CJC-1295 DAC vs no DAC: differences, evidence and safety
Answer first
CJC-1295 DAC and CJC-1295 without DAC share the same reworked core, copied from the hormone that releases growth hormone. The DAC form adds a hook that binds a blood protein, so it lasts days. Three small human studies exist for it. For the form without DAC, no study could be found. Neither is approved anywhere.
At a glance
How they work
Both substances are laboratory-made copies of the first 29 building blocks (amino acids) of growth hormone-releasing hormone. That is the brain signal that tells the pituitary gland to release growth hormone. In both, the same four building blocks were swapped to slow down the enzymes that would otherwise break the chain apart [1], [2], [3].
CJC-1295 DAC
- It has a 30th building block, a lysine carrying a small reactive group called a maleimide. That group is the Drug Affinity Complex, or DAC [1], [2].
- In the bloodstream the maleimide clips itself permanently onto albumin, the most common blood protein, at a site called cysteine 34. The company reported that at least 90 per cent of an injected dose binds this way [4].
- It docks onto the releasing hormone receptor in the pituitary gland. The gland releases growth hormone, and the liver responds by making more of the growth factor IGF-1. This was shown in cultured rat cells, in live rats and then in people [1], [4].
- It cannot replace growth hormone. It only prompts a pituitary gland that still works to release what it has stored [4], [5].
CJC-1295 without DAC
- It keeps the same 29 building blocks with the same four swaps, ends in a simple amide and has no hook. Sellers call it Mod GRF 1-29 [3], [6].
- The swaps were designed for durability rather than strength. They shield the chain from a blood enzyme and remove a site that degrades in storage. They also take out an easily oxidised building block [3], [7], [1].
- It should bind the same receptor and so raise growth hormone and then IGF-1. No binding study with this molecule could be found, so a 2026 review infers the effect from a study of the unmodified parent sequence [6].
The target is the same. The difference is the hook, and with it the time each molecule stays in the blood. The two are different chemicals, with 29 against 30 building blocks and 3,367.9 against 3,647.2 g/mol, and each has its own registry number [3], [2].
In healthy adults the DAC form had a half-life of 5.8 to 8.1 days after one dose. It was still measurable 10 to 14 days later [4]. The half-life is the time it takes for half of a dose to leave the blood.
For the form without DAC, no half-life measured in a person could be found. No published source could be found for the often-quoted figure of around 30 minutes [6]. The nearest human anchor covers one of its four swaps. In ten men, that swap alone lengthened the parent sequence's half-life from 4.3 to 6.7 minutes [7].
The name adds confusion. Scientific papers use CJC-1295 for the hooked form, while material sold under the name has proved to be the 29-building-block sequence [1], [8], [9].
What the studies show
No study that compares CJC-1295 DAC and CJC-1295 without DAC directly could be found in the published record reviewed for this page.
Laboratory method only The only place the two could be found side by side is anti-doping laboratory work. A 2021 study analysed sermorelin, tesamorelin and both forms of CJC-1295 in urine, keeping them apart. It identified 19 breakdown products for detection tests and measured no effect on the body [10].
What follows are the separate studies of each form. Every human study found under the name CJC-1295 used the DAC form [6], [11].
CJC-1295 DAC: growth hormone and IGF-1 after one dose
Phase 1 Forty-two healthy adults aged 21 to 61 took part, 35 on the drug and 7 on a dummy injection, across four dose levels. Growth hormone rose two- to tenfold for at least 6 days. IGF-1 rose 1.5- to threefold for 9 to 11 days [4].
CJC-1295 DAC: what repeated doses did
Phase 1 Twenty-four healthy adults received two or three injections a week or a fortnight apart, in a study lasting 49 days. Blood levels built up, and the peak after the day 14 injection sat 29 to 70 per cent above the first peak. The half-life here ran from 5.4 to 9.2 days [4].
IGF-1 stayed above its starting value until day 28 [4].
CJC-1295 DAC: the natural hormone pulses
Observational Healthy men aged 20 to 40 had growth hormone measured every 20 minutes across 12 night-time hours, before a single injection and a week later. The paper does not report how many men took part [5].
The pulses kept their frequency and height, but the floor between them rose. The baseline level went up 7.5-fold (P < 0.0001). The overall average rose by 46 per cent (P < 0.01) and IGF-1 by 45 per cent (P < 0.001) [5].
