Immune support
Thymus peptides and immune signallers. Eight of the ten come from the same Russian research tradition and are sold in courses rather than continuously.
Thymalin is a peptide extract from the thymus, the gland that trains your immune system. In plain terms: taken in short courses, it is used to refresh immune function and support healthy aging, though Western human evidence is limited.
Vilon is a 2-amino-acid 'bioregulator' from the Russian Khavinson family. In plain terms: it is marketed for immune balance and healthy aging, but there is very little real human research behind it.
Glutathione is a natural tripeptide (three amino acids) that is your body's master antioxidant. In plain terms: it mops up cell-damaging molecules, which is why it is taken for skin brightness, detox support, and general cell protection.
Thymosin Alpha-1 is a 28-amino-acid peptide made by the thymus that helps direct immune defenses. In plain terms: it tunes up the immune system to respond better to infection, and it is well studied and used abroad as an add-on therapy.
LL-37 is a natural 37-amino-acid antimicrobial peptide, part of your innate immune system's first line of defense. In plain terms: it punches holes in bacteria and helps wounds heal, which is why it is explored for stubborn infections, though human data is limited.
Thymulin is a zinc-dependent thymus peptide involved in immune-cell maturation. In plain terms: it is studied for balancing immune function and calming inflammation and pain, with limited human data.
Thymogen is a 2-amino-acid thymus 'bioregulator' from the Russian Khavinson family. In plain terms: it is taken in courses to support immune function, but there is very little real human research behind it.
Thymopentin is a five amino acid piece of thymopoietin, a hormone made by the thymus gland that helps immune cells mature. Researchers found that this short stretch, positions 32 to 36, does everything the full 49 amino acid hormone does. In plain terms: they found the working part and threw away the rest, which makes it far easier to make.
Imunofan is a six amino acid peptide developed in Russia as a modified version of thymopentin, the working piece of a thymus hormone. An arginine was added at each end to make it last longer. In plain terms: it is thymopentin with a bit of armour, aimed at the same job of nudging the immune system.
Crystagen is a 3-amino-acid 'bioregulator' from the Russian Khavinson family. In plain terms: it is marketed for immune balance, studied beside Vilon and Thymogen, but there is very little real human research behind it.
Tuftsin is a four-amino-acid fragment released from an antibody molecule. In plain terms: it stimulates the cells that engulf bacteria, and this library already carries the Russian anxiety drug built from it.
Splenopentin is a short fragment of splenin, a protein from the spleen. In plain terms: it is sold for immune support, and the research behind it is old, thin and hard to retrieve.
Common questions
Are thymus peptides approved for anything?
Two of the ten are available through a prescription or a compounding pharmacy in some countries. Thymosin Alpha-1 is approved in more than 35 countries as Zadaxin, though not in the United States. The other eight have no approval anywhere.
Why are so many of these Russian?
Most come from a line of research led by one group in St Petersburg, going back to the 1970s. The published work measures effects on tissue and lifespan rather than how the peptides behave in the body, and almost none of it has been repeated outside Russia.
Do any of these have a published half-life?
Two. Thymopentin clears in about 90 seconds and Thymosin Alpha-1 in about two hours. For the rest, including the whole bioregulator group, no half-life has ever been published in a person or an animal.