Reviewed & approved by Dr. Nova Reyes · Last checked 2026-10-15. ← Back to Evidence Library
Kisspeptin-10: what the evidence says
At a glance
What it is: the shortest active piece (10 amino acids) of kisspeptin, a natural brain hormone that switches on GnRH, the signal that tells the pituitary to release LH and FSH, which in turn drive testosterone, sperm and ovulation. Researchers use it in hormone studies. Gray-market "kisspeptin-10" vials are sold for raising testosterone, libido and fertility, often as "research use only." R1, R2
What the evidence says: small hormone studies (4 to 15 people per study) show kisspeptin-10 raises LH and testosterone in healthy men for hours to days. A higher hormone level isn't a health benefit. In women it worked only around ovulation, not early in the cycle. No study has tested whether it improves libido, fertility, muscle, energy or any other health outcome. R1–R3
Biggest risks: FDA flags possible immune reactions and impurity problems for compounded versions and says it lacks safety information. The published studies give little safety detail. Caution [UNVERIFIED: adverse events in the full study reports not checked] Long-term effects on the body's own hormone system are unknown. R8
| Claim | Rating |
|---|---|
| Human Raising LH and testosterone in healthy men (gray-market "testosterone boost") | Very limited: a few small studies (up to 15 men), hours to 12 days; hormone levels only, not a health benefit R1, R3 |
| Human Raising LH in women | Very limited (mixed results): no effect early in the cycle; an effect around ovulation; 4–5 women per group R2 |
| Unknown Libido, sexual function, fertility, muscle or energy (gray-market uses) | No human data (nothing at all in human trials of kisspeptin-10). Studies of a longer form, kisspeptin-54, don't transfer |
| Animal Animal evidence | Many rodent, fish and cell studies; not reviewed in detail for this page |
| Regulatory | Never approved anywhere · 503A: Category 2 (significant safety risks, since Sept 29, 2023) · 503B: not nominated · WADA 2026: banned at all times for men (S2.2.1, named: "kisspeptin and its agonist analogues") R7–R10 |
| Established human dose | Unknown None |
Evidence verdict: Raising LH and testosterone in men: Very limited · Raising LH in women: Very limited (mixed results) · Libido, fertility, muscle and energy: No human data (nothing at all) Card verdict: Very limited (short-term LH & testosterone rise in lab studies) · Libido, fertility, muscle, energy: No human data Card note: Varies by use, see page
This page reports what studies used. It is not dosing advice.
Legend: HUMAN data · ANIMAL / LAB data · UNKNOWN · UNVERIFIED: not yet confirmed against a primary source
What "No human data" means here: for libido, sexual function, fertility, muscle or energy, we found nothing at all in human trials of kisspeptin-10.
What is it?
The body makes kisspeptin as a longer protein that is cut into pieces of different lengths (54, 14, 13 and 10 amino acids). Kisspeptin-10 is the shortest piece that still fully activates the kisspeptin receptor. Most clinical research, including fertility (IVF) and libido studies, has used the longer kisspeptin-54, which lasts longer in the body. Those results are not results for kisspeptin-10. R1, R4, R5
A higher LH or testosterone number is a lab change, not a health benefit. Whether it makes people feel, function or conceive better has not been tested for kisspeptin-10.
Does it work?
Human Hormones in healthy men: - George 2011 (Edinburgh): IV doses in healthy men raised LH within 30 minutes. The highest dose gave a smaller response than the middle one. A 22.5-hour infusion raised testosterone from 16.6 to 24.0 nmol/L (4 men). R1 - Jayasena 2011 (Imperial College London): IV doses raised LH and FSH in men. R2 - Yeung 2026 (Imperial College London): a randomized, single-blind, placebo-controlled study. 15 healthy men received kisspeptin-10 across three parts (7, 4 and 7 men; some took part in more than one part), and 12 men served as placebo (vehicle) controls. Infusions under the skin raised LH, FSH and testosterone. With continuous infusion over 5 days, testosterone stayed up but LH and FSH fell back to placebo levels. With infusions given for part of each day over 12 days, the rises held. R3
Human Hormones in healthy women: in the early (follicular) phase of the menstrual cycle, kisspeptin-10 by IV, injection or infusion did not change LH or FSH, even at the highest doses. Around ovulation, an IV dose did raise them. R2
Unknown Libido, fertility, muscle, energy: no kisspeptin-10 trial. Kisspeptin-54 has been studied as an IVF trigger and in small brain-imaging and libido studies by the Imperial group; those are a different molecule and are not rated here. R4, R5
Who paid / conflicts: the human studies come from university groups (Edinburgh, Imperial College London). In Yeung 2026, two authors declared consulting work for Myovant Sciences (and one also for AbCellera and KaNDy Therapeutics) "outside the submitted work." Funders listed on PubMed: George 2011, UK Medical Research Council and US National Institute on Aging; Jayasena 2011, MRC, BBSRC, UK Department of Health and Wellcome Trust; Yeung 2026, NIHR and MRC. R1–R3
Is it safe?
- Human In studies: the abstracts we read do not report adverse events (problems reported after use, which may or may not have been caused by the drug). Caution [UNVERIFIED: adverse events, dropouts vs placebo] R1–R3
- Human Hormone system: continuous infusion for 5 days let LH and FSH fall back to normal while it continued. That is a sign the system can stop responding to constant exposure. R3 What this means for repeated gray-market use is unknown.
