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MonographCJC-1295

CJC-1295 with DAC and without DAC: identity, evidence and status

Two molecules share the name CJC-1295: the albumin-binding DAC conjugate studied by ConjuChem and the tetrasubstituted GRF(1-29) sold without DAC. Identifiers for each, the small human literature in one table, and dated status.

Last reviewed
2026-09-22
Reviewer
editorial review pending
Revision
1
Sources
32

Summary

CJC-1295 is a name applied to two chemically distinct synthetic analogues of human growth hormone-releasing hormone (GHRH, also called growth hormone-releasing factor, GRF) fragment 1-29. CJC-1295 proper, as identified by ConjuChem, is a 30-residue peptide whose C-terminal lysine carries a maleimidopropionamide group, the drug affinity complex (DAC), which binds covalently to serum albumin; the material commonly described as "CJC-1295 without DAC" or modified GRF(1-29) is the 29-residue tetrasubstituted peptide with no such group 12. FDA treats the two as different active moieties and, with their acetate and trifluoroacetate salts, as five distinct bulk drug substances, and describes the naming conventions in use as inconsistent 2.

Both forms are investigational. The DAC form was characterised in rats and in three phase 1 studies in healthy adults, then entered a phase 2 trial in HIV-associated visceral obesity that was terminated in 2006 after a participant's death and was never published 13452. No human or animal study of the non-DAC form was identified, and FDA states that no study establishes whether it is pharmacologically active 2. No marketing authorisation was found in the UK, the EU or the US on 2026-09-21, no pharmacopoeial monograph exists, and the Pharmacy Compounding Advisory Committee voted against all five CJC-1295-related substances in December 2024 6789. CJC-1295 is named in section S2.2.4 of the WADA Prohibited List in force and is prohibited at all times 10.

The identity panel below is rendered from the database. Because it has not been confirmed which of the two molecules the supplied material corresponds to, the panel shows identity as not yet verified.

Identity · CJC-1295verified 2026-09-21
Synonyms
—
CAS
Not yet verified
UNII
Not yet verified
PubChem CID
Not yet verified
Formula
Not yet verified
Mol. weight
Not yet verified
Class
Not yet verified
Targets
None identified in retrieved sources

Identity and structure

The shared scaffold

Both forms derive from human GHRH(1-29), the N-terminal 29 residues of mature somatoliberin, whose native sequence is YADAIFTNSYRKVLGQLSARKLLQDIMSR 11. Four substitutions are made relative to that sequence: D-alanine at position 2, glutamine at position 8, alanine at position 15 and leucine at position 27, where native GHRH carries Ala2, Asn8, Gly15 and Met27; the C-terminus is amidated 21112. This tetrasubstituted GRF(1-29) amide, with no further modification, is the whole of the molecule described as CJC-1295 without DAC 212. It was identified in an unknown pharmaceutical preparation as a 29-amino-acid peptide with a C-terminal amide function 13.

The drug affinity complex

CJC-1295 with DAC extends the tetrasubstituted peptide by a thirtieth residue, a C-terminal lysine whose side-chain nitrogen bears a 3-maleimidopropionamide group 114. The maleimide reacts in vivo with the free thiol of cysteine-34 of serum albumin, forming a covalent bioconjugate 1215. The PubChem SMILES for CID 91971820 terminates in a lysine bearing a 3-(2,5-dioxopyrrol-1-yl)propanoylamino group, and the GSRS subunit record places the modification at residue 30; both confirm the DAC form 1614. The non-DAC molecule has no lysine extension and no maleimide, and therefore no covalent albumin conjugation 212. No disulfide bridge, glycosylation, pegylation or lipidation is described for either form in the sources retrieved 12.

Identifiers for each variant

The dossier resolves the identifiers as follows. Where sources disagree, every value is given rather than one being chosen.

