HomePeptide dosagesCortagen
Cortagen dosage: chart, reported range and vial math
No published human study gives a dose for Cortagen. The 0.5 to 2 mg a day that people report comes from sellers and users, and the 10 mcg per kg figure matches a rat nerve study. It is not an approved medicine in the US or Canada, so there is no label dose.
Cortagen dosage chart
Reported range, not a label dosePick your vial size. Each row shows the dose in milligrams or micrograms, the volume to draw and the mark on a U-100 syringe.
| Dose | Volume | Syringe units |
|---|---|---|
| 500 mcg | 0.05 mL | 5 units |
| 1 mg | 0.10 mL | 10 units |
| 2 mg | 0.20 mL | 20 units |
Source Reported range, not a label dose. Reports describe about 10 mcg per kg of body weight a day, or a flat 2 mg, for 10 to 30 days. No human study with a stated dose has been published; the 10 mcg per kg figure matches a rat study. Vial math is arithmetic.
Which syringe fits each dose
For the 20 mg vial at 10 mg/mL.
| Dose | Volume | Units | 0.3 mL syringe | 0.5 mL syringe | 1 mL syringe |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 500 mcg | 0.05 mL | 5 units | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| 1 mg | 0.10 mL | 10 units | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| 2 mg | 0.20 mL | 20 units | Yes | Yes | Yes |
How long a vial lasts
Whole doses in one vial. The row for the size picked above is marked.
| Vial | 500 mcg | 1 mg | 2 mg |
|---|---|---|---|
| 20 mg vial | 40 doses | 20 doses | 10 doses |
How to mix a Cortagen vial
These steps are for the 20 mg vial picked in the chart. Change the size there and the amounts here change with it.
- Wash your hands. Wipe the stopper of the peptide vial and the water vial with an alcohol swab.
- Draw 2 mL of bacteriostatic water into a syringe.
- Push the needle through the stopper of the peptide vial and let the water run slowly down the glass, not straight onto the powder.
- Swirl the vial gently until the powder is gone. Do not shake it.
- Write the date and 10 mg/mL on the vial, then put it in the fridge.
| Vial | Bacteriostatic water | Concentration |
|---|---|---|
| 20 mg vial | 2 mL | 10 mg/mL |
What Cortagen is
Cortagen is a synthetic tetrapeptide, Ala-Glu-Asp-Pro (AEDP), designed from the amino acid analysis of Cortexin, a peptide preparation made from brain cortex. [1]
Other names: Cortagene, AEDP, Ala-Glu-Asp-Pro.
How it has been given to people: no human study with a stated route or dose was found; the rat nerve study injected it into muscle.
What to know before reading a dose
- There is no human dose on record. Every published result with an abstract comes from rats, mice, birds or cells in culture.
- Nearly all of the work comes from one research group, the St. Petersburg Institute of Bioregulation and Gerontology, and its co-authors. No independent group has repeated it.
- The 10 mcg per kg figure that people repeat is the dose from a rat nerve study [2], injected into muscle for 10 days. It was not tested in people.
- The chromatin findings [5], [7] were made on blood cells from elderly donors treated in culture. They do not show what happens in a person given the peptide.
- Not an approved medicine in the US or Canada as of the check date. Health Canada warns against all unauthorized injectable peptide drugs [10].
What the evidence shows
Each finding is tagged by the kind of study it comes from. Human trials are listed first.
Animal study
In rats whose sciatic nerve was cut and stitched, 10 mcg per kg injected into muscle for 10 days raised the growth rate of the regrowing nerve fibres by 27% and their conduction velocity by 40%. This is a rat result. [2]
Animal study
In rats with long-term reduced blood flow to the brain, Cortexin and Cortagen sped up the recovery of disturbed behaviour. The abstract gives no dose. [3]
Animal study
Injected into rats, Epithalon and Cortagen lowered markers of fat and protein oxidation in blood serum and brain cortex. The abstract gives no dose. [4]
Animal study
In mice injected for 5 days, the activity of 110 known genes in heart tissue changed. The abstract does not say what this means for health. [1]
Lab study
In blood cells taken from people aged 75 to 88 and treated in the laboratory, Cortagen and four other short peptides switched ribosome genes back on and loosened tightly packed chromatin. The cells were treated, not the people. [5]
Lab study
Added to mouse spleen cells in a dish, Cortagen raised interleukin-2 gene activity, less strongly than Vilon or Epithalon. [6]
Side effects and warnings
Reported in human studies or on a label:
- No human side-effect report for Cortagen was found. Health Canada lists these risks for unauthorized injectable peptide drugs in general: hormonal imbalance, mood swings, blood sugar imbalance, liver or kidney damage, blood clots and growth of cancerous tumours. [10]
Cortagen has no approved label in the US or Canada for this use, so there is no official list of who should not use it, no interaction list and no missed-dose rule.
