Research blog

Research peptide blog: notes from the bench

27 articles on analytical testing, COAs, handling and Australian shipping, plus summaries of the published literature behind each compound and stack.

Laboratory samples labelled with batch codes in a tray beside printed analysis paperwork

Latest · Testing & COAs

How to Verify a COA in Australia: An 8-Step Peptide Checklist

Eight checks Australian labs can run on any research peptide COA: lot match, lab identity, NATA and ISO 17025, lab verification portals, dates, methods and red flags.

4 Nov 20268 min readRead article →

Electrospray ionisation source mounted on the front of a liquid chromatography–mass spectrometry instrument

Lab methods

HPLC and Mass Spectrometry: How Research Peptides Are Tested

How research peptides are tested: RP-HPLC purity, LC-MS and MALDI identity, and the extra tests (net content, water, counter-ions, endotoxin) behind a full COA.

4 Nov 20266 min read

Clear 96-well microplate with an 8 by 12 well layout

Stacks & study design

Research Stacks Explained: Why Labs Study Peptides in Combination

What a research stack is, the scientific reasons compounds are paired, the stacks Australian labs order most, and why single-compound controls make combination data interpretable.

4 Nov 20262 min read

HPLC system with solvent bottles and detector modules on a laboratory bench

Testing & COAs

How to Read a Peptide COA (Certificate of Analysis): Section by Section

A practical walk-through of a research peptide COA: identity by mass spectrometry, HPLC purity, net content, water, endotoxin and the red flags worth checking.

3 Nov 20263 min read

Open laboratory freezer drawer holding racks of labelled sample tubes

Storage & handling

Storing Lyophilised Peptides: Temperature, Light, Moisture and Time

How to store freeze-dried research peptides so they stay as described on the certificate: freezer temperatures, desiccation, light, condensation and labelling.

1 Nov 20262 min read

Fluorescence micrograph of cultured fibroblast cells with stained actin and nuclei

Compound research

BPC-157 Research: Pre-Clinical Models, Pathways and Open Questions

A research summary of BPC-157: what the pentadecapeptide is, the cell and animal models it has been studied in, the signalling pathways proposed, and the gaps that remain.

31 Oct 20262 min read

Close-up of red-capped sample vials in an HPLC autosampler tray

Testing & COAs

HPLC Purity Explained: What “99%+ Purity” Actually Measures

Reversed-phase HPLC is the standard purity test for research peptides. Here is how the number is produced, what the chromatogram shows and where the method's limits are.

30 Oct 20262 min read

Pipette tip dispensing liquid into a microcentrifuge tube

Storage & handling

Choosing a Reconstitution Solvent: Sterile Water, Bacteriostatic Water, Acetic Acid or DMSO

A laboratory guide to dissolving lyophilised peptides: matching the solvent to the sequence, calculating concentration, avoiding loss to plastic, and what each diluent means for your assay.

29 Oct 20262 min read

Endothelial cells in culture with F-actin stained green, mitochondria red and nuclei blue

Compound research

TB-500 and Thymosin β4 Research: Actin Sequestration and Cell Motility

What thymosin β4 does in the cytoskeleton, how the material sold as TB-500 relates to it, and how cell-migration and actin-dynamics assays use it in the laboratory.

28 Oct 20262 min read

Scientist adjusting an ion-trap mass spectrometer in an analytical laboratory

Testing & COAs

Mass Spectrometry for Peptide Identity: ESI, MALDI and What the Peaks Mean

HPLC says how pure a sample is; mass spectrometry says what it is. A guide to ESI and MALDI spectra, charge states, deconvolution and mass tolerance on a peptide COA.

27 Oct 20262 min read

Red Australia Post delivery van parked on an Australian street

Australian shipping

Shipping Research Peptides Within Australia: Timelines, Tracking and Arrival Checks

What to expect when research peptides ship within Australia: dispatch cut-offs, Australia Post tracked transit times by region, delivery choices and what to check when the parcel arrives.

26 Oct 20262 min read

Compound research

GHK-Cu Research: Copper-Peptide Studies in Matrix Biology

The copper complex of glycyl-histidyl-lysine: its chemistry, why copper binding matters, how it is studied in fibroblast and gene-expression models, and handling notes for the blue powder.

25 Oct 20262 min read

Liquid chromatograph coupled to a qTOF mass spectrometer in an independent testing laboratory

Testing & COAs

Third-Party Tested Peptides: Independent vs In-House COAs

Supplier lab reports and independent third-party reports answer different questions. How each works, what independence adds, and how Australian labs can tell them apart on a COA.