FieldCJC-1295 with DAC (free base)CJC-1295 without DAC (free base)
CAS446262-90-4 14162446036-97-1 217
UNII62RC32V9N7 142None; FDA's table records "Not available" 2
PubChem CID91971820 1656841945 17
Molecular formulaC165H269N47O46 162C152H252N44O42 172
Molecular weight (g/mol)3647.2 (PubChem); 3647.95 (FDA) 1623367.9 (PubChem); 3367.95 (FDA); 3367.97 (nominator's certificate of analysis) 172
Residues30 14129 213
SequenceYaDAIFTQSYRKVLAQLSARKLLQDILSRK, where a is D-Ala and Lys30 bears the maleimidopropionyl group; C-terminal amide 14YaDAIFTQSYRKVLAQLSARKLLQDILSR-NH2, where a is D-Ala 122

Conflicts in the public record

The public identifiers for CJC-1295 conflict in six ways, each of which bears on reading a certificate of analysis.

  1. Names. FDA records at least nine names in use across the five CJC-1295-related substances and notes that the names of the DAC and non-DAC forms are routinely interchanged in the literature and in commerce, which it treats as a safety risk in itself 2. Its tables list the DAC form as CJC-1295 DAC (free base), CJC-1295 DAC acetate and CJC-1295 DAC trifluoroacetate, and the non-DAC form as CJC-1295 (free base) and CJC-1295 acetate; no molecular weight is published for the DAC acetate or trifluoroacetate, and the non-DAC acetate is written as C152H252N44O42·xCH3COOH with unspecified stoichiometry 2.
  2. UNII. The only GSRS record, 62RC32V9N7, is named simply CJC-1295 but its registered structure is the DAC molecule; FDA flags this as an error in the database, and no UNII exists for the non-DAC molecule 142. The same GSRS record carries property fields (C155H258O42N44 and an estimated 3500 Da) that disagree with the PubChem and FDA values for the same molecule 14162.
  3. CAS. A third number, 863288-34-0, appears on the PubChem record for the non-DAC peptide but is recorded by FDA as a deleted CAS number 172.
  4. PubChem synonyms. CID 56841945 has the 29-residue amide structure, but its synonym list mixes DAC and non-DAC names, and a stereochemistry-free record of the same connectivity, CID 91976842, carries both "CJC1295 Without DAC" and "CJC1295 With DAC" 1718.
  5. ChEMBL. A search for CJC-1295 returned 17 unrelated small molecules and no peptide record 19.
  6. A related compound. CJC-1293 (PubChem CID 139593405, CAS 446262-89-1, C162H263N47O46S) is named alongside CJC-1295 as an example GHRH analogue in the WADA list and is a different molecule 2010.

Mechanism and pharmacology

Both forms are assigned to the GRF (GHRH) receptor of the anterior pituitary. For the DAC form this rests on direct pharmacology; for the non-DAC form it rests on class alone, because FDA states that neither the nominations it received nor its own literature search identified a study establishing whether CJC-1295 (free base) or CJC-1295 acetate is pharmacologically active 12. Everything that follows in this section therefore concerns the DAC form.

In the original characterisation, three maleimido hGRF(1-29) derivatives conjugated ex vivo to human serum albumin showed enhanced in vitro stability against dipeptidyl peptidase-IV and released GH from cultured rat pituitary cells. After a single subcutaneous dose in rats, CJC-1295 gave an approximately 4-fold increase in the GH area under the curve over 2 hours compared with hGRF(1-29) and remained in plasma beyond 72 hours; Western blotting showed CJC-1295 immunoreactivity on the albumin band from 15 minutes and beyond 24 hours 1. FDA's summary of the same work adds that plasma GH returned to baseline by 2 hours while drug remained detectable to 72 hours, and that the trifluoroacetate salt was used 2.

