Understand the source comparison
AHK-Cu for Men: Peptide Comparison
AHK-Cu Ala-His-Lys + Cu²⁺ Dermal repair, collagen synthesis, vascular studies High (Kd ~10⁻¹⁰ M) 0.05–2.0% topical, 0.5–5mg systemic Alanine N-terminus may enhance lipid membrane penetration vs glycine GHK-Cu Gly-His-Lys + Cu²⁺ Wound healing, anti-aging, ECM r
No winner is assigned.
This page preserves a source comparison for education. It does not add a rating, recommendation or clinical judgment.
- AHK-Cu
- Ala-His-Lys + Cu²⁺
- Dermal repair, collagen synthesis, vascular studies
- High (Kd ~10⁻¹⁰ M)
- 0.05–2.0% topical, 0.5–5mg systemic
- Alanine N-terminus may enhance lipid membrane penetration vs glycine
- GHK-Cu
- Gly-His-Lys + Cu²⁺
- Wound healing, anti-aging, ECM remodeling
- 0.1–3.0% topical, 1–10mg systemic
- Most studied copper peptide; extensive gene expression data (4000+ genes modulated)
- Copper Gluconate
- Cu²⁺ + gluconic acid
- Dietary supplementation, systemic copper delivery
- Moderate (dissociates readily)
- 2–8mg elemental Cu daily
- No peptide carrier. Relies on CTR1 transporters for absorption
- Native Ceruloplasmin
- 1046 amino acids + 6 Cu²⁺ ions
- Iron oxidation, copper transport
- Very high (physiological carrier)
- Not used exogenously
- Endogenous protein. Not administered as supplement
- The bottom line: AHK-Cu for men and GHK-Cu share nearly identical copper-binding chemistry, but the alanine substitution in AHK-Cu is hypothesized to alter tissue distribution kinetics. Direct head-to-head comparison studies in identical research models are limited. Most published work uses GHK-Cu as the reference standard.