Secretin (ChiRhoStim)_Dosage, benefits & legal status
Also known as ChiRhoStim, ChiRhoStim 40, secretin human, synthetic human secretin, secretin human acetate, RG1068, INN-329
The 27-amino-acid hormone the gut releases when stomach acid arrives, made synthetically as a diagnostic injection. FDA-approved since 2004; in autism, 16 randomized trials found no benefit.
Common vial size is what vendors typically sell, not a recommendation. Enter your own vial in the calculator.
What is Secretin (ChiRhoStim)?
Plain language first. The technical label stays, but it never stands alone.Overview
When doctors suspect the pancreas is not making enough digestive fluid, or that a tumor is releasing the hormone gastrin, one secretin injection lets them measure the response. In the label's studies, people with chronic pancreatitis peaked below 80 mEq/L of bicarbonate, while all 35 healthy subjects reached 80 or more (a mean of 100), and a gastrin rise of more than 110 pg/mL over baseline strongly suggests a gastrinoma. It is a test, not a treatment, and despite early hopes it showed no benefit for autism in randomized trials.
Secretin is a 27-residue C-terminally amidated peptide released by S cells of the duodenum; ChiRhoStim is the synthetic human sequence, supplied as the acetate. It binds secretin receptors on pancreatic duct cells, opening CFTR channels and driving a bicarbonate-rich secretion, and it provokes gastrin release from gastrinomas. ChiRhoClin's NDA 021256 was approved on April 9, 2004, as a new molecular entity for pancreatic function testing, gastrinoma diagnosis and identifying the papillae at ERCP.
What it's used for
A single injection into a vein during hospital tests of the pancreas: to measure its bicarbonate output, to check for a gastrin-secreting tumor, and to help find the pancreatic duct openings during an endoscopy (ERCP).
How does Secretin (ChiRhoStim) work?
What it does in the body, and where.Secretin is the hormone that tells the pancreas to neutralize stomach acid, and the tests read how strongly the body answers it.
- 01The natural signalWhen acid from the stomach reaches the duodenum, S cells in its lining release secretin into the blood.
- 02The pancreas respondsSecretin binds receptors on pancreatic duct cells and opens CFTR channels, and the ducts pour out a large volume of bicarbonate-rich fluid. When the fluid is collected, a peak bicarbonate of 80 to 130 mEq/L is normal; at ERCP the flow makes the duct openings easier to find.
- 03The gastrinoma testGastrin-secreting tumors release gastrin when secretin arrives, so a rise of more than 110 pg/mL over baseline strongly suggests a gastrinoma. Acid blockers can exaggerate the response and give a false positive. The drug clears quickly, with a half-life of 45 minutes.
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.
Diagnostic performance on the label
FDA-approved- Human trialPancreas divisum crossover, 24 patients: minor duct cannulated in 16 with secretin against 2 with placebo.
- Human trial35 healthy subjects: mean peak bicarbonate 100 mEq/L, all at 80 or above; chronic pancreatitis patients peaked below 80.
- Human trialA gastrin rise of 110 pg/mL or more was the best gastrinoma cutoff; all 12 healthy subjects tested negative.
Autism
tested-and-failed- No dataFrom 1998, anecdotes of improvement after porcine secretin given during digestive testing spread through the media; an NEJM editorial called the coverage premature and unfortunate.
- Human trialSandler 1999: 60 children given one dose of synthetic human secretin or saline showed no advantage on any of 16 behavior measures, yet 69% of parents remained interested in secretin.
- Human trialOwley 2001 (56 children, porcine secretin, crossover) and Repligen's 132-child phase 3 of synthetic human secretin (2004) were also negative.
- ReviewCochrane, 16 randomized trials in more than 900 children: no evidence of benefit, and secretin should not be recommended or given for autism.
MRI of the pancreatic ducts
tested-and-failed- Human trialRG1068 phase 3, 258 patients at 23 US and Canadian sites: only 1 of 3 blinded readers showed a significant gain, missing the primary endpoint; a post hoc pooled analysis gave p=0.005.