In healthy adults, a single subcutaneous dose produced dose-dependent increases in mean plasma GH of 2- to 10-fold for 6 days or more and in IGF-I of 1.5- to 3-fold for 9 to 11 days, with an estimated half-life of 5.8 to 8.1 days; in the multiple-dose study the mean estimated half-life was 5.4 to 9.2 days and mean clearance 1.1 to 3.3 L/h, independent of body weight, with cumulative increases in maximum drug concentration and AUC on repeated injection 32. Overnight sampling one week after a single injection showed that GH pulse frequency and magnitude were unaltered while trough GH rose 7.5-fold, mean GH rose 46% and IGF-I rose 44 to 45%, without exceeding the upper limit of normal in any subject; the IGF-I increases did not correlate with any GH secretion parameter 42. Serum proteomic analysis of a subset of the same cohort found decreases in an apolipoprotein A1 isoform and a transthyretin isoform, and increases in beta-haemoglobin, a C-terminal albumin fragment and a mixed immunoglobulin/albumin fragment spot that varied linearly with IGF-I 21.

In GHRH knockout mice treated for five weeks, CJC-1295 given at 24-hour intervals normalised body weight and length, with partial effects at 48- and 72-hour intervals; total pituitary RNA and GH mRNA increased, and immunohistochemistry suggested somatotroph proliferation 222.

Adverse events in the phase 1 programme were frequent. Injection-site reactions occurred in about 70% of single-dose recipients and in all multiple-dose recipients, transient urticarial rashes at the injection site in almost 30%, and headache, diarrhoea, nausea and abdominal pain were reported; systemic vasodilatory reactions (flushing, warmth, transient hypotension) occurred only in treated subjects, dose-dependently, within 30 minutes, and resolved in 1 to 2 hours 32. A dose-dependent increase in heart rate was reported in the pulsatility study 4. FDA's safety-risks page names increased heart rate and systemic vasodilatory reaction among the serious adverse events it has identified 23. In the terminated phase 2 trial, FDA reports that two hours after an eleventh weekly dose one subject developed chest discomfort with an electrocardiographically confirmed acute myocardial infarction and died about an hour later, the attending physician's most likely explanation being asymptomatic coronary artery disease with plaque rupture and occlusion; ConjuChem withdrew CJC-1295 DAC from clinical trials in 2006 after this death 2.

Clinical and preclinical evidence

The human literature on CJC-1295 is small enough to tabulate in full: two phase 1 trials reported in one paper, one phase 1 pharmacodynamic study with an exploratory proteomic sub-study, and one phase 2 trial that was terminated and never published. All of it concerns the DAC form, and the salt used is unspecified except where stated 342152.

