Orexin A_Dosage, benefits & legal status
Also known as hypocretin-1
A peptide studied for wakefulness and daytime energy.
Common vial size is what vendors typically sell, not a recommendation. Enter your own vial in the calculator.
What is Orexin A?
Plain language first. The technical label stays, but it never stands alone.Overview
It is studied as a nasal spray for wakefulness and daytime energy, with limited data.
Orexin-A (hypocretin-1) is a natural brain peptide that keeps you awake and alert; people with narcolepsy lack it.
What it's used for
A peptide that promotes wakefulness and alertness, studied for narcolepsy and daytime energy.
How does Orexin A work?
What it does in the body, and where.Orexin-A is the wakefulness signal. Narcolepsy is what happens when the neurons that make it are destroyed, which is unusually direct as disease mechanisms go.
- 01It binds orexin receptors that drive arousalHolding the brain in a waking state and stabilising the boundary between sleep and wake.
- 02The nasal route is an attempt to reach the brain directlyThe peptide does not cross from blood into brain well, so it is sprayed.
- 03Human evidence is one small pilot studyA single intranasal dose in narcolepsy, crossover design, small numbers.
- 04The field has moved to oral small moleculesDrugs like oveporexton activate the same receptor and can be swallowed, which is a more practical route than a nasal peptide.
What else is it used for?
Each use below 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.
- Wakefulness and daytime alertnessEarly research
- NarcolepsyInvestigational
The published record
Papers and trials about Orexin A
Searched: Orexin A, hypocretin-1.
283 papers tagged human · 118 not reviews or lab · 7 clinical trial publications
79 registered trials · 17 with posted results
Furthest stage reached: Published trials only, 7 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. 500 papers and 79 trials indexed in detail.
At a glance
Four things to know about Orexin A
How much, and do you cycle it?
The range, and whether you take breaks.Research only, as studied. No established schedule No range
No published study has established how long to take this or whether a break is needed. Schedules quoted online come from vendors and forums, and different sources disagree.
Nothing publishedNo figure
Nothing published for an administered dose. Papers reporting orexin levels measure what the body already contains.
You can compare this against the whole library to see where it sits.
What does it cost?
Typical dose and cost, in plain numbers.The products priced here are not injected
Route: nasal spray. Three randomized trials in narcolepsy with cataplexy, all from one group in Kiel, gave orexin-A as a nasal spray: 0.1 mL into each nostril at one-minute intervals over ten minutes, roughly 2 mL in total. REM sleep and wake-to-REM transitions fell; daytime sleepiness did not improve. The published descriptions give the volume rather than an amount, and the milligram figures repeated online come from secondary write-ups we could not confirm at the paper, so we do not print one.
Orexin A starts at $57.99 across 2 vendors.
2 listings, last read Oct 10, 2026. Shipping and card fees are not included.
How do you store it?
Before mixing, and after.Fridge after opening. Use within about 30 days.
Store sealed Orexin A in the fridge. Once opened, keep it upright in the fridge and plan to finish it inside roughly 30 days. Keep it out of light and do not freeze the liquid.
What are the side effects and cautions?
Known cautions and warnings for this compound.Solubility, computed: 21% charged residues, 48% hydrophobic. Acid may help.
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
- No formal contraindications established
- Pregnancy
Stop and get help
- Signs of an allergic reaction
Common effects
- Used in small experimental human protocols without a robust controlled safety database
Where this page says nothing is established, that means nobody has studied it, not that a compound is safe.
Is Orexin A approved?
And where the numbers on this page come from.No. Orexin A is not approved for any use, anywhere. It is sold labeled for laboratory research only, and there is no legal route to buy it for human use.
- Approval statusResearch only
- RouteNasal spray
- Checked22 September 2026
- DoseFrom community reports. No regulator or trial established this dose.
- Vial sizeFrom what vendors typically list; not a recommendation.
- SourcesNone traced yet.
What has happened recently
We have not yet written a full regulatory note for this compound. The status above is current as of the date shown.
You can compare this against the whole library, or read how to check a seller.
What else is like Orexin A?
Others in Longevity and energy, side by side.If you're weighing Orexin A, it's worth reading PNC-28, ALT-711, and CB4211 in the same class.
A peptide studied for wakefulness and daytime energy.
- Dose
- Research only
- How often
- As studied
The lesser-known sibling of PNC-27, with the same cancer claims and the same missing human trials.
- Dose
- Research only
- How often
- Varies
An anti-ageing molecule from the 1990s that broke sugar-protein crosslinks in rats and disappointed in people.
- Dose
- Research only
- How often
- No established pattern
A modified MOTS-c analog that completed human safety trials and was abandoned over its formulation.
- Dose
- 25 mg per day in the phase 1b stage
- How often
- Once 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
No primary source has been traced for this compound yet. Treat everything on this page as unverified until one is. How we grade evidence
Beyond these, 579 records are indexed. Browse the records