Storage
Keep an unmixed vial the way its label says. Once it is mixed, keep it in the fridge, do not freeze it, and write the mixing date on the vial.
Cortagen dosage questions
How many units is 1 mg of Cortagen from a 20 mg vial?
Mixed with 2 mL of bacteriostatic water, a 20 mg vial is 10 mg/mL. 1 mg is 0.10 mL, which is 10 units on a U-100 syringe.
How much water goes in a 20 mg Cortagen vial?
2 mL gives 10 mg/mL. At that strength the doses in the chart sit at 5, 10, 20 units on a U-100 syringe.
How many doses are in a 20 mg vial?
Whole doses in one vial: 40 at 500 mcg, 20 at 1 mg, 10 at 2 mg.
Is Cortagen approved in the US?
Not FDA approved. No Cortagen product is in Drugs@FDA, and it is not on the FDA page of bulk substances reviewed for compounding.
Is Cortagen authorized in Canada?
No Cortagen product is in the Health Canada Drug Product Database. Health Canada warns against all unauthorized injectable peptide drugs.
What human dosing data is there for Cortagen?
There is no human dose on record. Every published result with an abstract comes from rats, mice, birds or cells in culture.
Sources
Each one was opened on 10 Oct 2026 and matched to the line it supports.
- Anisimov SV et al. Elucidation of the effect of brain cortex tetrapeptide Cortagen on gene expression in mouse heart by microarray. Neuro Endocrinol Lett 2004. PubMed 15159690.
- Turchaninova LN et al. Effect of tetrapeptide cortagen on regeneration of sciatic nerve. Bull Exp Biol Med 2000. PubMed 11276314.
- Zarubina IV et al. [Cortexin and cortagen as correcting agents in functional and metabolic disorders in the brain in chronic ischemia]. Eksp Klin Farmakol 2011. PubMed 21476278.
- Kozina LS Effects of bioactive tetrapeptides on free-radical processes. Bull Exp Biol Med 2007. PubMed 18239817.
- Khavinson VKh et al. Effects of short peptides on lymphocyte chromatin in senile subjects. Bull Exp Biol Med 2004. PubMed 15085253.
- Kazakova TB et al. In vitro effect of short peptides on expression of interleukin-2 gene in splenocytes. Bull Exp Biol Med 2002. PubMed 12447482.
- Lezhava T et al. EPIGENETIC MODIFICATION UNDER THE INFLUENCE OF PEPTIDE BIOREGULATORS ON THE "OLD" CHROMATIN. Georgian Med News 2023. PubMed 37042594.
- US Food and Drug Administration openFDA search of Drugs@FDA: cortagen 2026. api.fda.gov.
- US Food and Drug Administration Certain Bulk Drug Substances for Use in Compounding that May Present Significant Safety Risks 2026. fda.gov.
- Health Canada Think twice before injecting peptides bought online: unauthorized products can seriously harm you 2026. recalls-rappels.canada.ca.
- Health Canada Health Canada Drug Product Database, active ingredient search: cortagen 2026. health-products.canada.ca.
- US National Library of Medicine ClinicalTrials.gov search, intervention: cortagen 2026. clinicaltrials.gov.
Looked for and not found
- No published human study of Cortagen with a stated dose, route or number of patients. PubMed lists 15 records for cortagen; every one with an abstract describes rats, mice, birds or cells in culture.
- The abstract of a mouse study [1] says that in humans Cortagen helped injured peripheral nerves recover. It names no study, dose or patient count, and no human paper was found on PubMed to support it.
- No human half-life or other pharmacokinetic figure.
- No trial registered on ClinicalTrials.gov: a search for cortagen as the intervention returned no studies [12].
- No approved label in the US or Canadian sources searched, so no official dose, contraindications, interaction list or storage instructions.
- No human side-effect or safety data.
Change log
10 Oct 2026Page published. 12 sources checked. Vial math added for the 20 mg vial.
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