Studies as reported · design and results from the cited publication or registry record
StudyDesignnInterventionComparatorDurationPrimary endpointResult
Teichman et al. 2006, study 1 (single ascending dose)nonePhase 1, randomised, double-blind, placebo-controlled single ascending dose in healthy adults aged 21 to 6142CJC-1295 DAC, single subcutaneous dose of 30, 60, 125 or 250 mcg/kg (salt unspecified)placebo28 daysPeak and AUC of GH and IGF-I; pharmacokinetics of CJC-1295GH 2- to 10-fold for 6 days or more; IGF-I 1.5- to 3-fold for 9 to 11 days; half-life 5.8 to 8.1 days; IGF-I above the normal range only at 250 mcg/kg. Adverse events in 33 of 35 treated versus 2 of 7 placebo subjects; no serious adverse reactions. [teichman-2006-jcem]
Teichman et al. 2006, study 2 (multiple dose)nonePhase 1, randomised, double-blind, placebo-controlled sequential dose escalation with weekly or biweekly dosing; four groups of six with one placebo recipient each24CJC-1295 DAC subcutaneously: 30 or 60 mcg/kg on days 0 and 14, or 30 or 20 mcg/kg on days 0, 7 and 14 (salt unspecified)placebo49 daysPeak and AUC of GH and IGF-I; pharmacokineticsIGF-I above baseline for up to 28 days; Cmax 29 to 70% higher after the day-14 injection; half-life 5.4 to 9.2 days; clearance 1.1 to 3.3 L/h. Injection-site reactions in all treated subjects; flushing in 40% after low-dose and 100% after high-dose injections; no consistent laboratory or ECG changes. [teichman-2006-jcem]
Ionescu and Frohman 2006 (GH pulsatility)nonePhase 1, open pharmacodynamic study in healthy men aged 20 to 40; 20-minute overnight sampling over 12 hours before and one week after a single injection; each subject his own control12CJC-1295 DAC, single subcutaneous dose of 60 mcg/kg (n = 4) or 90 mcg/kg (n = 8)each subject's pre-treatment profileone weekGH pulsatility parameters; correlation of GH secretion with the IGF-I increasePulse frequency and magnitude unaltered; trough GH 7.5-fold (0.058 to 0.435 ng/mL); mean GH up 46%; IGF-I up 44 to 45% (165 to 240 ng/mL), none above the upper limit of normal. Dose-dependent increase in heart rate; no serious adverse events. [ionescu-2006-jcem]
Sackmann-Sala et al. 2009 (serum proteome sub-study)noneExploratory biomarker analysis by two-dimensional gel electrophoresis and mass spectrometry of paired sera, subset of the Ionescu and Frohman cohort11CJC-1295 DAC, single subcutaneous dose of 60 to 90 mcg/kgpaired pre-treatment seraone weekSerum proteins changing after treatmentTwo spots decreased (apolipoprotein A1 isoform, transthyretin isoform); three increased (beta-haemoglobin, C-terminal albumin fragment, immunoglobulin/albumin fragment varying linearly with IGF-I). Adverse events not discussed. [sackmann-sala-2009-ghir]
ConjuChem phase 2 in HIV-associated visceral obesity (terminated)NCT00267527; EudraCT 2005-003797-25Phase 2, multicentre, randomised, double-blind, placebo-controlled, parallel-group; adults aged 18 to 65 with HIV-associated visceral obesity and BMI over 24 and under 30 kg/m2 on a stable antiviral regimen120Low-dose or high-dose CJC-1295 (EU register: CJC-1295 TFA salt, 10 mg powder for solution for injection, subcutaneous); FDA cites an anecdotal report of weekly injections escalating over three weeks to 60/90/120 or 60/120/240 mcg/kgplacebo12 weeks planned plus 6-week follow-up; started December 2005, terminated September 2006Absent from the ClinicalTrials.gov record; the EU record gives change in total IGF-1 from baseline versus placebo at 12 weeksTerminated; no results posted and, per FDA, unpublished. Enrolment 120 (ClinicalTrials.gov), 150 planned (EU register) or 192 (anecdotal report cited by FDA). One death from acute myocardial infarction after an eleventh weekly dose, after which ConjuChem withdrew the DAC form from clinical trials. [ct-gov-nct00267527]

The two animal studies that underpin the human programme are tabulated separately.

Studies as reported · design and results from the cited publication or registry record
StudyDesignnInterventionComparatorDurationPrimary endpointResult
Jetté et al. 2005 (identification of CJC-1295)nonePreclinical: ex vivo albumin bioconjugation of three maleimido hGRF(1-29) derivatives, in vitro DPP-IV stability and rat pituitary cell GH assays, and single subcutaneous dosing in male Sprague-Dawley rats—CJC-1295 (DAC trifluoroacetate, per FDA's reading of the paper), 1 nmol/kg in the dose-response work described by FDAhGRF(1-29)single dose, sampling beyond 72 hoursGH release and plasma persistence of the conjugateAbout 4-fold GH AUC over 2 hours versus hGRF(1-29); drug on the albumin band from 15 minutes and detectable beyond 72 hours. [jette-2005-endocrinology]
Alba et al. 2006 (GHRH knockout mouse)nonePreclinical: three groups of one-week-old GHRH knockout mice treated at 24-, 48- or 72-hour intervals for five weeks, with placebo-treated knockout and heterozygous controls—CJC-1295 2 mcg per dose (form and source unspecified in the paper, per FDA)placebo-treated knockout mice and heterozygous controls5 weeksBody weight and length, femur and tibia length, body compositionOnce-daily dosing gave normal body weight and length; 48- and 72-hour intervals gave partial effects; pituitary RNA and GH mRNA increased, with immunohistochemistry suggesting somatotroph proliferation. [alba-2006-ajpendo]

