KPV in the US: The α-MSH Fragment in Inflammation Research

KPV is a tripeptide, lysine-proline-valine, corresponding to the C-terminal fragment (residues 11 to 13) of alpha-melanocyte-stimulating hormone.[3] Research interest follows from the observation that this terminal fragment retains anti-inflammatory activity in models while lacking the pigmentation-related activity of the full hormone.[3]

It is also smaller and more chemically stable than the parent hormone, which is part of why it has been studied across oral, topical and transdermal delivery routes.[5]

Research Material

Three residues and a molecular weight of 342.44 Da. This is about as small as a peptide gets before it stops behaving like one, and the commercial consequence is direct: tripeptides are cheap to synthesize and cheaper to substitute, so identity confirmation carries more weight here than it does for a longer sequence.

Amino Acid Sequence

Chemical Structure

The largest body of work is on gut and intestinal inflammation, and it is unusually mechanistically clean for a compound of this size.

• ·The foundational paper is Dalmasso et al., Gastroenterology 2008.[1] Nanomolar concentrations of KPV inhibited NF-κB and MAP-kinase inflammatory signaling and reduced pro-inflammatory cytokine secretion in intestinal epithelial cells (Caco2-BBE, HT29-Cl.19A) and human T cells (Jurkat). Uptake was mediated by PepT1, a di- and tripeptide transporter upregulated in inflamed colonic tissue. Oral administration reduced the incidence of DSS- and TNBS-induced colitis in mice.
• ·Independent murine IBD models. Kannengiesser et al. (2008) reported anti-inflammatory activity for the melanocortin-derived tripeptide in two distinct murine models of inflammatory bowel disease.[2]
• ·Transporter dependence. Work in colitis-associated cancer models reported reduced colonic tumour number, size and burden in KPV-treated animals, an effect abolished in PepT1-knockout animals. That knockout result is the cleanest available confirmation that the transporter is doing the work.[4]
• ·Targeted colonic delivery. Xiao et al. (2017) used hyaluronic-acid-functionalized nanoparticles for orally targeted colonic delivery in an ulcerative colitis model.[7]
• ·Skin and transdermal work. KPV has been studied in transdermal iontophoretic delivery across microporated human skin, motivated by its stability and the absence of melanotropic effect.[5] Separate work has examined the tripeptide in brain injury models.[6]

No human clinical trials of KPV exist. Every result above is from cell culture or animal models. There is no established human dose, no human safety record, and no approved indication in any jurisdiction. Any supplier presenting KPV as a proven treatment is misrepresenting the literature.

On 23 and 24 July 2026 the FDA's Pharmacy Compounding Advisory Committee reviewed KPV (free base and acetate) for inclusion on the Section 503A Bulk Drug Substances List, alongside BPC-157, KPV, TB-500, MOTS-c, Epitalon and Semax. FDA staff had recommended against inclusion for every substance under review, citing insufficient characterization, little or no human effectiveness evidence, and inadequate human safety data. The committee voted in favor anyway. The vote was 8 in favor, 6 against, 1 abstention.

What that vote does not do:

The practical takeaway for a US research buyer is unchanged. Until a final determination issues, the compound is research-use-only, and sourcing quality is your responsibility rather than a regulator's.

• ·It is non-binding. The committee advises, it does not decide. No final FDA determination has been issued and none of the six peptides appears in 21 CFR 216.23.
• ·It requires a further step. Addition to the 503A Bulks List requires formal action by the Secretary of Health and Human Services, which had not occurred as of publication.
• ·It does not make the compound an FDA-approved drug, and it establishes nothing about efficacy.
• ·It does not legitimize research-chemical retail. A compounding-list decision concerns licensed pharmacists preparing patient-specific prescriptions under Section 503A, which is a different channel entirely from research material sold in vials.

Identity testing, not just purity. Tripeptides are cheap to substitute or underfill. A purity percentage alone tells you what fraction of what is in the vial is the stated compound. It does not tell you the compound is correct, and it does not tell you how much is there. Mass-spectrometry identity confirmation plus measured content against the labeled amount is the only combination that closes both gaps.

Published, verifiable certificates, with the numbers stated. Eppix publishes the Janoshik Analytical certificate for every KPV lot before sale, each verifiable directly on the laboratory's own database. The measured content figure is the one almost no supplier publishes, and that is precisely the reason to publish it: a buyer can confirm the vial is not underfilled before ordering rather than after.

Published Certificate

Select strength

10mg30mg

Batch

KPV-CA-26I-10

Purity (HPLC)

99.103%

Measured content

11.56 mglabeled 10 mg

Laboratory

Janoshik

Verify on the lab’s own databaseAll published certificates

Domestic shipping is by FedEx, typically one to three business days across the United States, free over $200 USD. Card and PayPal checkout are both available, and mix-and-match multi-vial pricing applies at 5 and 10 vials. Current availability per strength is shown on the card below and on the product page, which is the only place either of us should be reading stock from.

Researchers building tissue-repair models often pair KPV work with BPC-157; both compounds' certificates are public. The full tissue repair category is at /collections/tissue-repair.

Available at Eppix Labs

KPV

10mg · 30mg

Every batch tested by an independent laboratory, with the certificate published before sale.

From $49.99 USDIn stock