Octapeptide-45_Dosage, benefits & legal status
Also known as GPHGVREA
A cosmetic peptide whose patent says more than its label.
Common vial size is what vendors typically sell, not a recommendation. Enter your own vial in the calculator.
What is Octapeptide-45?
Plain language first. The technical label stays, but it never stands alone.Overview
This is the newest ingredient in a well-known professional skincare line, added in April 2026. It is worth a page for an unusual reason: the thing most sources say about it is wrong. It is widely described as having a proprietary, undisclosed sequence, and it does not. The brand's own patent applications print the sequence and name the ingredient, and they describe a specific mechanism about hyaluronic acid turnover rather than the general elastin and collagen language on the product page. What is missing is evidence: there is no peer-reviewed study of this peptide, so every claim about what it does traces back to the company selling it.
Octapeptide-45 is a synthetic eight-residue cosmetic peptide with the sequence GPHGVREA, disclosed and named as such in patent applications filed by Alastin Skincare with a priority date of April 2022. Those filings describe a mechanism considerably more specific than the consumer claims: upregulation of HAS2, the gene for hyaluronic acid synthase 2, in dermal cells, and downregulation of hyaluronidase expression including HYAL2, with the stated aim of favoring high molecular weight hyaluronic acid. It has no CAS number, no entry in the European cosmetic ingredient database that we could find, and no peer-reviewed study of any kind.
What it's used for
Cosmetic formulations only. It appears in professional skincare marketed for skin renewal and for use around aesthetic procedures. It has no medical use and no drug approval.
How does Octapeptide-45 work?
What it does in the body, and where.There are two descriptions of this ingredient in circulation. The marketing one is vague, and the patent one is specific. The patent is the more useful document.
- 01The sequence is publicTwo patent applications from Alastin Skincare, with a priority date of April 2022 and inventors Alan David Widgerow and John A. Garruto, name octapeptide-45 and state that the octapeptide comprises the amino acid sequence GPHGVREA, given as a numbered sequence identifier. That is eight residues: glycine, proline, histidine, glycine, valine, arginine, glutamate, alanine. Anyone describing the sequence as undisclosed has not read the filings.
- 02What the patent actually claimsThe filings describe raising HAS2, one of the enzymes that builds hyaluronic acid, in dermal cells, and lowering hyaluronidase expression including HYAL2, the enzyme that breaks it down. The stated goal is to shift the balance toward high molecular weight hyaluronic acid rather than to add hyaluronic acid from outside. Push synthesis up and breakdown down, and the skin's own supply of the large form rises.
- 03Why molecular weight is the pointHyaluronic acid is not one substance. Large chains and small fragments behave differently in skin, and the fragments are associated with inflammatory signaling while the large form is associated with hydration and structure. A mechanism aimed specifically at favoring the high molecular weight form is a more precise claim than simply saying a product supports hyaluronic acid, and it is the part of the story the consumer page leaves out.
- 04What is missingEvidence. Searching the published literature for this peptide returns nothing: no peer-reviewed study of the isolated ingredient, in people or otherwise. The patent describes intent and laboratory observation, and a patent is not a trial. So the mechanism above is what the owner claims, not what has been demonstrated on anyone's face.
A schematic of the compound's mechanism, not a diagnostic image.
What else is it used for?
Each group carries its own evidence level.Approved means regulators have cleared it for that purpose. Investigational means it is in trials. Early research means it is being studied and is not established.
The sequence that is supposedly secret
none- lab-analysisPublished as GPHGVREA, eight residues, named as octapeptide-45 in two Alastin Skincare patent applications with an April 2022 priority date.
- No dataIt has no CAS number and no European cosmetic ingredient database entry that we could find.
The patent mechanism is more specific than the marketing
none- Lab studyPatent filings claim upregulation of HAS2 in dermal cells and downregulation of hyaluronidase including HYAL2, with the aim of favoring high molecular weight hyaluronic acid.
- No dataThe consumer-facing claims are the broader elastin, collagen and hyaluronic acid language, losing the molecular-weight distinction entirely.