Discontinued development

The phase 2 trial (NCT00267527; EudraCT 2005-003797-25) was a multicentre, randomised, placebo-controlled, double-blind, parallel-group study in adults with HIV-associated visceral obesity, registered in the EU with the active substance "CJC-1295 TFA salt" 524. It started in December 2005 and was terminated in September 2006; ClinicalTrials.gov records no posted results, the EU register records the status as prematurely ended, and FDA states that the data have not been published 5242. Enrolment is reported inconsistently: 120 on ClinicalTrials.gov, 150 planned on the EU register and 192 in the anecdotal report relied on by FDA 5242. No later registered trial of either form appears in the dossier, and FDA notes that one outsourcing facility reported compounding CJC-1295 products in 2019 and 2020 and none since 2.

Evidence level

DAC form: phase 1 in healthy adults (n = 42, 24 and 12), a terminated and unpublished phase 2 trial, and animal models in rats and GHRH knockout mice. Non-DAC form: no human or animal study identified 345222.

Analytical characterisation

No USP-NF, European Pharmacopoeia (11.5) or Japanese Pharmacopoeia (18th edition) monograph, official reference standard or impurity specification exists for any CJC-1295-related substance 2. FDA's evaluation of the five substances, which had been nominated for subcutaneous injection at 2,000 mcg/mL, concluded that none is well characterised, and its safety-risks page cites complexities as to peptide-related impurities and API characterisation together with a risk of immunogenicity for certain routes of administration 223. FDA also notes that the trifluoroacetate salt used by Jetté et al. carries a reported risk of enhanced immunogenicity 2.

Published analytical work comes from doping control. The non-DAC peptide has been identified in human plasma by immunoaffinity purification followed by liquid chromatography with high-resolution tandem mass spectrometry, with a monoisotopic mass of 3365.9 Da, the 5+ charge state at m/z 674 and a lower limit of detection below 50 pg/mL 12. The same peptide was characterised in an unknown pharmaceutical preparation as a 29-amino-acid peptide with a C-terminal amide function 13. For the DAC form, an LC-MS/MS confirmation method in equine plasma exploits the maleimide group at the C-terminus, which covalently binds plasma proteins 15. A 2021 review of detection methods for synthetic GHRH analogues covers sermorelin, tesamorelin, CJC-1295 and CJC-1295 with drug affinity complex 25. The nominator's certificate of analysis for the non-DAC free base gives a molecular weight of 3367.97 2.

The database conflicts described above have a practical consequence for any certificate of analysis. The UNII 62RC32V9N7 denotes the DAC structure, so a certificate quoting that UNII for a non-DAC material is internally inconsistent 142. The two free bases differ in molecular weight by about 279 g/mol (3647.2 against 3367.9), which is the mass of the added maleimidopropionyl-lysine residue 1617.

Analytical data

Certificates of analysis, identity data and lot verification for the research material characterised on this page.

View analytical data · CJC-1295 / Ipamorelin / Sermorelin blend →

Stability and handling

Laboratory handling data only. No pharmacopoeial, peer-reviewed or formal stability study was identified, and every figure below is reported by FDA from supplier documentation or commercial catalogues 2.

  • CJC-1295 with DAC (free base): a fine white lyophilised powder stored at −20 °C; reconstituted peptide stored at 4 °C and aliquoted into discrete vials so that repeated freezing and thawing is avoided; reported soluble in water at about 2 mg/mL 2.
  • CJC-1295 without DAC (free base): a crystalline solid stored at −20 °C, reported stable for four or more years; slightly soluble in water and soluble in 1% acetic acid. FDA adds that the limited water solubility of the free base makes it unclear how an injectable 2 mg/mL product could be formulated 2.
  • CJC-1295 without DAC (acetate): lyophilised powder in a sealed container at 2 to 8 °C for long-term storage, or up to three years at −20 °C; reported soluble in water at 5 mg/mL; in solvent, reported stable for up to one year at −80 °C 2.
  • CJC-1295 DAC acetate and DAC trifluoroacetate: FDA records no molecular weight, solubility, stability data or supplier for either salt 2.