Sellers argue that leaving out the hook keeps growth hormone release in its natural rhythm. The only measurement found points the other way, because the pulses survived even under the long-acting DAC form [6], [5].
CJC-1295 DAC: the trial that was stopped
Phase 2 (terminated) One trial was designed to test a real health outcome, namely whether the substance reduces deep abdominal fat in people living with HIV. It compared a low dose, a high dose and a dummy injection over 12 weeks [11].
On 13 July 2006 a participant at a centre in Argentina received his eleventh weekly dose. Around two hours later he reported chest trouble, an electrocardiogram confirmed a heart attack, and he died about an hour after that [12].
The company stopped the trial and reported the death on 14 July 2006. No results were filed in the register, and no publication could be found. The register lists 120 participants, while the company statement mentions 192 [11], [12].
Whether the substance played any part is neither proven nor ruled out. The company stated there was no sign of heart toxicity in any earlier study. The treating doctor thought silent coronary disease the likeliest explanation [12].
CJC-1295 DAC: animal findings
Animal data In mice bred without any releasing hormone of their own, daily injections brought body weight and body length back to normal over 5 weeks [13].
Animal data In healthy mice, 24 injections over 8 weeks left the pituitary gland 47 per cent heavier than in 15 controls (P ≤ 0.001). In pituitary cells in the dish, a marker of damage to the genetic material rose. No human study that looked for either finding could be found [14].
CJC-1295 without DAC: no studies found
No evidence No published study of this form in people, in animals or in cells could be found, and no registered trial could be found either [6], [11]. A 2026 review places it in its lowest evidence grade, D, defined as having no peer-reviewed human studies [6].
PubMed returned 33 records for CJC-1295, none of which tests the form without DAC as a substance. Mod GRF 1-29 returned 0 records [15].
CJC-1295 without DAC: where it does appear
The form without DAC turns up in seized goods rather than in studies. A preparation examined for Norwegian police in 2009 held a 29-building-block peptide with an amide tail, which is this structure rather than the DAC form [9].
Danish customs material held versions of Mod GRF 1-29 with an extra building block, apparently designed to defeat laboratory tests [16].
None of the DAC figures transfers to the form without DAC, because they depend on the hook it lacks [6].
Doses used in the studies
The doses below are simply what the cited studies gave, listed so that the results can be understood. They are not advice on how to use anything.
| Study | Substance | Model | Dose | Route | Duration | Ref |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Teichman 2006, study 1 | CJC-1295 DAC | 42 healthy adults aged 21 to 61 | 30, 60, 125, 250 µg/kg | Under the skin | Single dose, followed for 28 days | [4] |
| Teichman 2006, study 2 | CJC-1295 DAC | 24 healthy adults | 20, 30, 60 µg/kg | Under the skin | Two or three doses, a week or a fortnight apart; study lasted 49 days | [4] |
| Ionescu 2006, pulse study | CJC-1295 DAC | Healthy men aged 20 to 40, number not published | 60 or 90 µg/kg | Under the skin | Single dose, measured a week later | [5] |
| NCT00267527, phase 2 | CJC-1295 DAC | Adults with HIV and deep abdominal fat | Not published, registry says only low and high | Not stated in the registry | Weekly, 12 weeks, stopped early | [11], [12] |
| Alba 2006 | CJC-1295 DAC | Mice bred without their own releasing hormone, one week old | 2 µg per animal | Injection, route not stated | Every 24, 48 or 72 hours for 5 weeks | [13] |
| Ben-Shlomo 2020, live animals | CJC-1295 DAC | Male mice, four months old, 16 treated against 15 controls | 10 µg/kg | Under the skin | Three times a week for 8 weeks, 24 injections | [14] |
| Ben-Shlomo 2020, cells | CJC-1295 DAC | Mouse pituitary cells in culture | 10 ng/ml | Added to the culture medium | Once, 16 hours | [14] |
For CJC-1295 without DAC, no study dose could be found, so the table has no row for it. The 2026 review found no reported route of administration either [6].
Safety
The two safety records differ mainly in how much is known. For the DAC form, two short studies counted side effects. For the form without DAC, no study that gave it to people under observation could be found, so no count of side effects could be found [4], [6].
CJC-1295 DAC, from the early-stage studies:
- Side effects were the rule. In the single-dose study 94 per cent of those on the drug reported at least one, 33 of 35. On the dummy injection it was 29 per cent, 2 of 7 [4].