- FDA: says compounded kisspeptin-10 "may pose risk for immunogenicity" (immune reactions against the drug) for certain routes, may have problems with peptide impurities, and that it has "no, or only limited, safety-related information." R8
- Dropouts vs placebo: not reported in the abstracts. UNVERIFIED
- Unknown No long-term, repeated-use or pregnancy safety data exist.
Is it legal?
- FDA: not approved. No Drugs@FDA entry. Caution [UNVERIFIED: searched openFDA by name only] R7
- Compounding (503A, the route for pharmacies preparing custom medicines for individual patients, with a prescription): in Category 2, "bulk drug substances that raise significant safety risks" (list updated May 14, 2026; risk entry dated Sept 29, 2023). Pharmacies may not compound it under 503A while it is in this category. R8, R9
- Compounding (503B): not on FDA's 503B nominations list (updated Mar 21, 2025). R10
- Athletes: WADA's 2026 list names "kisspeptin and its agonist analogues" under S2.2.1 (testosterone-stimulating peptides in males), banned at all times. For female athletes it isn't named under S2.2.1, but as an unapproved substance it would likely fall under S0. Unknown This is our reading, not a WADA ruling. R11
What's in the vial?
Gray-market "kisspeptin-10" vials have no quality control and no guarantee of identity, whatever "research use only" label they carry. It could contain the wrong compound, the wrong amount, impurities or bacterial toxins, or be fake (counterfeit). The study results above don't transfer to it. We test retail vials blind under the Open Peptide Standard. See results at /tests/. A passing test covers one batch, tested on one date. It does not mean the compound itself is safe.
What do users report?
Self-report, not evidence.
We haven't summarized user reports for this peptide yet.
Study details
R1–R3 Human Human studies
| Study | People | Route | Dose used (study arm, not a recommendation) | Follow-up | Reported | Limitations | Citation |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| George 2011 | Healthy men (n=4–6 per part), Edinburgh | IV bolus; IV infusion up to 22.5 h | 0.01–3.0 µg/kg bolus; 1.5 or 4 µg/kg/h infusion | Hours | LH 4.1→12.4 IU/L at 30 min (1 µg/kg); testosterone 16.6→24.0 nmol/L (4 µg/kg/h) | Tiny; hormones only; vehicle control | PMID 21632807 |
| Jayasena 2011 | Healthy men and women (4–5 per group), London | IV bolus; SC bolus; IV infusion (women) | Men from 0.3 nmol/kg; women up to 10 nmol/kg IV, 32 nmol/kg SC, 720 pmol/kg/min | Hours | Men: LH/FSH up; women follicular phase: no change; preovulatory: LH/FSH up | Tiny; hormones only | PMID 21976724 |
| Yeung 2026 | 15 healthy men given kisspeptin-10 (parts of 7, 4 and 7) + 12 placebo controls, London | SC infusion | Acute dose-response; 180 nmol/h continuous 5 d; 150 nmol/h for 8 h/day, 12 d | 12 d | LH, FSH, testosterone up; continuous: gonadotropins back to vehicle level | Single-blind; hormones only | PMID 42549827 |
R7–R11 Regulatory sources (as of Oct 15, 2026)
- R7 Drugs@FDA (openFDA, Oct 15, 2026): no match for kisspeptin.
- R8 FDA, "Certain bulk drug substances for use in compounding that may present significant safety risks" (Kisspeptin-10, 503A, Sept 29, 2023): https://www.fda.gov/drugs/human-drug-compounding/certain-bulk-drug-substances-use-compounding-may-present-significant-safety-risks
- R9 FDA 503A nominations list (May 14, 2026), Category 2: https://www.fda.gov/media/94155/download
- R10 FDA 503B nominations list (Mar 21, 2025): https://www.fda.gov/media/94164/download
- R11 WADA 2026 Prohibited List (S2.2.1): https://www.wada-ama.org/en/resources/world-anti-doping-code-and-international-standards/prohibited-list
Full reference list (PMIDs verified on PubMed, Oct 15, 2026)
- R1 George JT, et al. J Clin Endocrinol Metab. 2011;96(8):E1228-36. doi:10.1210/jc.2011-0089. PMID 21632807. Funded by MRC and NIA.
- R2 Jayasena CN, et al. J Clin Endocrinol Metab. 2011;96(12):E1963-72. doi:10.1210/jc.2011-1408. PMID 21976724. Funded by MRC, BBSRC, Department of Health and Wellcome Trust.
- R3 Yeung AC, et al. Eur J Endocrinol. 2026;195(2):206-16. doi:10.1093/ejendo/lvag134. PMID 42549827. Authors' consulting for Myovant, AbCellera and KaNDy declared as outside the submitted work. Funded by NIHR and MRC.
- R4 Mills EG, et al. EBioMedicine. 2025;115:105689. doi:10.1016/j.ebiom.2025.105689. PMID 40215751 (intranasal kisspeptin-54, not kisspeptin-10; Myovant/AbCellera/PostEra/KaNDy consulting declared outside the submitted work; funding Caution [UNVERIFIED: not listed on PubMed]).
- R5 Abbara A, et al. Neuroendocrinology. 2021. doi:10.1159/000513248. PMID 33227799 (kisspeptin-54 as a diagnostic test; not kisspeptin-10).
Disclaimer
This page is for education and harm reduction. It is not medical advice and not a recommendation to use kisspeptin-10. Please talk to a clinician you trust, especially if you are trying to conceive, have low testosterone, a hormone condition or are pregnant, or are a tested athlete. Seek care right away for a serious reaction, and report it to FDA MedWatch (https://www.fda.gov/safety/medwatch) or your national regulator.