is generally kept refrigerated or frozen, protected from light and moisture. Vials should reach room temperature before opening to prevent condensation. Reconstituted solutions are usually stored cold and used within a limited window because dilute solutions can degrade or support microbial growth.
Epitalon is not an approved drug in major Western regulatory jurisdictions. Its legal status differs between countries, and it is often distributed as a research chemical. This means product documentation and purity vary considerably between suppliers.
Epitalon is a synthetic four-amino-acid peptide with the sequence alanine–glutamate–aspartate–glycine, also written AEDG. It was developed in Russian gerontology research and is studied for proposed effects on telomerase, melatonin regulation, and neuroendocrine function. It is not an approved pharmaceutical in the United States or the European Union.