- Injection-site reactions in about 70 per cent. They were stronger and longer at higher doses, with hardening lasting up to 5 days. None exceeded 10 centimetres across, and all faded on their own [4].
- Headache in 63 per cent, against 14 per cent on the dummy injection. Diarrhoea or loose stools affected 43 per cent [4].
- Flushing with a brief drop in blood pressure in 30 per cent. In the repeat-dose study it followed the dose closely. It affected 40 per cent after the low dose and 100 per cent after the high one [4].
- Reassuring findings with narrow limits. Blood values, liver function and the heart tracing showed no consistent changes. That covers at most three doses in 49 days [4].
- The death in the stopped trial. A causal link is neither proven nor ruled out. The trial register lists no later study [12], [11].
CJC-1295 without DAC, from what is on record:
- No side-effect profile could be found. That is an absence of data, not a clean safety record [6].
- Class effects are borrowed from neighbours. Reviewers list injection-site pain, brief flushing, nausea, dizziness, headache, rare allergic reactions and a temporary rise in prolactin. These come from sermorelin and tesamorelin data [6].
Both forms
- The American regulator names serious adverse events for CJC-1295, namely raised heart rate and a body-wide widening of blood vessels. It does not say which form was involved [17].
- A theoretical concern attaches to the class. Higher IGF-1 in the blood tracks with cancer risk in population studies. Reviewers call this theoretical and note no established clinical signal [6].
- Product quality is a documented problem. An analysis covered 6,441 samples of fourteen research peptides, CJC-1295 among them. Failure rates ran from 41.6 to 71.1 per cent depending on the standard applied, and 15 per cent held measurable bacterial toxin [18].
- Seized products carried altered structures, and a 2026 review notes that such products are often mislabelled or contaminated [16], [19].
No safety ranking is possible, because no study comparing the two could be found.
Legal status
Neither form is approved as a medicine in the United States, the European Union, Germany, the United Kingdom, Canada or Switzerland. The American regulator lists CJC-1295 among withdrawn compounding nominations, and its risk assessment remains published [17]. Australia names CJC-1295 in Schedule 4 and bans possession without authority. The legal text uses the registry number of the form without DAC, and a general item covers releasing hormones as a group [20]. Section S2.2.4 of the 2026 Prohibited List names CJC-1295 without separating the forms, so both are banned in sport at all times [21]. More on this is at peptides banned in sport. The monographs reflect the position on 7 September 2026.
Used together?
The blend directory under blends lists no product that combines CJC-1295 DAC with CJC-1295 without DAC. The DAC form appears in one entry, a two-part product with ipamorelin. The form without DAC appears in four, among them "CJC-1295 (No DAC) + Ipamorelin" and mixtures with GHRP-2 or tesamorelin. None of these entries describes an approved product.
No study of the two forms given together could be found in the CJC-1295 DAC or CJC-1295 monographs or in their sources.
No study of the pairings with ipamorelin could be found either. For the form without DAC, the combination appears in forum-derived reports, which a 2026 review labels as behavioural data rather than clinical recommendations. No interaction, kinetics or safety study of that pair could be found [6].
For the DAC form, reviewers found only a mouse experiment on muscle loss caused by steroids. They noted that the condition treated, the amounts and the duration all remain unknown [22].
Frequently asked questions
Which is better, CJC-1295 with DAC or without DAC?
Neither can be ranked, because no study comparing them could be found. In 42 healthy adults, one dose of the DAC form raised growth hormone two- to tenfold for at least 6 days. For the form without DAC, no measurement of any kind could be found, in people, animals or cells.
Is CJC-1295 DAC or CJC-1295 without DAC safer?
No study comparing their safety could be found, so no ranking is possible. In the DAC single-dose study, 94 per cent of those on the drug reported at least one side effect, against 29 per cent on a dummy injection. For the form without DAC no count of side effects could be found, which is an absence of data rather than a clean record.
What is the difference between CJC-1295 DAC and no DAC?
Both share the same 29-building-block core with four swaps. The DAC form adds a 30th building block, a hook that binds the blood protein albumin and keeps it circulating for days. The form without DAC has no hook and weighs 279.3 g/mol less. Every published human study found under the name used the DAC form.
What does DAC mean in CJC-1295 DAC?
