Tissue repair

BPC-157

Reviewed 22 October 2026 · How we research

Also known as: BPC 157, BPC157, Body Protection Compound-157, PL 14736

What is BPC-157?

BPC-157 stands for “Body Protection Compound-157”. It is a 15-amino-acid peptide whose sequence comes from a larger protein in human stomach juice. Almost all of the research comes from one group at the University of Zagreb, led by Predrag Sikirić, who have published more than a hundred animal studies since the early 1990s.

In rats and mice it has been reported to speed healing of tendons, ligaments, muscle, bone and the gut lining, and to protect against a wide range of injuries. That breadth is why it is one of the most searched peptides in the UK — and also why researchers urge caution: human evidence is almost non-existent.

How BPC-157 works

No single receptor has been identified. Animal and cell studies point to several mechanisms:

• Angiogenesis — upregulation of VEGFR2 and the nitric-oxide pathway, improving blood supply to injured tissue.
• Growth hormone receptor expression in tendon fibroblasts, increasing their response to growth signals.
• FAK–paxillin signalling, which drives fibroblast migration and spreading into wounds.
• Interaction with the nitric-oxide system that may explain its gut-protective and blood-pressure effects in rodents.

It is unusually stable in gastric juice, which is why rodent studies often gave it in drinking water.

What the research shows

• Rat tendon, ligament and muscle injury models: faster functional, biomechanical and histological recovery than controls.
• Gut models: protection against NSAID- and alcohol-induced lesions, and improved healing of fistulas and anastomoses in rats.
• A 2019 review concluded the musculoskeletal evidence is promising but almost entirely preclinical.
• Human data are limited to small uncontrolled reports and a short safety pilot; no randomised controlled efficacy trial has been published. An early ulcerative-colitis programme (PL 14736) did not reach later-phase results.

Compare: BPC-157 vs TB-500

BPC-157 side effects

Rodent toxicology studies reported no lethal dose and no obvious organ toxicity. That does not establish human safety. Specific concerns researchers raise:

• Its pro-angiogenic action could, in theory, support the blood supply of existing tumours — untested in humans.
• Reports from users include injection-site reactions, nausea, dizziness and changes in blood pressure.
• Unregulated products may be under-dosed, contaminated or mislabelled; independent tests of online BPC-157 have found significant variation.

UK legal status

BPC-157 is not licensed as a medicine in the UK or any other major market. It can be sold as a research chemical but not for human consumption. In the US the FDA placed it in Category 2 of bulk substances (significant safety concerns) in 2023, stopping compounding pharmacies from using it. WADA prohibits it at all times.

More detail, including current UK research-vial prices: BPC-157 UK guide. For the doses used in published studies and the reconstitution maths: BPC-157 dosing in the literature.

References

1. Gwyer D, Wragg NM, Wilson SL. Gastric pentadecapeptide body protection compound BPC 157 and its role in accelerating musculoskeletal soft tissue healing. Cell Tissue Res. 2019;377:153–159.
2. Chang CH, et al. The promoting effect of pentadecapeptide BPC 157 on tendon healing involves tendon outgrowth, cell survival, and cell migration. J Appl Physiol. 2011;110:774–780.
3. Seiwerth S, et al. BPC 157 and standard angiogenic growth factors. Gastrointestinal tract healing, lessons from tendon, ligament, muscle and bone healing. Curr Pharm Des. 2018;24:1972–1989.