Scientific Reference
Pinealon (EDR)
Evidence profile: Controlled human evidence
Pinealon is the synthetic tripeptide Glu-Asp-Arg (EDR), one of the short 'bioregulator' peptides described by a Russian research group. That group proposes that very short peptides can act on gene expression directly, without a conventional receptor, a view that has had little independent testing. Most published work on Pinealon comes from the same group and its collaborators. It consists of experiments in cultured neurons and other cells, rodent studies centred on the nervous system and oxidative stress, and computer modelling of how the peptide might bind DNA. Human data are very limited.
Mechanism of Action
The originating group has proposed that EDR enters cells and their nuclei and binds particular DNA sequences or histone proteins, changing the expression of nearby genes. Support for this comes mainly from molecular modelling and in vitro binding experiments. In cultured neurons and other cells exposed to oxidative stress, Pinealon has been reported to lower the accumulation of reactive oxygen species and to alter ERK1/2 (MAPK) signalling, and rodent studies from the same group have measured markers of oxidative damage in brain tissue. No specific receptor for the peptide has been identified, and independent confirmation of these mechanisms is limited.
Molecular Information
- Type: Tripeptide
- Length: 3 amino acids
- Molecular weight: 418.40 g/mol
- Molecular formula: C15H26N6O8
Published Research
[The peptide correction of neurotic disorders among professional truck-drivers]
Bashkireva AS et al. · Advances in gerontology = Uspekhi gerontologii · 2012 · Clinical
PMID 23734521 — View on PubMed