DAC stands for Drug Affinity Complex. It is a small reactive group, a maleimide, on the last building block. In the bloodstream it clips itself permanently onto albumin, and the company reported that at least 90 per cent of a dose binds this way.
Is CJC-1295 without DAC the same as Mod GRF 1-29?
In shops, usually yes, and in journals, usually no. Sold product examined by forensic laboratories was the 29-building-block peptide without DAC. Since 2005 the scientific literature has used CJC-1295 for the hooked form. Any quoted figure needs checking against the molecule it describes.
How long do CJC-1295 DAC and no DAC last in the body?
The DAC form had a half-life of 5.8 to 8.1 days in healthy adults and stayed measurable for 10 to 14 days. For the form without DAC, no half-life measured in a person could be found. No published source could be found for the often-quoted figure of around 30 minutes.
Why was the CJC-1295 DAC trial stopped?
A participant in Argentina died of a heart attack on 13 July 2006, about two hours after his eleventh weekly dose. The company halted the trial. The register shows no results, and no publication of them could be found. Whether the substance played any part is neither proven nor ruled out.
Can CJC-1295 DAC and no DAC be taken together?
No study of the two forms given together could be found, so nothing is known about the effect or the safety of such a combination. The blend directory lists no product that contains both. Each form appears only in separate products, and no study of their pairings with ipamorelin could be found either.
Are CJC-1295 DAC and no DAC banned in sport?
Yes, both at all times, in competition and out of it. Section S2.2.4 of the 2026 Prohibited List names CJC-1295 among the releasing hormone copies and does not separate the two forms. It counts as a non-specified substance, the stricter of the two categories.
Sources
- Jetté L, Léger R, Thibaudeau K, Benquet C, Robitaille M, Pellerin I, Paradis V, van Wyk P et al. (2005). Human growth hormone-releasing factor (hGRF)1-29-albumin bioconjugates activate the GRF receptor on the anterior pituitary in rats: identification of CJC-1295 as a long-lasting GRF analog. Endocrinology 146(7):3052-3058. PMID 15817669. DOI 10.1210/en.2004-1286. First description, and the source of the definition "CJC-1295, a tetrasubstituted form of hGRF(1-29) with an added N epsilon-3-maleimidopropionamide derivative of lysine at the C terminus". Cultured rat pituitary cells and Sprague-Dawley rats.
- PubChem. Compound CID 91971820, CJC-1295 with DAC. C165H269N47O46, 3,647.2 g/mol, UNII 62RC32V9N7, CAS 446262-90-4. The structure ends in a lysine bearing an N-ε-3-maleimidopropionamide group, the 30th residue that defines the DAC form. Retrieved 7 September 2026. https://pubchem.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/compound/91971820
- PubChem. Compound CID 56841945, the DAC-free form. C152H252N44O42, 3,367.9 g/mol, InChIKey XOZMWINMZMMOBR-HRDSVTNWSA-N, CAS 863288-34-0. The stored structure and IUPAC name describe 29 residues with a C-terminal arginine amide and no maleimide group. Retrieved 7 September 2026. https://pubchem.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/compound/56841945
- Teichman SL, Neale A, Lawrence B, Gagnon C, Castaigne JP, Frohman LA (2006). Prolonged stimulation of growth hormone (GH) and insulin-like growth factor I secretion by CJC-1295, a long-acting analog of GH-releasing hormone, in healthy adults. Journal of Clinical Endocrinology and Metabolism 91(3):799-805. PMID 16352683. DOI 10.1210/jc.2005-1536
- Ionescu M, Frohman LA (2006). Pulsatile secretion of growth hormone (GH) persists during continuous stimulation by CJC-1295, a long-acting GH-releasing hormone analog. Journal of Clinical Endocrinology and Metabolism 91(12):4792-4797. PMID 17018654. DOI 10.1210/jc.2006-1702
- Dominikowski A, Rękoś Z, Olejarz M, Szczepanek-Parulska E, Domin R, Ruchała M (2026). The emerging landscape of performance-enhancing peptides modulating GH-IGF1 axis: bridging the gap between clinical evidence and patient self-administration. Frontiers in Endocrinology 17:1822475. PMID 42395176. DOI 10.3389/fendo.2026.1822475. Treats CJC-1295 with and without DAC as separate substances and grades the DAC-free form tier D, "no peer-reviewed human studies". Table 1 records "t½ not reported in human studies" and no reported route of administration; table 2 is labelled as behavioural rather than clinical data. Retrieved 7 September 2026.
