Welcome
We're real people with a shared love of science, research and understanding more about peptides and their potential.
We're not doctors or medically qualified. What we share comes from our own research, learning and experience, and we encourage you to explore the science and do your own research too.
We're here to make that journey easier, share what we discover and support you along the way.
Real People. Real Support. Real Results.
Peptides.family is for adults aged 18 and over. Please confirm you're 18+ to continue.
Science Led | Research Focused | Human Support
Real Results / The Peptide Timeline
Over 125 years of tiny molecules, huge discoveries and science that changed medicine.
Travel through the discoveries, strange stories and scientific breakthroughs that shaped peptide science.
Before 1900
In brains. In guts. In blood. In plants. In animals. In venom. Humans just hadnβt figured out what they were yet.
Emil Fischer and Ernest Fourneau reported an early peptide synthesis involving glycylglycine. Their work helped establish the foundations of modern peptide chemistry.
Fun fact: At this point, even joining a few amino acids was cutting-edge chemistry. The word βpeptideβ comes from this pioneering era.
Bayliss and Starling demonstrated that the intestine could release a chemical messenger, later called secretin, that stimulated the pancreas - one organ releasing a message that affected another.
Big fact: One of the foundational stories of hormone biology started in the gut.
Ernest Starling introduced the term βhormoneβ - organ β chemical message β another organ. The body doesnβt only communicate through nerves.
Big fact: The body doesnβt only communicate through nerves.
Fischer reported synthesis of an 18-amino-acid peptide containing glycine and leucine. At the beginning of the 20th century, joining amino acids into long chains was an enormous chemical challenge.
Big fact: 18 amino acids was seriously ambitious chemistry in 1907.
Research by Banting, Best, Macleod and Collip led to insulin being isolated and purified for therapeutic use. In January 1922, Leonard Thompson became the first person with diabetes to receive insulin treatment.
Before insulin: Before effective insulin treatment, type 1 diabetes was generally fatal. Early insulin therapy fundamentally changed its prognosis.
Big fact: He was just 14 years old.
Banting and Macleod received the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine for the discovery of insulin.
Von Euler and Gaddum discovered biological activity in extracts of brain and intestine. Later work established Substance P as an 11-amino-acid neuropeptide.
Big fact: 11 amino acids. One very famous neuropeptide.
Bergmann and Zervas introduced a reversible amino-protecting strategy. Protecting parts of amino acids made controlled peptide synthesis far easier.
Bradykinin was discovered during research involving venom and blood components. It became important for understanding blood vessels, inflammation and pain signalling.
Big fact: Venom research helped reveal one of our own peptide signals.
Venoms are evolutionary chemistry labs - each species brewing its own bespoke peptide cocktail. π snakes π·οΈ spiders π¦ scorpions π cone snails π¦ Gila monsters A single cone snail can carry dozens to hundreds of distinct peptide toxins, each honed by millions of years of natural selection to hit one precise molecular target. Nature was designing bioactive peptides long before chemists learned to. Never handle venomous animals or self-experiment with venoms.
Vincent du Vigneaud achieved the chemical synthesis of biologically active oxytocin. Oxytocin contains only nine amino acids.
Big fact: 9 amino acids. A lot of biology.
Did you know?: Oxytocinβs mature chain reads Cys β Tyr β Ile β Gln β Asn β Cys β Pro β Leu β Gly, with a ring formed by a disulfide bond between the two cysteines - not a straight chain.
β¦ In Our Library
9 amino acids. That is the entire recipe for oxytocin - the molecule behind birth, milk let-down, bonding and trust. In 1953 it became the first peptide hormone ever built by hand in a lab. Nine pieces. One of the hardest puzzles of the age. A Nobel Prize followed.
Vincent du Vigneaud received the Nobel Prize in Chemistry for work on biochemically important sulphur compounds and the first synthesis of a polypeptide hormone.
Frederick Sanger established insulin's complete amino-acid sequence - amino acids β order β sequence. This helped show that proteins have precise, defined sequences.
Big fact: Insulin became the first protein to have its complete amino-acid sequence determined.
Frederick Sanger received the Nobel Prize in Chemistry for his work on the structure of proteins, especially insulin.
Fun fact: He would later win another Nobel Prize - for work involving DNA sequencing.
Copp and colleagues described calcitonin, a peptide hormone involved in calcium regulation. Human calcitonin contains 32 amino acids.