What does not exist
none- No dataNo peer-reviewed study of this peptide was found in the literature. Every claim about its effect traces to the company selling it.
- No dataIt is not SNAP-8, a different peptide called acetyl octapeptide-3. TriHex and TriHex+ are formulation platform names, not alternative names for this ingredient.
The most repeated error is that the sequence is proprietary and unverifiable. It is published as GPHGVREA in the brand's own patent applications, where the ingredient is named outright. The second is confusing it with TriHex or TriHex+, both formulation platform names; the brand's own earlier release says octapeptide-45 was added to the existing TriHex technology, so they are not the same thing. The name TriHex itself appears to refer to palmitoyl tripeptide-1 plus palmitoyl hexapeptide-12, both already covered here, but that is a reading of ingredient lists rather than a company statement. Third, it is not SNAP-8; that is acetyl octapeptide-3 from a different supplier. Last, the marketing talks about elastin, collagen and hyaluronic acid in general, while the patent claims something narrower and more interesting about shifting hyaluronic acid toward the high molecular weight form. Neither version has a peer-reviewed human study behind it.
The published record
Papers and trials about Octapeptide-45
Searched: octapeptide-45, GPHGVREA.
Left out: octapeptide (a length descriptor that matches acetyl octapeptide-3, which is SNAP-8, a different and much better known peptide; this is the main contamination risk on this row); acetyl octapeptide-3 (SNAP-8, a different molecule from a different supplier, frequently confused with this one); TriHex (a formulation platform name, not an ingredient name; it appears to denote palmitoyl tripeptide-1 plus palmitoyl hexapeptide-12, both of which have their own slugs); ALASTIN (a brand covering an entire product line); hyaluronic acid (an enormous dermatology and rheumatology literature).
4 papers tagged human · 4 not reviews or lab · 3 clinical trial publications
Furthest stage reached: Published trials only, 3 clinical trial publications, no phased trial registered
Counted from Europe PMC indexing, not read by a person; a human tag can land on reviews, commentary or lab papers; clinical trial publications is the narrower count.
At a glance
Four things to know about Octapeptide-45
Evidence
Cosmetic
Category
Skin and cosmetic
Common vial
Varies
Half-life
Not applicable
How much, and do you cycle it?
The range, and whether you take breaks.Set by the finished product, as directed by the product. Not applicable No range
An ingredient in a finished cosmetic, used as the product directs. No cycling scheme applies.
Not applicableNo figure
No half-life has been published, and a circulating half-life would not be the useful measure for an ingredient applied to the skin in a finished cosmetic.
You can compare this against the whole library to see where it sits.
How is it given?
Dosing context and source notes.Supplied as a ready-made solution, so there is nothing to mix.
How do you store it?
Before mixing, and after.Room temperature, out of light. Cap it tight after each use.
Octapeptide-45 ships as a cream, gel, or serum. Keep it at room temperature away from sun and heat unless the label says otherwise. Refrigerating an emulsion can split the texture. Watch for color, smell, or separation changes and stop using it if any appear.
What are the side effects and cautions?
Known cautions and warnings for this compound.Solubility, computed: 50% charged residues, 38% hydrophobic. Water usually sufficient.
A first-pass rule from peptide manufacturers' guidance. It does not account for disulfide bridges, salt form or how the powder was dried, and it predicts what should be easy rather than what will happen in your vial.
Who should avoid it
- Any expectation of a measured effect: no peer-reviewed human study of this peptide exists
- Treating a figure such as a stated percentage of patients improving as independent evidence, since the supporting reference behind that figure was not obtainable
Stop and get help
- Signs of an allergic skin reaction, such as spreading redness, swelling or blistering
Common effects
- Nothing established in a published human study
Where this page says nothing is established, that means nobody has studied it, not that a compound is safe.
Is Octapeptide-45 approved?
And where the numbers on this page come from.Not as a medicine. Octapeptide-45 is sold without a prescription as a cosmetic ingredient, which is a different thing from being approved as a drug.
