Cardiogen Research: The Ala-Glu-Asp-Arg Tetrapeptide and Its Thin Literature
Cardiogen is a tetrapeptide of the Khavinson short-peptide family whose name points at the heart and whose published record does not. Two rodent studies were located; its cardiac designation traces to a patent rather than to a paper. This page is short because the literature is, and it says so rather than padding. Family context is on the peptide bioregulator overview.
What is Cardiogen?
What is Cardiogen? A synthetic tetrapeptide, Ala-Glu-Asp-Arg (AEDR). It shares the Ala-Glu-Asp core with Epitalon (AEDG), Cortagen (AEDP) and Bronchogen (AEDL), and the arginine at position four makes it the most basic of the set.
The name is the thing to be careful with. “Cardiogen” is a designation assigned by the developers, and the 2022 family review cites it not to a physiological study but to US Patent 7,662,789, “Peptide Substance Restoring Myocardium Function”. A patent records what its applicants claimed and how the substance is made. It is not peer review, and it is not evidence that the substance does what its title says. Several designations in this family rest on patents in the same way, as the overview page sets out.
Reference data
Identity and form only, from the public chemical record for the all-L Ala-Glu-Asp-Arg tetrapeptide (PubChem CID 11583989). No PubChem record carries “Cardiogen” as a listed synonym — note that a PubChem name search for “Cardiogen” returns L-carnitine, an entirely different compound, which is a live trap for anyone compiling reference data by name lookup.
| Property | Value |
|---|---|
| Peptide class | Tetrapeptide (4 residues) |
| Sequence | Ala-Glu-Asp-Arg (AEDR) |
| Molecular formula | C₁₈H₃₁N₇O₉ |
| Molecular weight | ≈ 489.5 g/mol |
| Physical form | Lyophilized powder |
| Storage | Kept cold and dry as supplied; protected from light |
A CAS number for this sequence could not be sourced from an authoritative record and is therefore omitted rather than guessed. No handling quantity, reconstitution procedure or route is given or implied.
What the literature has examined
- Organotypic myocardium explant culture — Chalisova et al. (2009, Adv Gerontol, PMID 20210190, Russian-language) examined cell proliferation and p53 expression in myocardium explants from 3- and 24-month-old rats, alongside twenty individual amino acids, at a concentration of 10−12 M. Note what this is: tissue removed from the animal and cultured, not a heart working in a living rat.
- Transplanted sarcoma in aged rats — Levdik & Knyazkin (2009, Bull Exp Biol Med, PMID 20396706) examined M-1 sarcoma growth in senescent rats, reporting dose-dependent inhibition attributed by the authors to haemorrhagic necrosis and tumour-cell apoptosis rather than a direct cytostatic effect, with a mechanism they describe as acting through the tumour vasculature. This is an oncology model, not a cardiac one.
- Tissue-specificity screen — Zakutskii et al. (2006, Adv Gerontol, PMID 17152728, Russian-language) examined cardiogen alongside bronchogen, prostamax and pancragen in organotypic explant cultures of heart, lung, prostate and pancreas at 0.05 ng/ml.
- Histone binding — Fedoreyeva et al. (2013, Biochemistry (Mosc), PMID 23581987) included Ala-Glu-Asp-Arg among the short peptides whose binding to fluorescein-labelled wheat histones H1, H2B, H3 and H4 was measured by fluorescence quenching. A biophysical measurement, not a biological one.
Evidence status — what is not established
Stated plainly: the published record on Cardiogen consists of two rodent studies, one screening paper and one biophysical measurement, all from the originating institutional network, most in Russian-language journals where only an English abstract is indexed. No study located examined cardiac function in a living animal. No human study exists in indexed sources. No independent replication was found.
The gap between the name and the record is the most useful thing this page can tell a reader. A compound called Cardiogen, sold on the strength of a cardiac-sounding designation, has essentially no cardiac literature — its most substantive published result is in a sarcoma model. Nothing on this page is a claim about what this compound does in a person, and material is supplied for laboratory research use only.
How to verify this compound yourself
Mass spectrometry should confirm the measured mass against the expected ≈ 490 Da, which separates AEDR from its Ala-Glu-Asp relatives — Cortagen (AEDP, ≈ 430 Da), Bronchogen (AEDL, ≈ 446 Da) and Cartalax (AED, ≈ 333 Da). HPLC purity is reported as a percentage. Because arginine makes this sequence strongly basic, the counter-ion and net-peptide-content lines on a certificate are worth reading here. See how to read a COA and how to verify peptide purity, and check a specific batch on the verify tool.
Research-grade sourcing and verification
Cardiogen is not held in stock. It is listed on our sourcing catalogue as available to order — our supplier lists it, we have not bought it, and material of this kind typically takes about two to three weeks to reach us. For laboratory research use only, it is supplied with a per-batch Certificate of Analysis reporting HPLC purity (%) and mass-spec identity confirmation. Related pages: the bioregulator overview, Bronchogen, Cortagen and Cartalax. This is sourcing and quality-assurance framing only.
Verify a batch
Every order ships with a per-batch Certificate of Analysis. Have a vial in hand? Enter its lot number to look up the COA for that exact batch.
Frequently asked questions
What is Cardiogen?
Where does the "cardioprotector" designation come from?
What did the Cardiogen studies actually measure?
Is Cardiogen established for anything?
Literature cited
- Chalisova NI, Lesniak VV, Balykina NA, et al. “The effect of the amino acids and cardiogen on the development of myocard tissue culture from young and old rats.” Adv Gerontol. 2009;22(3):409–413. PMID 20210190. pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/20210190 (Russian-language; English abstract only).
- Levdik NV, Knyazkin IV. “Tumor-modifying effect of cardiogen peptide on M-1 sarcoma in senescent rats.” Bull Exp Biol Med. 2009;148(3):433–436. PMID 20396706. pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/20396706.
- Zakutskii AN, Chalisova NI, Ryzhak GA. “The tissue-specific effect of synthetic peptides-biologic regulators in organotypic tissues culture in young and old rats.” Adv Gerontol. 2006;19:93–96. PMID 17152728. pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/17152728 (Russian-language; English abstract only).
- Fedoreyeva LI, Smirnova TA, Kolomijtseva GY, Khavinson VKh, Vanyushin BF. “Interaction of short peptides with FITC-labeled wheat histones and their complexes with deoxyribooligonucleotides.” Biochemistry (Mosc). 2013;78(2):166–175. PMID 23581987. pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/23581987.
- Khavinson V, Linkova N, Kozhevnikova E, et al. “Transport of Biologically Active Ultrashort Peptides Using POT and LAT Carriers.” Int J Mol Sci. 2022;23(14):7733. PMID 35887081. pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/35887081 (family sequence table; cites the cardiac designation to US Patent 7,662,789).
- National Center for Biotechnology Information. “PubChem Compound Summary for CID 11583989, Ala-Glu-Asp-Arg.” pubchem.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/compound/11583989 (formula, mass).
RESEARCH USE ONLY — NOT FOR HUMAN CONSUMPTION. All products are sold strictly for in-vitro laboratory research and are not intended for human or veterinary use, ingestion, or administration. Nothing on this page is a medical or efficacy claim. You must be 21 or older to browse this catalog.