Introduction
GHK, a glycyl-L-histidyl-L-lysine complex, is a naturally occurring
human tripeptide isolated from human plasma but is also present in
saliva and urine. It has a high a!nity for Copper(II) and so is present in
two forms, GHK and GHK-Cu (Figure 1a,1b) [1]. "e copper peptide,
GHK-Cu, was discovered by Loren Pickart in human plasma albumin
in 1973. "e potential role of this peptide in wound healing and tissue
regeneration was demonstrated in a study which showed that because
of the increased level of GHK-Cu in the plasma of younger adults
compared to older adults, livers from older patients transplanted into
younger patients began to function in the same way as younger liver
tissue. "is was attributed to GHK-Cu having the ability to modulate
copper intake into cells [2,3].
"e copper peptide GHK-Cu has a number of biological functions
in humans, including stimulation of wound healing, nerve regeneration
and potential hair growth [2]. "e diversity of its actions in human is
attributed to its ability to modulate the rmStringexpression of a number of genes