CJC-1295: What the Research Actually Shows
- What it is: A long-acting GHRH analog, a modified fragment of the growth hormone releasing hormone signal.
- Researchers have studied it for: Growth hormone levels, IGF-1 levels, and whether the natural GH pulse rhythm stays intact.
- Evidence level: Small, mostly 2006-era human trials on the “with DAC” version, plus one animal model.
- The short version: The human trials measured hormone levels only, and they used CJC-1295 with DAC. Etched lists the “without DAC” version, which has far less data, so do not assume the two act the same. The studies did not establish muscle, fat, or strength results in people, and none of this is a safety conclusion.
CJC-1295 is a long-acting GHRH analog that researchers have studied for its effect on growth hormone and IGF-1. This page lays out what the studies looked at, in plain words, with links so you can check them yourself.
One thing to get straight up front. Most of the published human data is on the version called CJC-1295 “with DAC.” That detail changes how you read the science, and we come back to it in the limits section.
What researchers have studied
Healthy-adult dose trials (Teichman, Journal of Clinical Endocrinology and Metabolism, 2006). Two randomized, placebo-controlled, dose-ranging trials in healthy adults. After a single injection, researchers observed growth hormone rise by roughly 2 to 10 times and IGF-1 by about 1.5 to 3 times, lasting several days, with an estimated half-life near 6 to 8 days. PMID 16352683. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/16352683/
Pulse pattern preserved (Ionescu and Frohman, Journal of Clinical Endocrinology and Metabolism, 2006). In healthy adults, researchers found that even as the compound raised baseline growth hormone, the natural pulse rhythm of GH release stayed intact. The pulses got taller, not erased. PMID 17018654. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/17018654/
Animal model (Alba, American Journal of Physiology, 2006). A study in mice bred to make no GHRH of their own. Once-daily CJC-1295 brought their growth and body size back toward normal, which showed the compound could stand in for the missing GHRH signal in that model. PMID 16822960. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/16822960/
How it works
The setup is the same GH-axis story. Your brain’s hypothalamus normally sends GHRH to the pituitary gland, and the pituitary answers by releasing your body’s own growth hormone.
CJC-1295 is a modified fragment of GHRH. It copies that signal and tells the pituitary to release GH. The “DAC” part (short for Drug Affinity Complex) lets the molecule bind to albumin, a protein in the blood. That binding is why the studied version lasted for days instead of the minutes that natural GHRH lasts. More GH signal spread over time is what raised IGF-1 in the trials above.
Because it works upstream at the gland, researchers class it as a GHRH analog rather than direct growth hormone.
What the research does not establish
The gap between the marketing and the actual literature is wide here. Keep these in mind.
- The human studies were small, short, and mostly done around 2006. Long-term human data is thin.
- The published human trials used CJC-1295 with DAC. Data on the “without DAC” version (sometimes called mod GRF 1-29) is far more limited, so do not assume the two act the same way.
- The studies measured hormone levels (growth hormone and IGF-1). They did not establish muscle growth, fat loss, strength, recovery, or any body-composition result in humans. Those popular claims are not backed by the human literature.
- Nothing here is a safety conclusion. Tolerability noted in a small early trial is not a statement about any individual, and this is not a claim that the compound is safe to use.
For Research Use Only. Not for human consumption. Etched Research supplies compounds for laboratory and research use only. Independent identity and purity testing by Janoshik. Nothing on this page is medical advice, a health claim, or a recommendation to use.