GHK-Cu: the copper peptide in skin research

A peptide that carries copper

GHK stands for the three amino acids glycine, histidine and lysine. This short chain naturally binds a copper ion. In that form it is called GHK-Cu, where Cu is the chemical symbol for copper.

Copper is a trace element the body needs for many enzymes. The peptide works as a kind of carrier that brings copper to the right place.

The discovery

The American researcher Loren Pickart described GHK in the 1970s. He noticed that blood plasma from younger people made connective tissue respond differently than plasma from older people. The active factor turned out to be this small peptide.

Since then GHK-Cu has been a steady topic in the literature on skin cells and connective tissue.

Gene expression as a broad theme

Modern research looks beyond copper alone. Studies with gene chips mapped which genes become more or less active in the presence of GHK. The number of genes involved turned out to be large.

Researchers use this to understand how one small molecule touches so many routes at once. This is descriptive work, aimed at mechanism.

Collagen and the skin matrix

A large part of the research centres on the extracellular matrix. That is the support tissue between skin cells, with collagen and elastin as main components.

• Collagen: studies measure its production in cultured cells.
• Breakdown enzymes: researchers track enzymes that clear the matrix.
• Wound-repair models: observations on skin models after damage.

How it is measured in the lab

Many experiments use cultured skin cells, called fibroblasts. Researchers add GHK-Cu and measure what changes inside the cell. They also work with pieces of reconstructed skin.

This setup gives control. At the same time it stays a model, not living skin.

What is still unclear

The laboratory data are rich, but many questions remain. How the peptide behaves in more complex tissue models is a subject of ongoing research.