How to reconstitute
research peptides.
A general reference for laboratory reconstitution of lyophilised peptides with bacteriostatic water. Applies to every compound in the PepC.Labs catalogue unless a product-specific note below says otherwise.
For research use only. Not for human or veterinary consumption.
- 1
Bring the vial and bacteriostatic water to room temperature before mixing. Cold peptide powder dissolves poorly.
- 2
Draw the recommended bacteriostatic water volume into a sterile insulin syringe.
- 3
Inject the bacteriostatic water slowly down the inside wall of the vial. Never inject directly onto the lyophilised peptide powder.
- 4
Swirl gently to dissolve. Do not shake. Shaking denatures the peptide.
- 5
Wait for the solution to clear fully. Most peptides dissolve within 30 seconds to a few minutes.
- 6
Store the reconstituted vial refrigerated at 2 to 8°C. Keep it protected from light.
- 7
Reconstituted peptides in bacteriostatic water are generally stable for up to 28 days under refrigeration with sterile draw technique.
Two things that ruin peptides
Shaking (denatures the protein chain) and heat (room-temp fine, warming past ~25°C is not). Everything else is recoverable.
Concentration
Concentration (mcg/mL) = Peptide amount (mcg) ÷ Bacteriostatic water volume (mL)
Syringe units on a U-100 insulin syringe
Syringe units (U-100) = (Target dose in mcg ÷ Concentration in mcg/mL) × 100
Worked example
Example: a 10mg vial with 2mL of bacteriostatic water gives 5,000 mcg/mL. A 250mcg target is (250 ÷ 5000) × 100 = 5 units on a U-100 insulin syringe.
| Product | Add BW | Concentration | Example dose |
|---|---|---|---|
| NAD+ 500mg / vial | 5 mL | 100 mg/mL | 100mg 100 units (1mL) |
| BPC-157 + TB-500 10mg / vial | 2 mL | 2.5 mg/mL | 250mcg of each peptide 10 units (delivers 250mcg of each) |
| CJC-1295 (no DAC) 10mg / vial | 2 mL | 5 mg/mL | 100mcg 2 units |
| GHK-Cu 100mg / vial | 2 mL | 50 mg/mL | 2mg 4 units |
| Glutathione 1200mg / vial | 10 mL | 120 mg/mL | 600mg 500 units (5mL) |
| Melanotan II (MT-2) 10mg / vial | 2 mL | 5 mg/mL | 250mcg 5 units |
| MOTS-C 10mg / vial | 2 mL | 5 mg/mL | 5mg 100 units (the full syringe) |
| Retatrutide 10mg / vial | 2 mL | 5 mg/mL | 2mg 40 units |
| DSIP 5mg / vial | 2 mL | 2.5 mg/mL | 250mcg 10 units |
| Selank 5mg / vial | 2 mL | 5.5 mg/mL | 300mcg 5 units (approx) |
| Semax 11mg / vial | 2 mL | 5 mg/mL | 300mcg 6 units |
NAD+
Larger volumes than peptide compounds. Many protocols reconstitute to 50mg/mL with 10mL BW.
BPC-157 + TB-500
Blend contains 5mg BPC-157 + 5mg TB-500. 2mL BW gives 2.5mg/mL of each peptide; one 10-unit draw delivers both at the quoted dose.
GHK-Cu
GHK-Cu ships in a 3ml vial. 2mL of bacteriostatic water fits with headroom for draws and gives clean unit math (1mg = 2 units, 2mg = 4 units). Blue solution after reconstitution is normal, that is the copper complex.
Glutathione
Larger reconstitution volume. Typically administered as a slow push in research protocols.
Selank
For intranasal research protocols, substitute bacteriostatic saline for bacteriostatic water.
Semax
For intranasal research protocols, substitute bacteriostatic saline for bacteriostatic water.
A general conservative starting point for researchers new to each compound, summarised from published protocols. Always pause the ramp if you observe side effects, and hold at the current dose for an extra interval before stepping up.
- Start
- 50mg once daily for week 1 — 50 units (0.5mL)
- Ramp
- Week 2 step up to 75mg daily (75 units). Week 3 onward hold at 100mg daily (100 units).
- Cycle
- Continuous daily dosing, with periodic rest weeks at the researcher's discretion
- Start
- 250mcg of each once daily (10 units) for the first 1-2 weeks — 10 units
- Ramp
- If tolerated, scale up to 500mcg of each daily (20 units) by weeks 3-8.
- Cycle
- 6-8 weeks on, 2+ weeks off
- Start
- 100mcg once daily pre-bed on an empty stomach — 2 units
- Ramp
- Can step up to 200-300mcg (4-6 units) once tolerance is confirmed.
- Cycle
- 5-6 days on, 1-2 days off to preserve GH receptor sensitivity
- Start
- 1mg once daily for the first 2 weeks — 2 units
- Ramp
- Days 15 onward increase to 2mg daily (4 units) if tolerated.
- Cycle
- 30 days on, 30 days off
- Start
- 200-400mg per session (weeks 1-2) — 170-340 units
- Ramp
- Step up to 600-1200mg per session as tolerated.
- Cycle
- 2-3 sessions per week; many protocols run 8-12 week blocks
- Start
- 100mcg once daily to test tolerance — 2 units
- Ramp
- Increase 100mcg every 2-3 days to 500mcg (10 units) target if well tolerated.
- Cycle
- Loading 2-3 weeks, then maintenance 2-3x weekly
- Start
- 200mcg once daily for the first 2 weeks — 4 units
- Ramp
- Increase ~200mcg every 2 weeks, targeting 1mg daily (20 units) by week 10.
- Cycle
- 10-week ramp, then cycle off for 2-4 weeks
- Start
- 0.5mg once weekly for weeks 1-4 — 10 units
- Ramp
- Increase every 4 weeks by 0.5-1mg as tolerated. Realistic research range tops out around 4-6mg weekly. The 8-12mg figures come from clinical trials and are rarely run outside formal studies.
- Cycle
- Continuous weekly dosing while titrating; pause or hold longer at any step if side effects arise
- Start
- 100mcg pre-sleep (weeks 1-2) — 4 units
- Ramp
- Increase to 250mcg pre-sleep if tolerated.
- Cycle
- Nightly for 2-4 weeks, break as needed
- Start
- 300mcg once daily (weeks 1-2) — 5 units (approx)
- Ramp
- Weeks 3-4 increase to 500mcg daily (9 units) if tolerated.
- Cycle
- 4-8 weeks on, short wash-out between runs
- Start
- 300mcg once daily (weeks 1-2) — 6 units
- Ramp
- Weeks 3+ can titrate up to 600-800mcg daily (12-16 units) based on response.
- Cycle
- 4-8 weeks on, short wash-out between runs
- 01The peptide vial you’re reconstituting, at room temperature.
- 02Bacteriostatic water (0.9% benzyl alcohol). Available in our catalogue as a separate SKU.
- 03Sterile U-100 insulin syringes. Any compatible research-supply brand is fine.
- 04Alcohol swabs for vial-stopper sterilisation between draws.
This guide is provided as a laboratory reference for research use only. It is not medical advice and not for human or veterinary consumption.