- Human trialNo serious adverse events with secretin-enhanced MRI against 55 with ERCP, the reference procedure.
Human against porcine secretin
FDA-approved- RegulatoryPorcine secretin differs at 2 of 27 positions: aspartate at 15 and serine at 16, where human secretin has glutamate and glycine.
- RegulatoryIts label gives a half-life of about 27 minutes against 45 for human secretin, and calls for a 0.2 mcg test dose first.
Secretin is often described vaguely as a test for 'pancreatic function and certain GI conditions'; the label covers exactly three uses: pancreatic exocrine function, gastrinoma and finding the papillae at ERCP. The label is reported as updated October 8, 2025, the DailyMed version date; the prescribing information itself was last revised in July 2017. The name SecreFlo covers two products: Repligen's synthetic porcine secretin, approved in 2002 and now discontinued (ChiRhoClin now holds the application), and, in Repligen's 2011 and 2012 filings, its synthetic human secretin RG1068, never approved. The 45-minute half-life belongs to human secretin; the porcine label gives about 27 minutes. Claims that secretin helped some autistic children rest on anecdotes: none of the 16 randomized trials in the Cochrane review showed improvement in the core features of autism. It is often set apart from teduglutide and the GLP-1 drugs, yet it belongs to the same hormone family as glucagon, GLP-1 and GLP-2.
The published record
Papers and trials about Secretin (ChiRhoStim)
426 papers tagged human · 290 not reviews or lab · 33 clinical trial publications
53 registered trials · 8 with posted results
Furthest stage reached: Approved in the US
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. 474 papers and 53 trials indexed in detail.
At a glance
Four things to know about Secretin (ChiRhoStim)
Evidence
FDA-approved
Category
Healing and recovery
Common vial
Varies
Half-life
45 minutes
How much, and do you cycle it?
The range, and whether you take breaks.0.2 mcg/kg once, or 0.4 mcg/kg for gastrinoma testing (label), once per test. Single dose per test FDA label
One injection during a diagnostic test; not a course or ongoing treatment.
How long does it stay in the body?
The half-life, and where the figure comes from.45 minutesFDA label
Measured in 12 healthy subjects after a 0.4 mcg/kg intravenous bolus. Clearance 580.9 mL/min (plus or minus 51.3) and volume of distribution 2.7 L; plasma levels return to baseline within 90 to 120 minutes. The porcine label gives about 27 minutes.
Source: ChiRhoStim US prescribing information, pharmacokinetics section
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How is it given?
Dosing context and source notes.Given in hospital from a prepared product, so there is nothing to mix.
Label range: 0.2 up to 0.4 mcg/kg per dose. ChiRhoStim US prescribing information (DailyMed, 2025)
A single intravenous injection over 1 minute: 0.2 mcg/kg to test pancreatic function or to find the papillae during ERCP, and 0.4 mcg/kg for gastrinoma testing. Patients fast for at least 12 to 15 hours beforehand (12 for the gastrin test), stop anticholinergic drugs at least 5 half-lives before and H2 blockers at least 2 days before, and stop proton pump inhibitors as their own labels direct. No kidney or liver adjustment is given. Supplied as a freeze-dried powder: the 16 mcg vial is mixed with 8 mL saline (2 mcg/mL) and the 40 mcg vial with 10 mL (4 mcg/mL); vials are stored at -20°C, protected from light and used at once after mixing. Hospital use only and dosed by body weight, so the calculator cannot produce a draw.
How do you store it?
Before mixing, and after.Given in a hospital or trial clinic, so the pharmacy stores it.
Secretin (ChiRhoStim) goes into a vein and is prepared by hospital, clinic or trial pharmacy staff, following the product label or the trial protocol. Some products like this are ready-made solutions and others are powders mixed just before use, often with hours rather than weeks of shelf life once prepared. It is not a medicine people store at home.
What are the side effects and cautions?