Did you know?: 32 amino acids - a peptide signal involved in calcium regulation.
Bruce Merrifield introduced solid-phase peptide synthesis - solid support + amino acid + amino acid + amino acid β peptide. The peptide stays attached to a support while amino acids are added step by step.
Big fact: This changed how peptides could be built.
Researchers reported chemical synthesis of biologically active gastrin material - part of the peptide signalling system in digestion. This connects back to the 1902 secretin story: the gut as a signalling organ.
Researchers achieved the first total chemical synthesis of crystalline insulin - a landmark showing an entire protein hormone could be built by chemistry alone.
Big fact: A whole protein hormone, built by chemistry.
PEPTIDE = KEY RECEPTOR = LOCK CELL = RESPONSE A peptide only works if its shape fits a matching receptor - a molecular lock-and-key. Billions of these conversations happen in your body every single second. Shape, chemistry and molecular fit decide which key opens which lock.
Researchers established the structure of TRH - thyrotropin-releasing hormone - the first hypothalamic releasing hormone to be structurally determined.
Tiny molecule. Big job.: TRH is a tripeptide - just 3 amino acids - yet it controls a major hormonal axis. Molecule size β biological importance.
TRH has just 3 amino acids. Yet this microscopic chain commands your entire thyroid axis - the signal that sets your metabolism, energy and growth tempo. Proof that in peptide science, size has nothing to do with importance.
Vasoactive intestinal peptide was isolated from intestine - but its signalling extends well beyond the gut, including the nervous system. VIP contains 28 amino acids.
Big fact: The name βintestinalβ only tells part of the story.
β¦ In Our Library
The structure of gonadotropin-releasing hormone was established - brain β GnRH β pituitary β reproductive hormone signals. A small hypothalamic peptide controlling reproduction.
Researchers isolated a 14-amino-acid peptide from the hypothalamus that inhibited growth-hormone secretion. It was named somatostatin.
Did you know?: 14 amino acids - and it puts the brakes on growth-hormone release.
GHK (Gly β His β Lys) was identified in human plasma and found to bind copper (CuΒ²βΊ) β GHK-Cu. GHK is only 3 amino acids long. (Later research findings are not retroactively assigned to 1973.)
Big fact: GHK is only 3 amino acids long - and binds copper.
β¦ In Our Library
Not every peptide carries a message. Glutathione = glutamate + cysteine + glycine - a humble tripeptide that is your body's master antioxidant, present in almost every cell and recycling itself billions of times to neutralise cellular wear-and-tear. Three amino acids. A completely different day job.
Researchers identified two five-amino-acid peptides in the brain with opioid activity - Met-enkephalin and Leu-enkephalin. These are endogenous opioid peptides, distinct from opioid medicines.
Big fact: Your body produces its own opioid peptides - 5 amino acids each.
A detective story in reverse. Scientists found receptors in the brain that responded to opium - a plant. So they asked: why would the brain have receptors for a plant? The answer: the brain makes its own keys. In 1975, enkephalins - your built-in opioid peptides, just 5 amino acids each - were discovered.
Guillemin and Schally shared part of the Nobel Prize for discoveries concerning peptide hormone production of the brain - connecting TRH, GnRH and somatostatin.
Big fact: The brain doesnβt just communicate electrically. It speaks in peptides.
Scientists demonstrated production of human insulin using recombinant DNA - human gene β microorganism β human protein.
Big fact: Biology could now help manufacture human molecules.
Give a bacterium one human gene and it becomes a medicine factory. In 1978 scientists did exactly that - inserting the insulin gene into microbes so they produced human insulin on demand. Today most insulin worldwide is made this way. A single gene, billions of doses.
Research showed extracts from heart atrial tissue could trigger powerful natriuretic and diuretic effects - establishing atrial natriuretic peptide/factor.
Big fact: Your heart isnβt just a pump. Itβs also an endocrine organ - it releases peptide hormones.
For decades the heart was taught as 'just a pump'. Then in 1981 scientists found heart tissue releasing peptide hormones - natriuretic peptides like ANP - that tell the body to manage blood and salt. Your heart does not only pump blood. It sends chemical messages about it too.
Researchers isolated Neuropeptide Y from brain tissue. NPY contains 36 amino acids and became important in appetite, stress, energy balance and nervous-system signalling.
Big fact: NPY became known as one of the most abundant neuropeptides in the mammalian brain.
