Short-peptide research

Pancragen Research: The Lys-Glu-Asp-Trp Tetrapeptide and Its Literature

Pancragen is the KEDW tetrapeptide of the Khavinson short-peptide family, and it is the only member for which a non-human primate study was located. That makes its record slightly deeper than most of its siblings — and still short of anything established. This is a deliberately concise page; the family’s evidence problems are set out in full on the peptide bioregulator overview.

RESEARCH USE ONLY. Cellworks supplies compounds strictly for in-vitro laboratory research. Nothing on this page is a medical, efficacy, or dosing claim, and no product is for human or veterinary use.

Reviewed by Jason Fleming — Biochemistry consultant, Nanyang Technological University, Singapore.Last reviewed: 2026-07-22

What is Pancragen?

What is Pancragen? A synthetic tetrapeptide — four amino acids, Lys-Glu-Asp-Trp, written KEDW. It shares the Lys-Glu-Asp N-terminus of Vesugen and Prostamax, and the tryptophan at position four makes it the heaviest and most hydrophobic of the three.

One detail is worth recording because it is frequently lost in secondary sources: the C-terminus. The 2022 review from the originating group tabulates the compound as KEDW-NH₂, the amidated form, and a 2010 study is titled for “Lys-Glu-Asp-Trp-NH₂”, while other papers write the free acid. Amidation changes the molecular mass by about one dalton and is a real analytical distinction, so a certificate should be read for which form it describes.

Reference data

Identity and form only, from the public chemical record for the all-L Lys-Glu-Asp-Trp tetrapeptide, free acid (PubChem CID 68452877). No PubChem record carries “Pancragen” as a listed synonym; the sequence link is made from the primary literature cited below.

Property	Value
Peptide class	Tetrapeptide (4 residues)
Sequence	Lys-Glu-Asp-Trp (KEDW)
C-terminal form	Free acid and amide (KEDW-NH₂) both appear in the literature
Molecular formula (free acid)	C₂₆H₃₆N₆O₉
Molecular weight (free acid)	≈ 576.6 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

Non-human primates — Goncharova et al. (2014, Adv Gerontol, PMID 25946840; and 2015, PMID 28509500) examined glucose “disappearance” rate and plasma insulin and C-peptide dynamics after a standard glucose load in old female rhesus monkeys, comparing them with young animals. The 2014 paper reports that part of the difference from baseline persisted three weeks after administration stopped. Both papers list Khavinson as a co-author.
Rodent model of induced diabetes — Khavinson et al. (2007, Bull Exp Biol Med, PMID 18642713) examined blood glucose, capillary permeability and adhesion in rats with experimentally induced diabetes mellitus.
Differentiation transcription factors in culture — Khavinson et al. (2013, Bull Exp Biol Med, PMID 23486591) examined expression of acinar and islet differentiation factors (Pdx1, Ptf1a, Pax4, Pax6, Foxa2, Nkx2.2) in young and aged pancreatic cell cultures. A companion paper (2012, PMID 22808515) examined CXCL12 and Hoxa3 in human embryonic pancreatic cells, reporting the effect as tissue-specific relative to Bronchogen and Vesugen in their own target cultures.
Molecular characterisation — Khavinson et al. (2010, Bull Exp Biol Med, PMID 21246099) reports on the biological activity of the amidated Lys-Glu-Asp-Trp-NH₂ tetrapeptide.
Human report — Korkushko, Khavinson, Shatilo et al. (2011, Bull Exp Biol Med, PMID 22448364) examined 30 healthy older people and 33 older patients with type 2 diabetes, reporting differences in fasting glucose, glucose-tolerance-test values, plasma insulin and an insulin-resistance index in those receiving the peptide compared with those who did not. The report does not describe randomisation or blinding.

Evidence status — what is not established

The primate work is genuinely the strongest single piece of evidence anywhere in this family, and it should still be read for what it is: two reports, from one laboratory, with the compound’s developer as a co-author, in Russian-language journals, in small numbers of aged animals, without independent replication.

The human report is a small non-randomised, non-blinded comparison in a metabolically defined population. Studies of that design cannot separate an effect of the compound from expectation, regression to the mean or observer bias, and the paper is a report of what investigators measured rather than a demonstration of efficacy.