Known cautions and warnings for this compound.Solubility, computed: 33% charged residues, 33% 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
- None on the current US label
- Vagotomy, inflammatory bowel disease or anticholinergic drugs can blunt the response and make results misleading
- Exaggerated response on H2 blockers or proton pump inhibitors (a false-positive gastrin test) and in alcoholic or other liver disease (masking pancreatic disease)
- Pregnancy and children: no human pregnancy data, and safety in children is not established
Stop and get help
- Severe or persistent abdominal pain after the test, possible pancreatitis (2 mild cases in the original 584-person safety data)
- Swelling of the face or throat, or trouble breathing
Common effects
- Nausea in 9 of 531 patients (about 1.7%) after a single dose, with no placebo comparison
- Vomiting in 3 (0.6%); flushing and upset stomach in 2 each (0.4%)
- In the original 2004 safety data, 29 of 584 patients and volunteers (5.0%) had at least one adverse event, nausea most often (11)
- Two cases of mild pancreatitis in that original data, and two severe events (nausea and abdominal pain) in one patient
Where this page says nothing is established, that means nobody has studied it, not that a compound is safe.
Is Secretin (ChiRhoStim) approved?
And where the numbers on this page come from.Yes. Secretin (ChiRhoStim) is FDA approved and available on prescription in the United States.
- Approval statusFDA-approved
- RouteInto a vein (1-minute injection), in the hospital
- Checked16 October 2026
- DoseFrom the drug label. The manufacturer tested this range and a regulator reviewed it.
- Vial sizeFrom what vendors typically list; not a recommendation.
- SourcesChiRhoStim US prescribing information (DailyMed, version October 8, 2025)Drugs@FDA, NDA 021256 (ChiRhoStim)FDA approval letter for NDA 021256 (2004)ChiRhoStim original US label (2004)Drugs@FDA, NDA 021136 (SecreFlo)Drugs@FDA, NDA 021209 (Porcine Secretin)Porcine secretin US label (2016)FDA GSRS substance record, secretin human (UNII A0426J905J)FDA orphan drug designations for synthetic human secretinWilliams K, Wray JA, Wheeler DM, Cochrane review CD003495Pharmaceutical Journal on Sandler A et al., NEJM 1999;341:1801Science News on Repligen's autism phase 3 (January 28, 2004)Fierce Biotech, RG1068 pancreatic imaging phase 3 (December 9, 2009)Adis Insight, secretin (RG1068, INN-329)
What has happened recently
The FDA approved ChiRhoStim (ChiRhoClin, NDA 021256) on April 9, 2004, as a new molecular entity under priority review, for pancreatic function testing, gastrinoma diagnosis and identifying the papillae at ERCP; it comes in 16 and 40 mcg vials, the current label format dates from a July 18, 2017 supplement, and the latest DailyMed version is dated October 8, 2025. ChiRhoClin received orphan designations for synthetic human secretin on June 16, 1999, and its gastrinoma designation led to the 2004 approval. Porcine secretin came first: SecreFlo (NDA 021136), launched by Repligen and now held by ChiRhoClin, and ChiRhoClin's Porcine Secretin (NDA 021209) were both approved on April 4, 2002. SecreFlo is discontinued; Drugs@FDA still lists NDA 021209 as a prescription product, but no porcine label is on DailyMed and ChiRhoClin lists only ChiRhoStim, so whether it is still sold is unclear. Repligen's synthetic human secretin, RG1068, failed in autism in 2004 and missed its pancreatic MRI phase 3 endpoint in 2009; filed under the SecreFlo name, it drew an FDA complete response letter asking for more trial data in June 2012, and its European application was withdrawn on August 15, 2012. Innovate Biopharmaceuticals later took it up as INN-329, development was listed as discontinued in 2023, and Innovate is now the sponsor of record for a 2006 orphan designation covering pancreatic diagnostic procedures other than ERCP. There are no generics.
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What else is like Secretin (ChiRhoStim)?
