AOD-9604Dosage, Side Effects & Legal Status
AOD-9604 is a fragment of the C-terminal region of human growth hormone, engineered to keep GH's fat-burning (lipolytic) effect without triggering the blood sugar and IGF-1 effects of full-length GH. It has real human trial history, six published studies and over 900 subjects, but the pivotal Phase IIb trial for weight loss missed its primary efficacy endpoint against placebo, and Metabolic Pharmaceuticals discontinued development in 2007.
Reviewed by the PepGuard team · Last reviewed Jul 28, 2026
Synthetic 16-amino-acid fragment of human growth hormone (residues 177-191), with an added N-terminal tyrosine · also sold as Tyr-hGH Fragment 177-191, Anti-Obesity Drug 9604
Photo: Abdulai Sayni / UnsplashWhat the literature and self-reports actually say.
| What's cited | Range |
|---|---|
| Commonly cited daily range | 250-500 mcg, once daily, subcutaneous |
| Commonly cited upper range | up to 1,000 mcg/day in some protocols |
| Phase IIb clinical trial dose (weight loss) | 1 mg/day, 12-24 weeks |
| Typical cited cycle length | 12-24 weeks |
There is no FDA-approved or clinically validated self-administration dose. The ranges below reflect what's most frequently cited in non-clinical, anecdotal, and vendor-reported protocols, not a recommendation. The Phase IIb trial that produced the only meaningful clinical outcome data used a fixed, researcher-supervised dose, not self-administered dosing.
Signal strength, not just a list.
How often each effect shows up in the available sources, and how solid that evidence actually is.
| Signal | Frequency | Context |
|---|---|---|
| Headache | commonly reported | Reported in clinical trials, but at rates similar to placebo. |
| GI symptoms (nausea, diarrhea, flatulence, increased appetite) | commonly reported | Occurred at rates similar to placebo across the published trials; no discontinuations for tolerability were reported in any of them. |
| Injection site reaction | occasionally reported | General to subcutaneous injection, not specific to AOD-9604's mechanism. |
| Effects beyond 24 weeks | unknown / not studied | No published human trial has followed subjects for longer than 24 weeks. |
Not FDA-approved. Unapproved research compound.
AOD-9604 has never been approved by the FDA for any human use; its own development program for obesity was discontinued in 2007 after the Phase IIb trial missed its primary endpoint. In the US it sat on the FDA's 503A Category 2 compounding-restricted list starting in 2023, was pulled from nomination on September 27, 2024, but the Pharmacy Compounding Advisory Committee voted against including it on the permanent list on December 4, 2024, citing insufficient human safety data. It wasn't part of the 12 peptides the FDA removed from Category 2 in April 2026, and is reportedly one of the peptides slated for the committee's next review around July 23-24, 2026, about three weeks from now as of this writing. Treat any current legal-status claim as time-stamped, not permanent.
Every claim above, traced back.
Primary studies, reviews, regulatory pages, and trial registries. Click through and check them yourself.
AOD-9604 questions, answered.
No. It was developed by Metabolic Pharmaceuticals as an anti-obesity drug, but its Phase IIb weight-loss trial missed its primary efficacy endpoint against placebo and development was discontinued in 2007. It's sold today only as an unapproved research chemical, not as a drug.
The evidence is mixed. Early studies showed it stimulates lipolysis (fat breakdown) without the blood sugar and IGF-1 effects of full growth hormone, and its safety profile held up across 900+ trial subjects. But the pivotal randomized trial for weight loss did not reach statistical significance against placebo, which is why its original development program was shelved.
They're frequently sold interchangeably but aren't identical. AOD-9604 covers residues 177-191 of human growth hormone with an added N-terminal tyrosine; "HGH Fragment 176-191" refers to a different residue range without that modification. Vendors don't always make this distinction clear, so don't assume research on one automatically applies to the other.
It's sold in the US as a research chemical, not as a supplement or approved drug. Its status on the FDA's compounding bulk-substance list has moved back and forth since 2023, so check current status before assuming an older claim still holds.
Keep researching.
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