SERMORELIN
Sermorelin acetate is a recently synthesized (man-made) peptide analogue of growth hormone releasing hormone (GHRH) a naturally occurring hormone that is produced in the hypothalamus and stimulates and controls the production of growth hormone (GH) within the pituitary gland. GHRH, which is necessary for growth and development, was first described by Nobel Laureates R. Guilleman and A Shalley. In the 1970s one of their students, William Wehrenberg, began studying which part of the GHRH molecule was essential in stimulating the pituitary gland.
SERMORELIN FUNCTION AND TRAITS
By removing individual amino acids from the GHRH molecule, Wehrenberg found that only the first 29 amino acids were essential for the stimulation of GH production in the pituitary gland. Semorelin is therefore only comprised of these 29 essential amino acids, forming a short polypeptide chain that is considered one of the shortest functional fragments of the GHRH molecule. It was first developed with a one-step chromatographic method capable of separating all isomers of polyethylene glycol (PEG) from naturally occurring GHRH.
The biological effects of sermorelin were first observed in vitro cultures of rat pituitary cells. When compared to other GHRH analogues, sermorelin was found to be the most potent, potentially 4-5 times as potent as naturally produced GHRH. Recent studies of other GHRH analogues in pigs have also found synthetic GHRH analogues to be more effective than the naturally occurring hormone.
Sermorelin is now used as a standard test for growth hormone secretion and is primarily prescribed for children who do not produce GH properly and fail to grow healthily as a result. It has a secondary, off-label use in “repairing” declining GH levels (a natural side effect of aging that leads to weight gain, decreased strength and muscle mass, and insomnia in elder subjects). GH levels typically peak at around 20 years of age in humans and fall by about 14% for every decade that passes, but use of Sermorelin can potentially rejuvenate GH back to youthful levels.