What is not established: any approved or demonstrated therapeutic use — there is none, for any condition; the mechanism, which rests on the family-wide peptide–DNA hypothesis discussed on the overview page; and independent replication of any finding above. 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 does two jobs here. It separates KEDW (≈ 577 Da) from the other Lys-Glu-Asp compounds — Vesugen (KED, ≈ 390 Da) and Prostamax (KEDP, ≈ 488 Da) — and it distinguishes the free acid from the amidated form, which differ by roughly one dalton. HPLC purity is reported as a percentage. 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

Pancragen 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, Vesugen, Prostamax and Bronchogen. This is sourcing and quality-assurance framing only.

Peptide bioregulators overview Sourcing catalogue

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.

Verify a batch →How to read a COA

Frequently asked questions

What is Pancragen?

Pancragen is a synthetic tetrapeptide with the sequence Lys-Glu-Asp-Trp (KEDW). It is one of the short "peptide bioregulators" from V. Kh. Khavinson's group at the St Petersburg Institute of Bioregulation and Gerontology. A 2022 review from that group tabulates it in the C-terminally amidated form, KEDW-NH2, and a 2010 study is titled for the Lys-Glu-Asp-Trp-NH2 tetrapeptide — so the amide form appears in the literature alongside the free acid.

What did the Pancragen studies actually measure?

Glucose disappearance rate and plasma insulin and C-peptide dynamics after a glucose load in old female rhesus monkeys; blood glucose, capillary permeability and adhesion in rats with experimentally induced diabetes; expression of pancreatic differentiation transcription factors (Pdx1, Ptf1a, Pax4, Pax6, Foxa2, Nkx2.2) in ageing cell culture; and, in one small unblinded human report, fasting glucose and insulin-resistance indices.

Does Pancragen have primate data?

Yes, and it is the only compound in this family for which a non-human primate study was located. Goncharova and colleagues at the Research Institute of Medical Primatology reported work in old female rhesus monkeys in 2014 and 2015, with Khavinson as a co-author on both.

Is Pancragen established for anything?

No. There is no approved indication, no independently replicated trial, and no controlled human study located in indexed sources. The single human report is small, open-label and from the originating institutional network. Material is supplied for laboratory research use only.

Literature cited

Goncharova ND, Ivanova LG, Oganian TÉ, Vengerin AA, Khavinson VKh. “Impact of tetrapeptide pancragen on endocrine function of the pancreas in old monkeys.” Adv Gerontol. 2014;27(4):662–667. PMID 25946840. pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/25946840 (Russian-language; English abstract only).
Goncharova ND, Ivanova LG, Oganyan TE, Vengerin AA, Khavinson VK. “Correction of impaired glucose tolerance using tetrapeptide (Pancragen) in old female rhesus monkeys.” Adv Gerontol. 2015;28(3):579–585. PMID 28509500. pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/28509500.
Khavinson VKh, Durnova AO, Polyakova VO, et al. “Effects of pancragen on the differentiation of pancreatic cells during their ageing.” Bull Exp Biol Med. 2013;154(4):501–504. PMID 23486591. pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/23486591.
Khavinson VKh, Gavrisheva NA, Malinin VV, et al. “Effect of pancragen on blood glucose level, capillary permeability and adhesion in rats with experimental diabetes mellitus.” Bull Exp Biol Med. 2007;144(4):559–562. PMID 18642713. pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/18642713.
Khavinson VKh, Gapparov MM, Sharanova NE, et al. “Study of biological activity of Lys-Glu-Asp-Trp-NH₂ endogenous tetrapeptide.” Bull Exp Biol Med. 2010;149(3):351–353. PMID 21246099. pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/21246099.
Korkushko OV, Khavinson VKh, Shatilo VB, et al. “Prospects of using pancragen for correction of metabolic disorders in elderly people.” Bull Exp Biol Med. 2011;151(4):454–456. PMID 22448364. pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/22448364 (small, non-randomised, non-blinded).
Khavinson VKh, Linkova NS, Polyakova VO, et al. “Peptides tissue-specifically stimulate cell differentiation during their aging.” Bull Exp Biol Med. 2012;153(1):148–151. PMID 22808515. pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/22808515 (names pancragen = Lys-Glu-Asp-Trp).
National Center for Biotechnology Information. “PubChem Compound Summary for CID 68452877, Lys-Glu-Asp-Trp.” pubchem.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/compound/68452877 (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.