Sermorelin is GHRH(1-29), the active fragment of growth-hormone-releasing hormone, and it prompts the pituitary to release its own GH pulse rather than supplying GH from outside. It has an unusual regulatory history: it was FDA-approved as Geref for pediatric GH deficiency and GH-axis testing before its 2008 discontinuation, and is now compounded off-label for adults. Because the pulse stays under normal somatostatin feedback, overshoot is uncommon.
- It was FDA-approved as Geref for pediatric GH deficiency and GH-axis testing until its 2008 discontinuation; it is now compounded off-label for adults.PubMed (sermorelin)
- It binds pituitary GHRH receptors and triggers a physiological GH pulse that stays regulated by the body's own somatostatin feedback loop.PubMed (sermorelin)
- A very short half-life of roughly 10-20 minutes keeps the signal pulsatile rather than sustained.PubMed (sermorelin)
- The largest natural GH pulse occurs during deep sleep, and carbohydrate and fat intake blunt it.thepeptidereport
- Span 2000 found females produce roughly 3x the GH of males yet reach similar IGF-1, so GH-axis response differs by sex.Span 2000