Sermorelin
The GHRH(1-29) fragment once approved to assess and treat GH deficiency.
Identity
- Class
- GHRH(1-29) analog — the shortest fully active GHRH fragment
- Source
- Synthetic analog of GHRH
- Receptor
- GHRH receptor (GHRHR), a class B GPCR
Key properties
Molecular weight
≈ 3,358 Da
Approximate values for the native hormone. Engineered analogs are often deliberately larger and far longer-acting.
Mechanism
Sermorelin is GHRH(1-29), the minimal N-terminal fragment that retains full GHRH activity, stimulating pituitary GH release. Formerly approved (as Geref) for assessing and treating growth hormone deficiency, it drives endogenous, feedback-regulated GH rather than supplying it directly; it was later withdrawn from the US market for commercial rather than safety reasons.
Reference notes
- GHRH(1-29) is the shortest fragment that keeps full GH-releasing potency — the basis of sermorelin's design.
- It was FDA-approved for pediatric GH-deficiency diagnosis and therapy before being commercially withdrawn (~2008).
- Its very short half-life produces a brief, physiologic GH pulse.
Selected literature
Curated peer-reviewed reviews, sourced from PubMed. Selected for relevance, not exhaustive — open any entry on PubMed for the full record and its primary citations.
- 1.Sermorelin: a better approach to management of adult-onset growth hormone insufficiency? · Clinical interventions in aging, 2006 · PMID 18046908
- 2.Sermorelin: a review of its use in the diagnosis and treatment of children with idiopathic growth hormone deficiency · BioDrugs, 1999 · PMID 18031173
- 3.Beyond the androgen receptor: the role of growth hormone secretagogues in the modern management of body composition in hypogonadal males · Translational andrology and urology, 2020 · PMID 32257855