Regulatory status

The dated per-jurisdiction rows below are rendered from the database and cover the United Kingdom, the European Union, the United States (including FDA's list of bulk drug substances that may present significant safety risks) and section S2.2.4 of the WADA Prohibited List 23910.

Regulatory status · CJC-1295Investigational or unlicensed compound

No medicine containing this compound is authorised in any jurisdiction checked. It has no established safety profile in humans outside registered clinical research. It is supplied for laboratory research only.

The rows below record the absence of authorisation and any compounding, evaluation or anti-doping status found on the date checked.

United Kingdom
No marketing authorisation: no CJC-1295 entry was found in the MHRA products substance index on 21 September 2026, and FDA records that no approved product containing any form of CJC-1295 exists in the United Kingdom.Checked 2026-09-21 · Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency
European Union
No authorisation: the Union Register of medicinal products contains no CJC-1295 entry, and FDA records that no product containing any form of CJC-1295 has been authorised in the European Union.Checked 2026-09-21 · European Commission
United States
No form of CJC-1295 is an approved drug or a component of an approved drug; it is not on the 503A bulks list, and FDA lists it among bulk drug substances that may present significant safety risks.Checked 2026-09-21 · Office of the Federal Register (eCFR)
WADA Prohibited List
Prohibited at all times under section S2.2.4 of the 2026 Prohibited List, where CJC-1295 is named as an example of a GHRH analogue; all substances in class S2 are non-specified substances.Checked 2026-09-21 · World Anti-Doping Agency

Advisory committee history

FDA's evaluation of 15 November 2024 covered the five CJC-1295-related bulk drug substances, concluded that none is well characterised and proposed that none be included on the 503A bulks list; both nominations had been withdrawn, and FDA proceeded on its own initiative 22627. At the Pharmacy Compounding Advisory Committee meeting of 4 December 2024 the committee voted separately on each substance and rejected all five: CJC-1295 free base 0 yes and 13 no; CJC-1295 acetate 1 and 12; CJC-1295 DAC free base 0 and 13; CJC-1295 DAC acetate 0 and 13; CJC-1295 DAC trifluoroacetate 0 and 13 9. 21 CFR 216.23, current to 17 September 2026, does not list CJC-1295 among the substances that can be used in compounding under section 503A, and the 503A category lists updated 14 May 2026 place it in none of categories 1, 2 or 3 82829. FDA's safety-risks page, current to 22 April 2026, carries CJC-1295 in the table of substances nominated but withdrawn and states that available clinical data are limited 23. A DailyMed listing from an ingredient supplier records GRF 1-29 (CJC1295), UNII 62RC32V9N7, as a bulk ingredient for animal drug compounding 30.

The WADA list in force is the 2026 List, effective 1 January 2026 31. It names CJC-1295 without distinguishing the DAC and non-DAC forms; both fall within the named example under S2.2.4 and within the class wording covering substances with a similar chemical structure or similar biological effect 10.

