What is cortagen?
Cortagen is the synthetic tetrapeptide Ala-Glu-Asp-Pro (AEDP). The Saint Petersburg Institute of Bioregulation and Gerontology designed it from an amino acid analysis of Cortexin, a peptide preparation from brain cortex (Anisimov et al., 2004). It is one of the short peptides that V. Kh. Khavinson and colleagues call peptide bioregulators or ultrashort peptides, and the group's 2022 review table lists it as a neuroprotector (Khavinson et al., 2022).
Most of its literature comes from the institute and its partners, much of it in Russian journals. The evidence is cell, tissue explant, rodent and chicken work, and no trial in people is indexed in PubMed. It is not an approved drug in the United States (no Drugs@FDA record, October 2026). Disguised Alpha does not currently list cortagen; this page is a literature reference for laboratory researchers. Nothing on this page is guidance for use in people.
Cortagen reference data
| Property | Value |
|---|---|
| Name | Cortagen |
| Also called | Ala-Glu-Asp-Pro, AEDP, H-Ala-Glu-Asp-Pro-OH |
| Sequence | Ala-Glu-Asp-Pro: L-alanine, L-glutamic acid, L-aspartic acid and L-proline joined by peptide bonds, with a free amino terminus and a free carboxyl terminus |
| Compound class | Synthetic tetrapeptide; a short peptide bioregulator from the Khavinson group, listed as a neuroprotector |
| Molecular formula | C₁₇H₂₆N₄O₉ |
| Molecular weight | 430.4 g/mol (monoisotopic mass 430.17 Da) |
| PubChem | CID 18439621, filed under the name Cortagen |
Formula, weight, the all-L stereochemistry and the name are from PubChem CID 18439621. The sequence matches the primary papers (Anisimov et al., 2004). Cortagen differs from epitalon, Ala-Glu-Asp-Gly, only in its last residue (Kuznik et al., 2008).
What the research covers
Published work on cortagen falls into six areas, and each summary below names its model. About 15 PubMed records name it, and a few more give only its sequence (searches of 12 October 2026).
Design and brain tissue explants
In organotypic culture, cortagen stimulated growth of explants from rat brain cortex, the tissue whose peptide complex it was designed from, while epitalon, livagen and vilon stimulated explants of subcortical structures, liver and thymus. The group calls this a tissue-specific effect (Khavinson, 2001). Model: rat tissue explants.
Sciatic nerve regeneration in rats
After the sciatic nerve was cut and sutured, rats received cortagen intramuscularly at 10 µg/kg for 10 days. Growth rate and conduction velocity in the regenerating nerve fibers rose by 27% and 40% (Turchaninova et al., 2000). Model: male Wistar rats.
Oxidative markers and brain ischemia in rats
In rats given epitalon or cortagen, lipid peroxidation products and oxidative modification of proteins fell, while antioxidant activity in serum and cerebral cortex was suppressed (Kozina, 2007). In a Russian-language study with no institute co-author, rats with chronic brain ischemia, grouped by high or low resistance to hypoxia, recovered disturbed individual behavior faster with cortexin or cortagen. Both preparations also prevented excessive lipid peroxidation and a fall in antioxidant activity in brain tissue (Zarubina and Shabanov, 2011). Model: rats.
Gene expression in mouse heart
In 6-month-old female CBA mice given cortagen on 5 consecutive days, a cDNA microarray of 15,247 heart transcripts found 234 clones, about 1.5 percent, with significant changes in expression, matching 110 known genes. The largest changes were 5.42-fold up and 2.86-fold down. Comparison with vilon, epitalon and melatonin showed shared and peptide-specific changes (Anisimov et al., 2004). Model: mice.
Immune cells and a negative test in chickens
In mouse thymocytes, vilon had the strongest comitogenic effect on proliferation, epitalon a weaker one and cortagen none (Khavinson et al., 2002). In splenocytes from CBA mice, all three activated interleukin-2 mRNA synthesis without other stimuli, cortagen least (Kazakova et al., 2002).
In chickens whose pituitary was removed soon after hatching or in old age, 40 days of epitalon eliminated the shifts in red cells, immunity and hemostasis, while cortagen did not affect them (Kuznik et al., 2008). That Russian-language paper's lead author had studied the same model with Khavinson in 2004. Models: mouse cells, chickens.
Chromatin in lymphocytes from older donors
In cultured lymphocytes from people aged 75 to 88, cortagen was one of five short peptides that activated ribosomal genes and decondensed tightly packed chromatin. The abstract credits only epitalon, livagen and prostamax with decondensing chromosome 1 pericentromeric heterochromatin (Khavinson et al., 2004). Later, Tbilisi State University authors including T. Lezhava, a co-author of that study, reported without Khavinson that epitalon, livagen, cortagen and vilon decondensed total heterochromatin in lymphocytes from 75- to 88-year-olds, each acting on particular chromosome regions (Lezhava et al., 2023). These are cell-culture findings on chromosome structure. Model: human lymphocyte cultures.
