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Research profile · Peptide

AHK-Cu

Also known as Alanyl-histidyl-lysine copper

In vitro — evidence level 1 of 4: In-vitro evidenceExperimental — UK regulatory status: Experimental — not authorised for human use in the UK

Overview

A copper tripeptide complex analogous to GHK-Cu, resting on a single laboratory study and with no verified cosmetic-ingredient identity in Great Britain.

Category
Peptide
Highest evidence level identified
In-vitro evidence
Last scientifically reviewed
20 August 2026
Last regulatory review
20 August 2026

Mechanism under investigation

AHK-Cu is a synthetic copper complex of the tripeptide alanyl-histidyl-lysine, structurally analogous to GHK-Cu but with a different amino acid at the first position. Proposed mechanisms — inferred from cell culture rather than demonstrated in people — include copper delivery to cells, stimulation of dermal papilla cell proliferation and support of hair follicle elongation. Whether any of this translates into an effect in intact human skin or scalp is not established.

Research areas

  • Hair follicle biology
  • Copper peptide chemistry

These are fields in which the compound has been investigated. Listing a field is not a statement that anything was demonstrated within it.

Current evidence

In-vitro evidence

Cells, tissues or biochemical systems outside a living organism.

One principal study, from 2007, reporting that the complex stimulated elongation of human hair follicles outside the body and proliferation of cultured dermal papilla cells, with changes in apoptosis-related proteins. The reduction in apoptotic cells was explicitly not statistically significant. Literature searches return only five records in total mentioning this compound.

Animal evidence

Studies in living non-human animals.

Essentially absent and confounded. The only animal work found tests the compound as one component of a multi-ingredient hair formulation, so its individual contribution cannot be separated out. No dedicated animal study of the compound alone was identified.

Human observational evidence

Studies observing people without assigning an intervention.

None identified.

Clinical-trial evidence

Studies assigning an intervention to human participants.

None identified. No registered trial was found.

Study limitations

  • The entire evidence base rests on a single 2007 laboratory study. Only five records mentioning this compound exist in the indexed literature at all.
  • Follicle culture and isolated dermal papilla cells do not reproduce intact scalp, circulation or immune environment, so follicle elongation cannot be extrapolated to hair growth in people.
  • The apoptosis endpoint reported did not reach statistical significance, and no independent replication or dose-response has been published.
  • Where the compound appears in animal work it is one active among several in a proprietary formulation, so its own contribution is unmeasurable.
  • It is widely described by suppliers as the cosmetic ingredient "Copper Tripeptide-3". That mapping could not be verified and is contradicted by the official sources: the Great Britain ingredient glossary contains no such entry, and the European cosmetic ingredient database defines that name as a different peptide entirely.

UK regulatory context

Experimental — not authorised for human use in the UK

A compound appearing in research literature that holds no UK authorisation for human use in any indication.

Source: Commission Decision (EU) 2019/701 establishing a glossary of common ingredient names for use in the labelling of cosmetic products (assimilated Great Britain version) (opens legislation.gov.uk in a new tab) (legislation.gov.uk)

Regulatory classification is jurisdiction-specific. A compound authorised elsewhere is not thereby authorised in the UK, and a supplier’s description of a substance does not determine how it is classified in law. See safety and regulation for the framework and the authoritative sources.

Safety and interpretation

No systematic safety assessment of this compound has been published — the Cosmetic Ingredient Review’s peptide assessment covers the related GHK-Cu but contains no entry for this one. Because no human study of any design has been identified, there is no clinical safety dataset at all, and the absence of reported harm reflects an absence of investigation. Copper-containing complexes additionally raise questions about cumulative copper exposure that the published record does not address.

References