GHK-Cu in 2026 — A Formulator's Field Guide to Copper Tripeptide-1. Read our briefing →
GHK-Cu in 2026 — a formulator's field guide. Read →
On GHK-Cu. Read →
Tripeptide-1 · copper-free GHK signal active
Overview
On the INCI deck this active reads as Tripeptide-1 — the Gly-His-Lys sequence (C14H24N6O4, MW 340.4) in its copper-free form. It is the apo-peptide of GHK-Cu: the same tripeptide that Pepoderma carries as the blue copper complex, but supplied here without the chelated Cu(II). For a brand that already runs a GHK-Cu hero serum, the free tripeptide is the answer when a formula needs the GHK signal-and-carrier narrative without the copper coordination chemistry — no diagnostic blue, no chelator constraints, and a clean white powder that behaves like a standard small peptide on the bench. Pepoderma writes the free-GHK spec for cosmetic chemists who want the tripeptide story in carriers where the copper complex is awkward. Because there is no Cu(II) to keep on the peptide, the chelator-free, copper-clean-water guardrails that govern GHK-Cu relax: the free peptide tolerates a wider carrier set, including some that the copper complex cannot enter without losing its colour and coordination. Add it to the water phase cool and late at a near-neutral pH (5.5–7.0); it slots into anionic and non-ionic emulsions and hydrogels, and pre-dissolving in a small glycerin or propanediol slurry keeps it dispersing cleanly. A brief can position the free tripeptide and GHK-Cu as a deliberate pair — the copper complex as the hero with the editorial blue, the free peptide as the flanker SKU or the choice for a cationic or copper-incompatible base — and tell a coherent two-product GHK story across the range. Sample fills of 50 mg and 100 mg cover bench iterations and pilot work; bulk runs on the standard OEM cycle. INCI and CAS appear on the SDS for CPNP and equivalent cosmetic notifications, with an allergen and trace-impurity sheet per lot.
Who buys this, and why
Anti-aging peptide actives — Copper Tripeptide-1 (GHK-Cu), Acetyl Octapeptide-3 (SNAP-8), Palmitoyl Pentapeptide-4 (Matrixyl) — ship primarily to indie beauty brand founders building retail serums, established skincare R&D chemists extending an existing anti-wrinkle line, and med-aesthetic brand OEMs developing back-bar retail products. The defining formulation considerations are use-level optimisation (lower is often better at the working pH), carrier selection (aqueous vs. lipid-encapsulated), and chelator-free preservative systems. The data packet ships with guidance on all three on the lot report.
Primary buyer fit: med-aesthetic brand R&D + back-bar retail OEM, regional cosmetic-active distributors serving brand programmes, and skincare R&D chemists scoping a finished-product line.
Applications & formulation fit
The copper-free GHK tripeptide (Tripeptide-1): a matrikine signal in its own right that also binds copper spontaneously to form GHK-Cu — so a brand can choose the free peptide or the pre-formed copper complex depending on the formula.
Use levels, pH window, and carrier compatibility are covered in the Journal — verify them against your own base:
Specifications
Documentation available on request
Regulatory note
Supplied as a cosmetic-grade peptide active under the EU EC 1223/2009 cosmetic regulation, NMPA cosmetic ingredient framework, FDA OTC monograph framework (where applicable), and equivalent regimes elsewhere. NOT a finished cosmetic product. Brand registration, finished-product safety substantiation, claim documentation, and notification (CPNP for EU, equivalent registries elsewhere) remain the responsibility of the brand owner. INCI naming and CAS are supplied with the SDS that ships with every lot.
Frequently asked questions
Same tripeptide, different state. GHK (Tripeptide-1) is the copper-free apo-peptide — the Gly-His-Lys sequence on its own, a white powder. GHK-Cu (Copper Tripeptide-1) is that tripeptide chelating a single Cu(II) ion, the striking blue complex whose carrier-peptide activity is a property of the intact copper coordination. The practical translation for a brand: GHK-Cu carries the diagnostic blue, the copper-clean-water and chelator-free formulation guardrails, and the hero positioning; free GHK drops those copper constraints and suits carriers — cationic bases, copper-incompatible systems — where the complex would lose its colour and coordination. Pepoderma supplies both so a range can run them as a deliberate pair rather than choosing one.
No — that is the main reason to reach for it. The chelator-free, copper-clean-process-water, no-EDTA, no-cationic-base rules that protect the Cu(II) coordination of GHK-Cu relax for the free peptide, because there is no copper to pull off the molecule. You still add it cool and late to the water phase at a near-neutral pH (5.5–7.0) and you still need a robust preservation system — it does not self-preserve — but the free peptide tolerates a broader carrier set, including some the copper complex cannot enter. For the copper-peptide formulation principles that DO still matter when you run the two side by side, our GHK-Cu field guide is the reference.
Sample fills are 50 mg for first-pass bench iterations and 100 mg once a carrier is selected and stability work begins; bulk fills for confirmed brand programmes run on the standard OEM cycle. Every shipment carries the INCI name (Tripeptide-1), the CAS, an allergen and trace-impurity statement for CPNP and equivalent cosmetic notifications, and a formulation-notes card that picks up where the GHK-Cu card stops. We supply the cosmetic-grade ingredient and its ingredient-level documentation; finished-product registration and claims substantiation remain the brand owner's responsibility.
Related peptides
3-mer
Copper tripeptide-1
3-mer
Copper peptide AHK
5-mer
Palmitoyl pentapeptide-4