- Approval statusCosmeticSold without a prescription as an ingredient in cosmetics, such as skincare and hair products. The FDA does not approve cosmetics before they are sold, and being easy to buy says nothing about whether it works.
- RouteOn the skin (cream or serum)
- Checked30 October 2026
- DoseNo dose has been established in people.
- Vial sizeFrom what vendors typically list; not a recommendation.
- Sources
What has happened recently
A cosmetic ingredient, not a drug, so it required no premarket approval for safety or for whether its claims are true. Galderma announced its addition to the ALASTIN line in April 2026, naming the ingredient specifically. Three identity points are worth fixing because all three are commonly muddled. It is not SNAP-8, a different peptide called acetyl octapeptide-3 from a different supplier. TriHex and TriHex+ are formulation platform names rather than alternative names for this ingredient: the brand's earlier release describes octapeptide-45 as having been added to the existing TriHex technology, so the platform predates the peptide. The name TriHex also appears to describe palmitoyl tripeptide-1 plus palmitoyl hexapeptide-12, both of which already have pages on this site; that reading is an inference from ingredient lists rather than something the company states, so it is labeled as such here.
You can compare this against the whole library, or read how to check a seller.
What else is like Octapeptide-45?
Others in Skin and cosmetic, side by side.If you're weighing Octapeptide-45, it's worth reading Oligopeptide-1 (EGF), Palmitoyl Hexapeptide-12, and Palmitoyl Tripeptide-8 in the same class.
A cosmetic peptide whose patent says more than its label.
- Dose
- Set by the finished product
- How often
- As directed by the product
Epidermal growth factor under a cosmetic name, and the only real protein on this shelf.
- Dose
- Serum, per product
- How often
- Daily
Pal-VGVAPG, one of the two original palmitoyl peptides Sederma launched in 1992. Judged safe as used in cosmetics; the firming evidence is thin.
- Dose
- A few ppm in the finished product (up to 0.002%)
- How often
- Daily
A skin-calming ingredient built from three residues of a natural anti-inflammatory hormone, backed mainly by supplier tests.
- Dose
- Serum or cream, per product
- How often
- Daily
Guides for this compound
- mcg vs mg: The Peptide Dosing Mistake to Avoid
Your vial says mg and your protocol says mcg. Here is the conversion and how to check it.
- How to Read a Peptide COA
What the purity number does and does not tell you, and how to spot an edited report.
- How to Vet a Peptide Vendor
Independent COAs, HPLC purity, and the red flags that mean walk away.
Sources
- Alastin Skincare patent application US20250032532A1(2025)The document that disproves the proprietary-sequence claim. Applicant Alastin Skincare Inc., inventors Alan David Widgerow and John A. Garruto, published January 30, 2025, priority date April 13, 2022. It names octapeptide-45 and states that the octapeptide comprises an amino acid sequence GPHGVREA, given as sequence identifier 5. On mechanism it states that exposure of dermal cells to the octapeptide results in upregulation of HAS2 expression within dermal cells, that the composition downregulates hyaluronidase expression and that this hyaluronidase comprises HYAL2, and that the composition promotes hyaluronic acid synthesis by stimulating hyaluronic acid synthase activity, with the aim of high molecular weight hyaluronic acid. Note for accuracy: the portion of the document we read does not mention tropoelastin or MFAP4, so neither is attributed to it here.
- Galderma announcement of the ALASTIN launch containing Octapeptide-45(2026)The company release dated April 16, 2026 from Zug, with no individual byline, announcing the product and naming Octapeptide-45 as an addition. A predecessor release dated April 17, 2025 describes octapeptide-45 as having been added to the existing TriHex technology, establishing that TriHex is a platform generation name rather than an alias for this peptide. The claims concern elastin, collagen and hyaluronic acid and are the company's own; one figure about a proportion of patients rests on a cited reference that could not be obtained, so it is not reproduced here.
Beyond these, 5 records are indexed. Browse the records