Key studies
- Turchaninova LN, et al. "Effect of tetrapeptide cortagen on regeneration of sciatic nerve." Bull Exp Biol Med. 2000. PMID 11276314. Male Wistar rats.
- Khavinson VK. "Tissue-specific effects of peptides." Bull Exp Biol Med. 2001. PMID 11713572. DOI 10.1023/a:1013058701974. Rat tissue explants.
- Anisimov SV, et al. "Elucidation of the effect of brain cortex tetrapeptide Cortagen on gene expression in mouse heart by microarray." Neuro Endocrinol Lett. 2004. PMID 15159690. CBA mice.
- Khavinson VKh, et al. "Effects of short peptides on lymphocyte chromatin in senile subjects." Bull Exp Biol Med. 2004. PMID 15085253. DOI 10.1023/b:bebm.0000024393.40560.05. Lymphocyte cultures.
- Kozina LS. "Effects of bioactive tetrapeptides on free-radical processes." Bull Exp Biol Med. 2007. PMID 18239817. DOI 10.1007/s10517-007-0230-8. Rats.
- Zarubina IV, Shabanov PD. "Cortexin and cortagen as correcting agents in functional and metabolic disorders in the brain in chronic ischemia." Eksp Klin Farmakol. 2011. PMID 21476278. Rats; in Russian.
- Lezhava T, et al. "Epigenetic modification under the influence of peptide bioregulators on the 'old' chromatin." Georgian Med News. 2023. PMID 37042594. Lymphocyte cultures.
Handling and storage of lyophilized cortagen
General laboratory practice for lyophilized short peptides, covered in the peptide storage guide and the peptide reconstitution guide:
- Keep the sealed powder dry, at -20°C and protected from light, and let a cold vial reach room temperature before opening.
- With two acidic side chains and no basic one, it is an acidic peptide: start with water or a neutral buffer and record the pH. The reconstitution guide keeps dilute acetic acid for basic peptides.
- Its Asp-Pro bond is among the peptide bonds most easily cleaved in acid, one more reason to avoid acidic diluents. Make solutions fresh, split them into single-use aliquots, keep them at 2 to 8°C protected from light and avoid freeze-thaw cycles.
- Confirm identity by mass: C₁₇H₂₆N₄O₉, monoisotopic 430.17 Da, which is 40.03 Da heavier than epitalon.
Frequently asked questions
What is cortagen?
Cortagen is the synthetic tetrapeptide Ala-Glu-Asp-Pro, designed from the brain cortex preparation Cortexin (Anisimov et al., 2004) and listed by its developers as a neuroprotector (Khavinson et al., 2022). It has been studied in rats, mice, chickens and cell cultures.
Is cortagen the same as Cortexin?
No. Cortexin is a polypeptide preparation from brain cortex. Cortagen is a single four-residue peptide designed from an amino acid analysis of Cortexin (Anisimov et al., 2004). One rat ischemia study tested both side by side (Zarubina and Shabanov, 2011).
How does cortagen differ from epitalon?
By one residue: epitalon is Ala-Glu-Asp-Gly, and cortagen ends in proline instead of glycine. In chickens without a pituitary, only epitalon eliminated the measured shifts in blood and immune markers (Kuznik et al., 2008). See our epitalon research guide.
Has cortagen been tested in people?
No trial is indexed in PubMed (search of 12 October 2026). The 2004 microarray abstract mentions earlier observations in people after peripheral nerve injury but gives no design or data (Anisimov et al., 2004). A 2013 Russian-language review from the group compares cortagen with other neuroprotective peptides and describes clinical data on such peptides in older people (Umnov et al., 2013), but we found no primary cortagen trial behind it.
How strong is the evidence on cortagen?
Thin. Most of about 15 indexed papers come from the Saint Petersburg institute and its partners, and nearly all use rodents, chickens or cell cultures. Three teams have published without an institute author: a rat ischemia team (Zarubina and Shabanov, 2011), a chicken team whose lead author has often published with Khavinson (Kuznik et al., 2008) and a Tbilisi chromatin team that had worked with the institute before (Lezhava et al., 2023).
Cortagen had no comitogenic effect in mouse thymocytes (Khavinson et al., 2002) and no effect on the measured shifts in chickens without a pituitary (Kuznik et al., 2008).
Does Disguised Alpha sell cortagen?
Not currently. Related short peptides in the catalog include Epitalon (Ala-Glu-Asp-Gly), Pinealon (Glu-Asp-Arg) and Cardiogen (Ala-Glu-Asp-Arg).
Related compounds and guides
- Peptide bioregulators explained
- Peptide bioregulators list, A to Z
- Epitalon research guide: Ala-Glu-Asp-Gly, one residue apart
- Pinealon research guide: Glu-Asp-Arg, also listed as a neuroprotector
- Cardiogen research guide: Ala-Glu-Asp-Arg
All Disguised Alpha products are for laboratory research only and are not for human consumption.