
What Is Epithalon?
Epithalon is a short peptide consisting of just four amino acids (Alanine-Glutamate-Asparagine-Glycine). In animal studies, epithalon has been shown to affect melatonin secretion as well as telomerase activity. The molecule is sometimes referred to as epithalone, epitalon, LS-72251, and CID2192042. Epithalon was developed in Russia (isolated from the bovine (cow) pineal gland) and has received attention for its anti-aging and anti-carcinogenic properties as well as for its ability to regulate melatonin secretion.
The Anti-Cancer Effects of Epithalon
A 2002 study on transgenic mice prone to cancer produced surprising results. Epithalon prolonged the average lifetime of the cancer-prone her2/neu mice by 13.5% when administered subcutaneously 5 times per week. The molecule appeared to suppress the development of cancer and reduce metastasis (spread) of existing cancers. Overall, cancer rates in mice that were provided epithalon were 3.7 times lower than in mice who did not receive the peptide. The mice that did develop cancer lived 1.7 times longer if they received epithalon compared to mice that did not. Epithalon also extended the life of mice without cancer substantially1 .
The Anti-Aging Effects of Epithalon
The anti-aging effects of epithalon appear to be a result of its ability to activate telomerase. Telomerase is an enzyme, found in all cells, that maintains the length of telomeres. Telomeres are specialized sequences of the DNA that protect chromosomes from damage, but shorten over time as an organism ages. Maintenance of telomere length has been associated with … [Read the rest]