GHRP-2 (pralmorelin) is a synthetic six-amino-acid peptide that triggers growth hormone release by activating the ghrelin receptor, the same target ghrelin uses.
The compound came out of Cyril Bowers’ growth hormone releasing peptide program at Tulane University, and Kaken Pharmaceutical of Japan later acquired worldwide rights to it (Drugs in R&D profile, 2004). Kaken’s own pharmacology work describes GHRP-2 acting at both the hypothalamus and the pituitary (Furuta et al., 2004).
GHRP-2 has human data, mostly from short endocrine studies rather than treatment trials. A 1997 University of Turin study in healthy young adults found it released more growth hormone than GHRH and also raised prolactin, ACTH and cortisol (Arvat et al., 1997). In a 2005 study of seven lean men, a GHRP-2 infusion increased food intake at a buffet meal by about 36% compared with saline (Laferrère et al., 2005).
GHRP-2 is not FDA-approved in the United States. Japan approved it in October 2004 only as an intravenous diagnostic agent for growth hormone deficiency.
It is sold in Japan under the brand name GHRP and classed as a diagnostic reagent for endocrine function (KEGG DRUG D02040). In September 2023 the FDA placed GHRP-2 in category 2 of its 503B compounding policy, a list of bulk substances that may present significant safety risks, citing immunogenicity concerns and reports of serious adverse events where causality was not established (FDA). WADA’s 2026 Prohibited List names GHRP-2 (pralmorelin) under section S2.2.4, a class banned in and out of competition (WADA).
Testing matters here because GHRP-2, GHRP-6 and hexarelin share the same last four residues, Ala-Trp-D-Phe-Lys-NH2, and arrive as the same white powder. Appetite or a growth hormone response cannot tell them apart, since both GHRP-2 and GHRP-6 drive hunger. A mass spectrometry identity result can. The FDA also notes that GHRP-2 contains an unnatural amino acid, which makes the peptide harder to characterize.
Check a batch’s published result before trusting its label. Recent certificates are on our latest tests page, and Janoshik’s public results database lets you look up a specific test. No results are published for GHRP-2 in our index yet. When the first published result arrives, a vendor leaderboard appears above.