Recombinant human insulin received FDA approval - the first FDA-approved therapeutic produced using recombinant DNA technology.
Big fact: The first FDA-approved therapeutic produced using recombinant DNA technology.
GHRH (growth-hormone-releasing hormone) was isolated and characterised - hypothalamus β GHRH β pituitary β growth hormone. Later research explored synthetic peptides and analogues affecting different parts of GH-related signalling.
This story continuesβ¦: Synthetic GH-related peptides and analogues became an active research area - distinct from the original GHRH discovery.
β¦ In Our Library
Bruce Merrifield received the Nobel Prize in Chemistry for solid-phase synthesis methodology - connecting directly back to 1963.
George P. Smith developed phage display - phage β display peptide β test binding β read genetic information. Peptides could be displayed on phage surfaces and linked to the genes inside.
Big fact: Biology could help create and screen huge libraries of peptides.
Your body runs on a chemical conversation - and peptides are some of its favourite words. π§ BRAIN π½οΈ GUT PANCREAS β€οΈ HEART PITUITARY π‘οΈ IMMUNE SYSTEM SKIN β¦and more Different peptides carry different messages. Hormone signalling evolved hundreds of millions of years before humans - this language is older than we are.
Research identified biologically active forms of GLP-1 - gut β GLP-1 β receptor β metabolic signal. GLP-1 could strongly stimulate glucose-dependent insulin secretion.
Researchers described exendin-4, a 39-amino-acid peptide from the Gila monster - Gila monster β exendin-4 β GLP-1 receptor research. It activated the GLP-1 receptor and resisted rapid degradation.
Big fact: Yes. A venomous lizard became part of the story.
A pharmacist studying Gila monster venom noticed something odd: it sent the lizard blood sugar plunging. That single curiosity - why would a lizard need blood-sugar control? - led to exendin-4, then exenatide, then an entire class of GLP-1 medicines. Sometimes a billion-dollar medicine starts with one puzzled scientist and one strange lizard.
The KISS1 gene was first identified in metastasis-suppression research - named in Hershey, Pennsylvania, home of Hersheyβs Kisses. Later work connected kisspeptin/KISS1R signalling to reproductive neuroendocrinology.
Big fact: Yes - the βkissβ name really does have a Hershey connection.
β¦ In Our Library
A sleep-related peptide was first identified in the 1970s from the cerebral venous blood of sleeping rabbits, and later isolated and named delta sleep-inducing peptide. The name reflects its historical discovery - not proof of an established sleep treatment.
Research story: Later research continues to explore DSIP. It is not an established clinical sleep medicine.
β¦ In Our Library
Researchers in Japan identified ghrelin, an acylated peptide from the stomach - the endogenous ligand for the growth-hormone secretagogue receptor.
A peptide with a fatty twist: Ghrelin needs an unusual fatty-acid modification (acylation) to be active at its identified receptor - a small chemical change that dramatically alters behaviour.
Fun fact: Its discovery revealed another connection between the stomach, appetite and growth-hormone signalling.
There is no single fixed boundary between peptides and proteins - terminology overlaps. But the timeline makes size tangible: TRH - 3 aa GHK - 3 aa KPV - 3 aa ENKEPHALIN - 5 aa OXYTOCIN - 9 aa SUBSTANCE P - 11 aa SOMATOSTATIN - 14 aa BPC-157 - 15 aa VIP - 28 aa CALCITONIN - 32 aa TERIPARATIDE - 34 aa NPY - 36 aa EXENDIN-4 - 39 aa
In 1901, joining even two amino acids was headline chemistry. By 2000, scientists were designing bespoke peptide medicines from scratch - tuning stability, delivery and receptor selectivity to order. One century turned "almost impossible" into routine.
Nesiritide, a recombinant form of human B-type natriuretic peptide, received FDA approval - connecting back to 1981, βYour Heart Talksβ.
Big fact: A peptide hormone produced by the heart became the basis of a medicine.
Teriparatide was approved for osteoporosis. The full natural parathyroid hormone has 84 amino acids; teriparatide uses the 1β34 fragment.
Big fact: Sometimes researchers don't need the whole natural molecule.
Did you know?: A biologically active fragment can retain important signalling activity.
LL-37 is the human cathelicidin antimicrobial peptide - part of innate biological defence, not a hormone.
Big fact: Peptides arenβt just hormones. Some are part of innate biological defence.