Others in Healing and recovery, side by side.If you're weighing Secretin (ChiRhoStim), it's worth reading PDA (Pentadeca Arginate), GLOW blend, and KLOW blend in the same class.
The 27-amino-acid hormone the gut releases when stomach acid arrives, made synthetically as a diagnostic injection. FDA-approved since 2004; in autism, 16 randomized trials found no benefit.
- Dose
- 0.2 mcg/kg once, or 0.4 mcg/kg for gastrinoma testing (label)
- How often
- Once per test
A newer, more stable cousin of BPC-157 for faster healing.
- Dose
- 0.25 up to 0.5 mg per day (start low, increase slowly)
- How often
- 1-2x daily
A popular skin-and-healing blend of three peptides in one shot.
- Dose
- Community examples use 2 to 2.5 mg of total blend per day, or set the draw by GHK-Cu.
- How often
- Daily
The GLOW blend plus an anti-inflammatory peptide, an all-in-one recovery stack.
- Dose
- Community examples use 2 to 4 mg of total blend per day, or set the draw by GHK-Cu.
- How often
- Daily
Guides for this compound
- How to Reconstitute a Peptide
Mix peptide powder with bacteriostatic water, step by step.
- How to Read an Insulin Syringe
Read the units, convert to millilitres, and draw the exact dose.
- 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.
Sources
- ChiRhoStim US prescribing information (DailyMed, version October 8, 2025)(2025)Three diagnostic uses; 0.2 and 0.4 mcg/kg; half-life 45 minutes; nausea in 9 of 531; HSDGTFTSELSRLREGARLQRLLQGLV-NH2, MW 3039.44.
- Drugs@FDA, NDA 021256 (ChiRhoStim)(2017)Approved April 9, 2004, ChiRhoClin; new molecular entity, priority review; 16 and 40 mcg vials; no generics.
- FDA approval letter for NDA 021256 (2004)(2004)All three indications approved at launch; pediatric studies waived.
- ChiRhoStim original US label (2004)(2004)0.2 mcg test dose required; 29 of 584 (5.0%) had at least one adverse event, including 2 mild pancreatitis.
- Drugs@FDA, NDA 021136 (SecreFlo)(2016)Synthetic porcine secretin, approved April 4, 2002; now discontinued.
- Drugs@FDA, NDA 021209 (Porcine Secretin)(2016)Approved April 4, 2002, 16 and 40 mcg; still listed as a prescription product.
- Porcine secretin US label (2016)(2016)Same three uses; 0.2 and 0.4 mcg/kg after a 0.2 mcg test dose; half-life about 27 minutes; differs from human secretin at positions 15 and 16.
- FDA GSRS substance record, secretin human (UNII A0426J905J)(2026)INN secretin human; CAS 108153-74-8; C-terminal valinamide; separate acetate and pentahydrochloride records.
- FDA orphan drug designations for synthetic human secretin(2006)Five designations from June 16, 1999 to September 18, 2006; gastrinoma diagnosis approved for marketing on April 9, 2004.
- Williams K, Wray JA, Wheeler DM, Cochrane review CD003495(2012)16 randomized trials, more than 900 children: no evidence that single or multiple doses of IV secretin work; it should not be recommended or given for autism.
- Pharmaceutical Journal on Sandler A et al., NEJM 1999;341:1801(2000)60 children randomized: no advantage over saline on any of 16 behavior measures; 69% of parents remained interested in secretin.
- Science News on Repligen's autism phase 3 (January 28, 2004)(2004)Repligen's phase 3 of synthetic human secretin in 132 children failed.
- Fierce Biotech, RG1068 pancreatic imaging phase 3 (December 9, 2009)(2009)258 patients: only 1 of 3 blinded readers significant, so the primary endpoint was missed; no serious adverse events against 55 with ERCP.
- Adis Insight, secretin (RG1068, INN-329)(2023)Filing for pancreatic disorders withdrawn; autism, OCD and schizophrenia programs discontinued.
Beyond these, 527 records are indexed. Browse the records