An investigation into the science — and the gaps in the science — behind BPC-157 and MOTS-c, including a look at the risks people rarely ask about.
Listen →The cardiolipin-targeting peptide SS-31/elamipretide became the first approved therapy for Barth syndrome, based on >45% improvement in knee extensor muscle strength in the Phase 2 TAZPOWER trial — a landmark for the whole mitochondrial-peptide class.
Read source →Ralph DeFronzo, M.D. — the researcher who helped bring metformin to the US and developed SGLT2 inhibitors — walks through the pathophysiology of insulin resistance across muscle, liver, and fat, and how it's measured, prevented, diagnosed, and treated.
Listen →Ralph DeFronzo, M.D. walks through the pathophysiology of insulin resistance across muscle, liver, and fat, and how it's measured, prevented, diagnosed, and treated.
Listen →Using bioinformatic and protein-docking analysis, researchers compared the mitochondrial-derived peptide humanin across mammals with different oxidative-stress profiles (deep-diving cetaceans, high-metabolism shrews, long-lived primates). Species under greater oxidative stress carried more structurally stable humanin variants, suggesting evolution has tuned the peptide's protective function and offering a template for designing humanin-based therapeutic analogs.
Read source →In transgenic mouse models, the mitochondrial-derived peptide MOTS-c boosted intrinsic muscle mitochondrial bioenergetics and lowered ROS-related oxidative damage — requiring both PGC-1α and AMPK signalling, without increasing raw mitochondrial volume. Animal data only; a human Phase 2a trial (MOTS-MET) for prediabetes began enrolling in 2026.
Read source →NYT's David Dodge and McGill's Jonathan Jarry unpack why injectable peptide therapy caught fire in the wellness world despite thin safety data.
Listen →Preclinical work showing MOTS-c, an mtDNA-encoded peptide, restores mitochondrial respiration and energy homeostasis in a type 2 diabetic cardiac model — building the mechanistic case for its "exercise mimetic" reputation.
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