β¦ In Our Library
BPC-157 is a synthetic 15-amino-acid peptide sequence that appears extensively in preclinical literature.
Preclinical / research story: Do not convert animal findings into proven human effects.
β¦ In Our Library
Ziconotide received FDA approval for severe chronic pain in appropriate patients. It is a synthetic peptide based on Ο-conotoxin MVIIA from the venom of the predatory cone snail Conus magus. Cone snail venom contains extraordinarily complex peptide cocktails.
Big fact: A predatory sea snail helped inspire a pain medicine.
A cone snail fires a venomous harpoon loaded with a peptide cocktail - and each species may brew dozens to hundreds of unique peptides. One slow-moving snail. A whole pharmacy of precision molecules. One of those peptides became ziconotide, a severe-pain medicine.
The history of Ξ±-MSH and melanocortin signalling inspired synthetic analogue research - including Melanotan I and Melanotan II. These are research compounds, not approved tanning medicines.
β¦ In Our Library
Exenatide became the first GLP-1 receptor agonist medicine to reach the US market - Gila monster β exendin-4 β exenatide, connecting back to 1992.
Scientists have found biologically active peptides in: VENOMS PLANTS MICROORGANISMS MARINE ORGANISMS ANIMALS HUMANS Venoms evolved under extreme pressure to be potent and precise - exactly the qualities drug hunters want. Not every natural peptide is useful - or safe - as a medicine.
Pramlintide received FDA approval. It is an analogue of amylin, a peptide hormone normally co-secreted with insulin by pancreatic beta cells.
Big fact: Insulin isnβt the only peptide hormone associated with pancreatic beta cells.
KPV (Lys β Pro β Val) is only three amino acids - the C-terminal fragment of Ξ±-MSH. A larger peptide β biologically interesting fragment.
Big fact: Only three amino acids.
β¦ In Our Library
Thymosin beta-4 and related sequences (e.g. TB-500) appear in tissue-repair research.
β¦ In Our Library
The full parathyroid hormone has 84 amino acids. The medicine teriparatide uses only the 1-34 fragment - and it works. Researchers trim, tweak and reassemble peptides to keep the active part and lose the rest: shorter fragments, modified sequences, synthetic analogues. Compounds like Semax and Selank appear in this research branch. Use only claims supported by reliable scientific literature.
Liraglutide received FDA approval for type 2 diabetes - a once-daily GLP-1 receptor agonist.
Big idea: Peptide engineering isn't only about what a molecule does - it can also change how long it lasts.
Linaclotide was approved. It acts locally at guanylate cyclase-C receptors in the intestine rather than travelling throughout the whole body.
Big fact: Not every peptide medicine needs to travel around the whole body.
Liraglutide received FDA approval for chronic weight management (Saxenda) - expanding GLP-1 receptor agonist use beyond glucose control.
MOTS-c is a mitochondrial-derived peptide - a modern research story showing that not all biologically interesting peptide signals come from the nuclear genome.
Big fact: Not all biologically interesting peptide signals come from the nuclear genome.
β¦ In Our Library
Gallium-68 DOTATATE received FDA approval for PET imaging of somatostatin receptor-positive neuroendocrine tumours - peptide + imaging isotope β receptor β PET image.
Big fact: A peptide can act like a molecular address label.
Finding an interesting peptide is the easy part. DISCOVERY β CHARACTERISATION β LAB RESEARCH β PRECLINICAL β CLINICAL TRIALS β REGULATORY REVIEW β APPROVAL The journey can take 10-15 years and fail at any step. Most promising peptides never become medicines at all.
Semaglutide received its first US regulatory approval for type 2 diabetes - a modified GLP-1 receptor agonist designed for prolonged activity.
β¦ In Our Library
George P. Smith shared the 2018 Nobel Prize in Chemistry for the phage display of peptides and antibodies - connecting back to 1985.
Lutetium-177 DOTATATE received FDA approval for certain somatostatin receptor-positive gastroenteropancreatic neuroendocrine tumours - somatostatin analogue β recognises receptor β carries radioisotope β targeted radiotherapy. This pairing of therapy and diagnostics is called theranostics.
Did you know?: Theranostics = therapy + diagnostics. It does not work for all cancers.
Natural peptides are fragile - enzymes can chop them up within minutes. So chemists add molecular armour: tweaks that change stability, half-life, receptor selectivity, solubility and delivery. NATURE PROVIDES THE STARTING POINT. CHEMISTRY CHANGES THE PROPERTIES. Not every modification improves a molecule.
