AOD-9604 is a synthetic fragment of the C-terminal end of human growth hormone, developed in Australia as an anti-obesity drug candidate.
The peptide is Tyr-hGH177-191: residues 177 to 191 of growth hormone with an extra tyrosine at the start (Stier et al., 2013), which is why it is sometimes labeled hGH 176-191. Monash University researchers reported in 2000 that oral AOD-9604 cut weight gain by more than half in obese Zucker rats over 19 days (Ng et al., Hormone Research). In obese mice it raised fat oxidation without causing high blood glucose, and it did not bind the growth hormone receptor (Heffernan et al., 2001).
Human development stopped at phase 2. Six randomized, placebo-controlled trials were run, and a 2013 safety summary of them reported no change in IGF-1 levels and no drug-related serious adverse events. A 24-week phase 2b trial missed its primary weight-loss endpoint, and Metabolic Pharmaceuticals ended the obesity program in 2007, according to a 2026 review in Frontiers in Endocrinology. The review notes that this efficacy result rests on the company’s own announcement, not a peer-reviewed trial publication.
AOD-9604 is not FDA-approved for any use, and WADA bans it at all times as a growth hormone fragment under class S2.
The 2026 WADA Prohibited List names “AOD-9604 and hGH 176-191” as examples of growth hormone fragments in section S2.2.3, prohibited in and out of competition. In the US, the FDA’s compounding safety-risk page, current as of April 22, 2026, lists AOD-9604 among substances formerly in category 2 whose nominations were withdrawn, and states that compounded AOD-9604 may pose a significant immunogenicity risk for certain routes of administration.
AOD-9604 circulates under several names, so identity is the first question for any vial. A credible result confirms that the measured mass matches the Tyr-hGH177-191 sequence and states the quantity found, not only a purity percentage.
Before trusting a label, check that batch’s published result on our latest tests page or in Janoshik’s public results database. No results are published for AOD-9604 in our index yet. When the first published result arrives, a vendor leaderboard appears above.