Open questions

  1. Which molecule a given material corresponds to, CJC-1295 DAC (free base or a salt) or the non-DAC tetrasubstituted GRF(1-29), is undetermined for the supplied product; every identity field, the pharmacokinetics and all the human data differ between them 2.
  2. If the DAC form is supplied, the salt is undetermined; FDA records no molecular weight, solubility, stability data or supplier for the DAC acetate or trifluoroacetate, and notes the immunogenicity concern attached to the trifluoroacetate 21.
  3. No UNII exists for the non-DAC molecule, and the only GSRS record carries the DAC structure under the bare name CJC-1295 142.
  4. The GSRS property fields for UNII 62RC32V9N7 (C155H258O42N44, about 3500 Da) disagree with PubChem and FDA and appear to be wrong 1416.
  5. Whether the non-DAC substance is pharmacologically active has not been established by any study identified by FDA; all published pharmacology concerns the DAC form 2.
  6. The terminated phase 2 trial's enrolment is reported as 120, 150 or 192, and its data have never been published 5242.
  7. No DrugBank record could be retrieved, and a direct EMA database search could not be completed; the EU finding rests on the Union Register and on FDA's statement about EU authorisation 7322.
  8. Every storage, solubility and purity figure recorded here was reported by FDA from supplier documentation rather than from an independent determination, since no pharmacopoeial monograph exists 2.

Questions this page answers

Are CJC-1295 with DAC and CJC-1295 without DAC one compound?
No. CJC-1295 with DAC is a 30-residue peptide whose C-terminal lysine carries a maleimidopropionamide group that binds covalently to serum albumin; CJC-1295 without DAC is the 29-residue tetrasubstituted GRF(1-29) amide with no such group. They have different CAS numbers, formulas and molecular weights, and FDA treats them as different active moieties.
What human studies of CJC-1295 exist?
All human data concern the DAC form: two phase 1 trials in healthy adults reported by Teichman et al. in 2006 (n = 42 and 24), a phase 1 pharmacodynamic study by Ionescu and Frohman in 2006 (n = 12) with an exploratory proteomic sub-study, and a phase 2 trial in HIV-associated visceral obesity (NCT00267527) that was terminated in 2006 and never published. No human study of the non-DAC form was identified.
Is CJC-1295 authorised as a medicine in the UK, the EU or the US?
No authorisation was found in any of the three jurisdictions on 21 September 2026. FDA states that no form of CJC-1295 is an approved drug or a component of one, and in December 2024 its Pharmacy Compounding Advisory Committee voted against all five CJC-1295-related bulk drug substances.
Is CJC-1295 on the WADA Prohibited List?
Yes. The 2026 Prohibited List names CJC-1295 in section S2.2.4, growth hormone releasing factors, as an example of a GHRH analogue. Class S2 is prohibited at all times, and the list does not distinguish the DAC and non-DAC forms.
What does the drug affinity complex do?
In the DAC form, a maleimide group on the added C-terminal lysine reacts in vivo with the free thiol of cysteine-34 of serum albumin, forming a covalent conjugate. In healthy adults this gave an estimated half-life of 5.4 to 9.2 days, with GH raised for six days or more after a single injection.

