Ipamorelin references and reading list
The original studies sit below alongside related-compound papers and broader reviews.
The bowel-resection paper
The bowel-resection trial anchors my doubts about claims of patient benefit. The original selectivity study and healthy-volunteer pharmacokinetic study explain why the molecule attracted attention in the first place.
For the less cooperative body-composition story, pair the mouse fat and leptin study with the cisplatin study in ferrets. Their aims and outcomes differ. The cardiovascular toxicology paper concerns a different ghrelin-receptor agonist, and the sermorelin commentary concerns another compound too.
The complete source list follows.
- Raun K, Hansen BS, Johansen NL, Thogersen H, Madsen K, Ankersen M, Andersen PH. Ipamorelin, the first selective growth hormone secretagogue. Eur J Endocrinol. 1998;139(5):552-561. ↗
- Gobburu JV, Agerso H, Jusko WJ, Ynddal L. Pharmacokinetic-pharmacodynamic modeling of ipamorelin, a growth hormone releasing peptide, in human volunteers. Pharm Res. 1999;16(9):1412-1416. ↗
- Beck DE, Sweeney WB, McCarter MD; Ipamorelin 201 Study Group. Prospective, randomized, controlled, proof-of-concept study of the ghrelin mimetic ipamorelin for the management of postoperative ileus in bowel resection patients. Int J Colorectal Dis. 2014;29(12):1527-1534. ↗
- Johansen PB, Nowak J, Skjaerbaek C, Flyvbjerg A, Andreassen TT, Wilken M, Orskov H. Ipamorelin, a new growth-hormone-releasing peptide, induces longitudinal bone growth in rats. Growth Horm IGF Res. 1999;9(2):106-113. ↗
- Lu Z, Ngan MP, Liu JYH, Yang L, Tu L, Chan SW, Giuliano C, Lovati E, Pietra C, Rudd JA. The growth hormone secretagogue receptor 1a agonists, anamorelin and ipamorelin, inhibit cisplatin-induced weight loss in ferrets: Anamorelin also exhibits anti-emetic effects via a central mechanism. Physiol Behav. 2024;284:114644. ↗
- Stokes AH, Falls JG, Yoon L, Cariello N, Faiola B, Colton HM, Jordan HL, Berridge BR. Integrated approach to early detection of cardiovascular toxicity induced by a ghrelin receptor agonist. Int J Toxicol. 2015;34(2):151-161. ↗
- Hansen BS, et al. Pharmacological characterisation of a new oral GH secretagogue, NN703. Eur J Endocrinol. 1999;141:180-189. ↗
- Johansen PB, et al. Growth hormone (GH) hypersecretion and GH receptor resistance in streptozotocin diabetic mice in response to a GH secretagogue. Exp Diabesity Res. 2003;4:73-81. ↗
- Walker RF. Sermorelin: a better approach to management of adult-onset growth hormone insufficiency? Clin Interv Aging. 2006;1(4):307-308. ↗
- Renke G, et al. Therapeutic Peptides in Aesthetic, Metabolic and Endocrine Conditions: Effects, Safety, Clinical Applications, and Future Perspectives. Int J Mol Sci. 2026;27:3890. ↗
- Villegas Meza AD, et al. Injectable Peptides in Sports Medicine: A Structured Narrative Review of Evidence, Safety, and Antidoping Implications. JBJS Rev. 2026;14. ↗
- Adeghate E, Ponery AS. Mechanism of ipamorelin-evoked insulin release from the pancreas of normal and diabetic rats. Neuro Endocrinol Lett. 2004;25(6):403-406. ↗
- Lall S, Tung LY, Ohlsson C, Jansson JO, Dickson SL. Growth hormone (GH)-independent stimulation of adiposity by GH secretagogues. Biochem Biophys Res Commun. 2001;280(1):132-138. ↗
- Lawrence CB, Snape AC, Baudoin FM, Luckman SM. Acute central ghrelin and GH secretagogues induce feeding and activate brain appetite centers. Endocrinology. 2002;143(1):155-162. ↗