Oral semaglutide received FDA approval - the first orally administered GLP-1 receptor agonist. The digestive tract evolved to break peptides down (peptide β digestive tract β enzymes βοΈ β breakdown), and large peptides cross the intestinal barrier poorly, making oral delivery a major pharmaceutical challenge.
Big fact: The digestive system is really good at destroying peptides.
Setmelanotide received FDA approval for chronic weight management in certain rare genetic conditions involving the melanocortin-4 receptor pathway. It is a cyclic peptide MC4 receptor agonist.
Big fact: Sometimes a medicine is built around a very specific biological pathway.
Not every peptide is a straight line. Some loop back on themselves into rings. LINEAR PEPTIDE βββββββββ vs CYCLIC PEPTIDE β Cyclisation locks a peptide into a fixed shape - often making it more stable and harder to break down. Oxytocin is a familiar timeline example: its disulfide ring is part of what makes it work.
Dasiglucagon received FDA approval for treatment of severe hypoglycaemia in patients with diabetes aged 6 and older. It is a glucagon analogue.
Big fact: Peptides can be rescue medicines too.
Semaglutide received FDA approval for chronic weight management (Wegovy) in adults with obesity or overweight with weight-related conditions.
β¦ In Our Library
Tirzepatide received its first FDA approval. It activates both GIP and GLP-1 receptors - GIP + GLP-1 β tirzepatide. Multi-receptor peptide medicines had entered clinical practice.
Big fact: One molecule. Two receptor systems.
β¦ In Our Library
Zilucoplan received FDA approval for certain adults with generalised myasthenia gravis who are anti-AChR antibody positive. It is a macrocyclic peptide that inhibits complement component C5.
Big fact: Peptides can interact with the immune system too.
Pegcetacoplan received FDA approval for geographic atrophy secondary to age-related macular degeneration - a complement-targeting peptide therapy in a completely different area of medicine.
Tirzepatide received FDA approval for chronic weight management (Zepbound) in adults with obesity or overweight - connecting back to 2022.
β¦ In Our Library
Semaglutide (Wegovy) received an FDA-approved indication to reduce the risk of cardiovascular death, heart attack and stroke in adults with cardiovascular disease and either obesity or overweight. (Exact approved population - not universal cardiovascular prevention.)
β¦ In Our Library
Tirzepatide (Zepbound) became the first FDA-approved medication for moderate-to-severe obstructive sleep apnoea in adults with obesity, used with a reduced-calorie diet and increased physical activity.
Big fact: A molecule that entered the timeline through metabolic medicine now appears in the sleep-apnoea story.
β¦ In Our Library
Elamipretide received accelerated FDA approval as the first treatment for Barth syndrome, in patients weighing at least 30 kg - a mitochondria-targeting peptide.
Big fact: Mitochondria are part of the peptide medicine story too.
β¦ In Our Library
287
PEPTIDES IN CLINICAL EVALUATION
A 2025 scientific review catalogued 287 peptides undergoing clinical evaluation across numerous fields.
Big fact: Peptide science isnβt slowing down.
Important: Clinical evaluation does NOT mean approved medicine.
Nose-to-brain peptide delivery continues to be actively researched - π β nasal route β π§ .
Research: This is active research, not an approved treatment.
FDA product-specific guidance work for peptide products shows how established parts of the peptide-medicine field have become - manufacturing, characterisation and equivalence are now serious scientific questions in their own right.
Big fact: The peptide story isnβt only about discovering new molecules - itβs also about learning how to reproduce complex ones reliably.
2019 asked: a peptide as a tablet? In 2026 the question becomes - how far can we take this? Digestive breakdown, absorption, formulation and delivery technology remain active frontiers. Not feasible for every peptide.
20ΒΉβ°
10,240,000,000,000 POSSIBILITIES
Computational methods and AI can help researchers explore enormous sequence spaces, predict structure and prioritise candidates - while experimental validation is still required.
The numbers: 20 standard amino acids. A peptide only 10 amino acids long has 20ΒΉβ° = 10,240,000,000,000 possible sequences. More than 10 trillion possibilities - and thatβs only length 10.
Big line: No human could manually test them all. Computational predictions still require experimental validation - AI does not replace laboratory science.
125+ years of peptide science. And the story is still being written.