References

  1. 1.Jetté L, Léger R, Thibaudeau K, Benquet C, Robitaille M, Pellerin I, Paradis V, van Wyk P, Pham K, Bridon DP. Human growth hormone-releasing factor (hGRF)1-29-albumin bioconjugates activate the GRF receptor on the anterior pituitary in rats: identification of CJC-1295 as a long-lasting GRF analog. Endocrinology (2005). doi:10.1210/en.2004-1286 PMID 15817669 · accessed 2026-09-21
  2. 2.Mai Tu, Edna Albuquerque, Andrea Benedict, Marianne San Antonio, Suhail Kasim, Ashlee Mattingly, Tracy Rupp. FDA Briefing Document, Pharmacy Compounding Advisory Committee Meeting, December 4, 2024: Evaluation of five CJC-1295-related bulk drug substances. U.S. Food and Drug Administration (2024). https://www.fda.gov/media/183819/download · accessed 2026-09-21
  3. 3.Teichman SL, Neale A, Lawrence B, Gagnon C, Castaigne JP, Frohman LA. Prolonged stimulation of growth hormone (GH) and insulin-like growth factor I secretion by CJC-1295, a long-acting analog of GH-releasing hormone, in healthy adults. Journal of Clinical Endocrinology and Metabolism (2006). doi:10.1210/jc.2005-1536 PMID 16352683 · accessed 2026-09-21
  4. 4.Ionescu M, Frohman LA. Pulsatile secretion of growth hormone (GH) persists during continuous stimulation by CJC-1295, a long-acting GH-releasing hormone analog. Journal of Clinical Endocrinology and Metabolism (2006). doi:10.1210/jc.2006-1702 PMID 17018654 · accessed 2026-09-21
  5. 5.A Study to Evaluate CJC 1295 in HIV Patients With Visceral Obesity (NCT00267527). ClinicalTrials.gov, U.S. National Library of Medicine (2006). https://clinicaltrials.gov/study/NCT00267527 · accessed 2026-09-21
  6. 6.MHRA Products — active substance index, letter C. Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (2026). https://products.mhra.gov.uk/substance-index/?letter=C · accessed 2026-09-21
  7. 7.Union Register of medicinal products for human use — authorised products by active substance. European Commission (2026). https://ec.europa.eu/health/documents/community-register/html/reg_hum_act.htm · accessed 2026-09-21
  8. 8.21 CFR 216.23 — Bulk drug substances that can be used to compound drug products in accordance with section 503A of the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act. Office of the Federal Register (eCFR) (2026). https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-21/chapter-I/subchapter-D/part-216/subpart-B/section-216.23 · accessed 2026-09-21
  9. 9.Minutes, Pharmacy Compounding Advisory Committee Meeting, December 4, 2024. U.S. Food and Drug Administration (2024). https://www.fda.gov/media/185642/download · accessed 2026-09-21
  10. 10.The Prohibited List (List of Prohibited Substances and Methods in force). World Anti-Doping Agency (2026). https://www.wada-ama.org/en/prohibited-list · accessed 2026-09-21
  11. 11.P01286 SLIB_HUMAN Somatoliberin. UniProt Consortium (2026). https://rest.uniprot.org/uniprotkb/P01286.json · accessed 2026-09-21
  12. 12.Knoop A, Thomas A, Fichant E, Delahaut P, Schanzer W, Thevis M. Qualitative identification of growth hormone-releasing hormones in human plasma by means of immunoaffinity purification and LC-HRMS/MS. Anal Bioanal Chem (2016). doi:10.1007/s00216-016-9377-3 PMID 26879649 · accessed 2026-09-21
  13. 13.Henninge J, Pepaj M, Hullstein I, Hemmersbach P. Identification of CJC-1295, a growth-hormone-releasing peptide, in an unknown pharmaceutical preparation. Drug Testing and Analysis (2010). doi:10.1002/dta.233 PMID 21204297 · accessed 2026-09-21
  14. 14.GSRS substance record CJC-1295, UNII 62RC32V9N7 (full view, retrieved through the GSRS API). FDA Global Substance Registration System, NCATS (2026). https://gsrs.ncats.nih.gov/api/v1/substances(62RC32V9N7)?view=full · accessed 2026-09-21
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For laboratory research use only. This article summarises published literature and regulatory records; it does not describe or recommend any use of a material in or on humans or animals.
Cite this page
Harvard
HelixEVO Labs (2026) CJC-1295 with DAC and without DAC: identity, evidence and status. Available at: https://helixevo.net/knowledge-base/compounds/cjc-1295 (Accessed: 2026-09-25).
APA
HelixEVO Labs. (2026). CJC-1295 with DAC and without DAC: identity, evidence and status. https://helixevo.net/knowledge-base/compounds/cjc-1295
BibTeX
@misc{helixevo-2026-cjc-1295-with-dac-and-without-dac-identi,
  title = {CJC-1295 with DAC and without DAC: identity, evidence and status},
  author = {{HelixEVO Labs}},
  year = {2026},
  howpublished = {\url{https://helixevo.net/knowledge-base/compounds/cjc-1295}},
  note = {Reviewed 2026-09-22; accessed 2026-09-25}
}
Revision history
  1. r1 · 2026-09-25 · Initial import