AOD-9604

HGH Fragment 176-191

AOD-9604 is a chopped-up piece of growth hormone (amino acids 176-191) designed to target fat without the rest of HGH's effects. Rats lost fat on it. Humans didn't. Metabolic Pharmaceuticals ran a real Phase 2b with 536 people and it flopped — no difference from placebo. They killed it in 2007. It's safe enough (no IGF-1 spike, no blood sugar issues), it just doesn't do anything. Now that sema and tirz exist, running AOD is like bringing a flip phone to a product launch.

Protocol

Dose: 250-500mcg daily, taken fasted | Frequency: Once daily, morning on empty stomach | Cycle: 12-week cycles are common in the community. The clinical trial ran 24 weeks and still saw nothing. | Route: SubQ (abdominal injection, fasted)

Reconstitution: 2mL bacteriostatic water per 5mg vial. Use our free reconstitution calculator for exact syringe units.

Effects

• Fat metabolism (25%) — Supposed to increase fat oxidation. Worked in rats. Did not reach significance in the human trial.
• Weight loss (15%) — The Phase 2b trial result: no meaningful difference from placebo. That is the data.
• No IGF-1 elevation (70%) — One genuine positive — it does not raise IGF-1 or affect glucose. Safe, just not effective.

Side Effects

• Injection-site irritation (10%) — Little red spot where you pinned. Goes away fast. Standard stuff.
• Headache (5%) — Occasional mild headache. Nothing to write home about.
• Nausea (3%) — Barely any gut effects, which tracks with the whole 'it doesn't really do much of anything' situation.

Evidence

Early research — The Phase 2b trial in 536 obese adults failed its primary endpoint for weight loss versus placebo at 24 weeks. Development was terminated in 2007. Preclinical rodent data showed fat reduction, but it did not translate to humans at all. In 2026, GLP-1 drugs exist and make AOD-9604 look like bringing a water pistol to a firefight.

Approval status: Failed clinical trials. Development discontinued 2007.

References

1. Ng FM et al. Metabolic studies of a synthetic lipolytic domain (AOD9604) of human growth hormone Horm Res, 2000. PMID: 11146367
2. Heffernan MA et al. Increase of fat oxidation and weight loss in obese mice caused by chronic treatment with human growth hormone or a modified C-terminal fragment Int J Obes Relat Metab Disord, 2001. PMID: 11673763
3. Heffernan M et al. The effects of human GH and its lipolytic fragment (AOD9604) on lipid metabolism following chronic treatment in obese mice and beta(3)-AR knock-out mice Endocrinology, 2001. PMID: 11713213
4. Cox HD et al. Detection and in vitro metabolism of AOD9604 Drug Test Anal, 2015. PMID: 25208511
5. Kwon DR et al. Effect of Intra-articular Injection of AOD9604 with or without Hyaluronic Acid in Rabbit Osteoarthritis Model Ann Clin Lab Sci, 2015. PMID: 26275694

Storage

• Lyophilized: Refrigerate 2-8C or freeze -20C for long-term. Standard peptide storage.
• Reconstituted: Refrigerate at 2-8C. Use within 4-6 weeks. Do not freeze.
• Water: Bacteriostatic water. 2mL per 5mg vial.
• Needle: 30-31 gauge, 0.5 inch for SubQ

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These statements have not been evaluated by the FDA. This content is for educational purposes only and is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease. Consult a healthcare professional before starting any protocol.

vialprep research · Sources: PubMed, FDA, peer-reviewed trials · How we verify