Sermorelin vs CJC-1295 vs Tesamorelin: The GHRH-Analogue Family Compared

Sermorelin is the synthetic acetate salt of GHRH 1-29. It is the historical research baseline for the GHRH-analogue class: the simplest functional fragment of GHRH that retains receptor binding and GH-releasing activity, characterised in adult-onset growth-hormone-insufficiency research literature in the late 1990s and early 2000s.^[2][1]

Because sermorelin has no protease-stabilising modifications, its plasma half-life is short — minutes rather than hours — and the published research literature describes it as administered subcutaneously, often with a frequency that reflects that short pharmacokinetic profile.^[2]

Sermorelin previously had a US FDA approval (under the brand Geref) for paediatric GH deficiency, but the product was discontinued from the US market and there is no EMA EPAR for sermorelin as an authorised medicine in Europe. In EU consumer context, sermorelin sits as a research peptide, not a medicine.^[2][8]

CJC-1295 starts from the same GHRH 1-29 scaffold as sermorelin and adds four amino-acid substitutions (positions 2, 8, 15, and 27 in the original design literature) that increase resistance to dipeptidyl peptidase-IV (DPP-IV) and other plasma proteases. The result is a GHRH analogue with longer in-vivo stability than unmodified GHRH 1-29.^[4][3]

There are two distinct CJC-1295 variants in the published literature: the 'No-DAC' form (sometimes called modified GRF 1-29), which is the substitution-only version, and the 'DAC' form, which adds a maleimidopropionic acid linker that covalently binds endogenous albumin in plasma. Albumin binding effectively turns the peptide into a depot, and early pharmacokinetic work in normal adults has reported a plasma half-life of approximately 5-8 days for the DAC variant.^[3][4]

Neither variant of CJC-1295 has an EMA EPAR. The published clinical-pharmacology dataset is small relative to authorised medicines — pharmacokinetic and proof-of-mechanism work in healthy adults — and there is no large, long-duration randomised trial validating CJC-1295 as a therapy for any consumer-relevant endpoint.^[3][8]

Tesamorelin is a stabilised analogue of full-length GHRH (1-44). The N-terminal trans-3-hexenoyl modification protects the molecule against rapid degradation in plasma and was the design strategy that enabled tesamorelin to reach a registrational clinical-development programme.^[5][7]

Tesamorelin (brand: Egrifta, manufactured by Theratechnologies) was authorised by the European Medicines Agency for the treatment of HIV-associated lipodystrophy in adult HIV-infected patients with excess abdominal fat (visceral adiposity). The pivotal clinical-trial programme demonstrated reduction in visceral adipose tissue versus placebo, measured by CT imaging, in this specific HIV population.^[7][5][6]

The crucial regulatory point: tesamorelin's EMA authorisation is narrow. It is for diagnosed HIV-associated lipodystrophy, in adults, prescribed by a specialist familiar with HIV management. It is not authorised as a general anti-aging therapy, a body-composition product for the wellness market, or an over-the-counter GH-axis stimulant. The EPAR's indication wording is the regulatory ceiling, and consumer marketing that ignores it crosses into mis-promotion territory.^[7]

The table below summarises what the published preclinical, clinical-pharmacology, and regulatory literature describes for each molecule. It is a research-context map, not a dosing protocol or a treatment recommendation.^[2][3][7][5]

| Attribute | Sermorelin | CJC-1295 (No-DAC) | CJC-1295 (DAC) | Tesamorelin | | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | | Sequence | GHRH 1-29 (29 amino acids) | Modified GHRH 1-29 with 4 substitutions | Modified GHRH 1-29 + DAC linker (albumin-binding) | Stabilised GHRH 1-44 with N-terminal trans-3-hexenoyl group | | Receptor target | GHRH receptor (anterior pituitary) | GHRH receptor | GHRH receptor | GHRH receptor | | Reported plasma half-life | Short — minutes order in published pharmacology | Order of ~30 min to a few hours after substitutions | Approximately 5-8 days in normal adults (albumin depot) | Approximately ~25-40 min (parenteral, daily injection in trial design) | | EMA / EU regulatory status | No EMA EPAR; not an authorised medicine | No EMA EPAR; not an authorised medicine | No EMA EPAR; not an authorised medicine | EMA-authorised under Egrifta brand for HIV-associated lipodystrophy in adults | | Typical published research framing | Adult-onset GH-insufficiency research; short-action GHRH agonist | Pharmacokinetic and proof-of-mechanism studies in healthy adults | Long-acting GHRH stimulation studies | Phase III pivotal trials in HIV-associated lipodystrophy (visceral fat by CT) | | Dose ranges in the published literature | Subcutaneous, typically reported in microgram-per-kilogram research dosing schedules in adult-onset GHD work | Subcutaneous, generally low-microgram research dosing in early human pharmacokinetic studies | Single-injection multi-day exposure in early pharmacokinetic studies | Subcutaneous 2 mg once daily was the registrational regimen in HIV-lipodystrophy trials | | Approved indication | None (in EU) | None | None | HIV-associated lipodystrophy in adult HIV-infected patients (EMA) | | Who would prescribe it | Not prescribed as a medicine in EU | Not prescribed as a medicine in EU | Not prescribed as a medicine in EU | HIV specialist clinician |^{[2][3][4][5][7][8]}

Read the dose-range column as research-context history, not as a personal-use schedule. The published numbers come from controlled clinical-pharmacology or registrational trial settings, not from open-market consumer use.^[12][9]

The regulatory map of this family is short and clear. Tesamorelin (Egrifta) has an EMA EPAR for HIV-associated lipodystrophy. Sermorelin does not have an EMA EPAR. CJC-1295 (in either variant) does not have an EMA EPAR. The only EMA-authorised GH-replacement therapy in Europe is recombinant human growth hormone (somatropin), prescribed for diagnosed GH deficiency by an endocrinologist after diagnostic workup.^[7][8][9]

That asymmetry is the single most important fact a buyer should hold when reading any sermorelin-vs-CJC-1295-vs-tesamorelin content. The molecules are not three flavours of the same product. They are three regulatory categories: a research peptide (sermorelin), a research peptide with two design variants (CJC-1295 No-DAC and DAC), and an EMA-authorised medicine with a narrow indication (tesamorelin).^[7][8]

Anti-doping context is also relevant for athletes: GHRH analogues fall under the WADA Prohibited List's hormone and growth factor category (S2), and use outside a permitted therapeutic-use exemption is prohibited in competitive sport.^[11]