24 Oct 20262 min read

Stained histology section of the anterior pituitary showing acidophil and basophil cells

Compound research

CJC-1295 and Ipamorelin: Tools for Growth-Hormone-Axis Research

How GHRH analogues and ghrelin-receptor agonists act at different points of the somatotropic axis, what DAC changes, and how pituitary-cell models use the pair.

22 Oct 20262 min read

Row of small capped HPLC vials in a blue sample rack

Testing & COAs

Lot Numbers and Batch Traceability: Matching Your Vial to Its Certificate

Why the lot code on a research vial matters more than the product name, how to match it to a COA, and simple record-keeping that keeps multi-month studies reproducible.

21 Oct 20262 min read

Microplate reader with a 96-well plate loaded for an assay

Compound research

Retatrutide Research: An In-Vitro Primer on Triple-Receptor Agonism

How a single peptide can activate GIP, GLP-1 and glucagon receptors, how receptor selectivity is measured in cAMP assays, and what to control for in multi-receptor experiments.

19 Oct 20262 min read

Scientist weighing a sample on an enclosed analytical balance

Testing & COAs

Net Peptide Content vs Purity: Getting Concentrations Right

A 10 mg vial rarely contains 10 mg of peptide. How counter-ions and water dilute lyophilised material, how net content is measured, and how to correct your calculations.

18 Oct 20262 min read

Fluorescence micrograph of human fibroblasts with mitochondria stained red

Compound research

MOTS-c and SS-31: Peptide Tools for Mitochondrial Research

A mitochondrial-derived signalling peptide and a cardiolipin-targeting tetrapeptide: what each is, how they are studied in respiration and membrane-potential assays, and how to combine them with NAD+.

16 Oct 20262 min read

Laboratory glassware holding coloured chemical solutions

Testing & COAs

TFA vs Acetate: Why the Counter-Ion in Your Peptide Matters

Most synthetic peptides arrive as trifluoroacetate salts. When residual TFA can interfere with cell-based assays, and when an acetate or hydrochloride form is worth considering.

15 Oct 20262 min read

Fluorescence image of a neurospheroid with neurites radiating outward

Compound research

Semax and Selank: Heptapeptide Analogues in Neuropeptide Research

Two short synthetic peptides built from ACTH and tuftsin fragments with a stabilising Pro-Gly-Pro tail: their design, the neuronal models they are studied in, and handling tips.

13 Oct 20262 min read

Researcher pipetting culture medium into a T75 flask inside a biosafety cabinet

Lab methods

Endotoxin Testing for Peptides Used in Cell Culture

Bacterial endotoxin can trigger strong responses in immune and primary cells at picogram levels. How LAL and recombinant Factor C assays work and how to keep cultures clean.

12 Oct 20262 min read

Stained blood smear under the microscope showing a neutrophil among red blood cells

Compound research

Immunology Peptides: KPV, Thymosin Alpha-1 and ARA-290 in Cytokine Research

Three peptides used in immune-signalling research: the α-MSH tripeptide KPV, the thymic peptide thymosin α1 and the EPO-derived ARA-290, plus the controls immune assays need.

10 Oct 20262 min read

Microcentrifuge tubes of various volumes in a rack beside pipette tips

Storage & handling

Peptide Degradation in Solution: Oxidation, Deamidation and Aggregation

Which amino acids make a peptide fragile in solution, the chemistry behind the main degradation routes, and practical steps that keep stock solutions as described on the certificate.

9 Oct 20262 min read

96-well microplate holding coloured serial dilutions

Stacks & study design

Designing Multi-Compound Experiments: Factorial Layouts, Concentration Ranges and Synergy

How to design in-vitro experiments that combine two or more peptides: factorial designs, concentration-response matrices, additivity models, plate layout and replication.

8 Oct 20262 min read

Long straight highway through dry South Australian country under a hot sky

Australian shipping

Summer Heat and Peptide Transit: How Hot Is Too Hot for a Lyophilised Vial?

Australian summers put parcels through real heat. What the stability data on lyophilised peptides suggests, where the risk actually sits, and how to plan deliveries from December to March.

6 Oct 20262 min read

Fluorescence micrograph of cultured human cells with vimentin filaments in green and nuclei in blue

Lab methods

Choosing In-Vitro Models for Peptide Research: Cell Lines, Primary Cells and Organoids

A practical comparison of immortalised lines, primary cells, stem-cell-derived cultures, co-cultures and organoids for peptide research, with the quality checks every model needs.

5 Oct 20262 min read

Regulation

Research Use Only in Australia: What the Label Means and What It Does Not

An overview of how research-use-only supply sits within Australian regulation: the TGA, the Poisons Standard, scheduling, labelling and the purchaser's responsibilities. General information, not legal advice.

2 Oct 20262 min read

Photo credits

All photographs are real colour photographs from Wikimedia Commons, used under the licence shown.