- Soule S, King JA, Millar RP (1994). Incorporation of D-Ala2 in growth hormone-releasing hormone-(1-29)-NH2 increases the half-life and decreases metabolic clearance in normal men. Journal of Clinical Endocrinology and Metabolism 79(4):1208-1211. PMID 7962295. DOI 10.1210/jcem.79.4.7962295. Ten healthy men, constant intravenous infusion. Metabolic clearance fell from 39.7 ± 3.9 to 21 ± 1.2 ml/kg/min and the disappearance half-life rose from 4.3 ± 1.4 to 6.7 ± 0.5 minutes. The only direct human evidence for any of the four substitutions.
- Timms M, Ganio K, Steel R (2019). A method for confirming CJC-1295 abuse in equine plasma samples by LC-MS/MS. Drug Testing and Analysis 11(8):1248-1257. PMID 30938069. DOI 10.1002/dta.2599. Illustrates the usage in the scientific literature: "CJC-1295 ... incorporates a functional maleimido group at the C-terminus that allows it to covalently bind plasma proteins such as serum albumin." Unqualified, the term means the DAC form.
- Henninge J, Pepaj M, Hullstein I, Hemmersbach P (2010). Identification of CJC-1295, a growth-hormone-releasing peptide, in an unknown pharmaceutical preparation. Drug Testing and Analysis 2(11-12):647-650. PMID 21204297. DOI 10.1002/dta.233. Examined for Norwegian police and customs in 2009 by liquid chromatography and high-resolution tandem mass spectrometry: "The preparation was found to contain a 29 amino acid peptide with a C-terminal amide function ... The sequence is consistent with a peptide currently marketed under the name CJC-1295." Twenty-nine residues with an amide tail excludes the 30-residue DAC form.
- Memdouh S, Gavrilović I, Ng K, Cowan D, Abbate V (2021). Advances in the detection of growth hormone releasing hormone synthetic analogs. Drug Testing and Analysis 13(11-12):1871-1887. PMID 34665524. DOI 10.1002/dta.3183. Studies "sermorelin, tesamorelin, CJC-1295, and CJC-1295 with drug affinity complex" in fortified urine, distinguishing the bare sequence from the conjugate. Nineteen major metabolites identified, synthesised and characterised as reference material; detection limits generally 1 ng/ml or below.
- ClinicalTrials.gov, API v2. Full-text searches for "CJC-1295" (one study, NCT00267527, the DAC form), "CJC-1293", "modified GRF" and "Mod GRF 1-29" (no study of this substance class), and the control search "tesamorelin" (24 studies). NCT00267527: phase 2, randomised, double-blind, placebo-controlled, 120 planned participants with HIV-associated visceral obesity, sponsor ConjuChem, December 2005 to September 2006, status terminated with no reason recorded, no results posted. Retrieved 6 and 7 September 2026. https://clinicaltrials.gov/study/NCT00267527
- ConjuChem Biotechnologies Inc. (2006). ConjuChem provides findings of DAC(TM):GRF HIV Lipodystrophy trial investigation. Company statement, Montréal, 8 August 2006; original page offline, read in the Internet Archive copy of 30 June 2017 on natap.org. Retrieved 7 September 2026.
- Alba M, Fintini D, Sagazio A, Lawrence B, Castaigne JP, Frohman LA, Salvatori R (2006). Once-daily administration of CJC-1295, a long-acting growth hormone-releasing hormone (GHRH) analog, normalizes growth in the GHRH knockout mouse. American Journal of Physiology. Endocrinology and Metabolism 291(6):E1290-E1294. PMID 16822960. DOI 10.1152/ajpendo.00201.2006
- Ben-Shlomo A, Deng N, Ding E, Yamamoto M, Mamelak A, Chesnokova V, Labadzhyan A, Melmed S, et al. (2020). DNA damage and growth hormone hypersecretion in pituitary somatotroph adenomas. Journal of Clinical Investigation 130(11):5738-5755. PMID 32673291. DOI 10.1172/JCI138540
- Literature searches run on 7 September 2026. PubMed via NCBI E-utilities: "CJC-1295" 33 records, none of which studies the DAC-free form as a pharmacological test substance; "Mod GRF 1-29" 0 records. Europe PMC REST: "CJC-1295 without DAC" and "CJC-1295 no DAC" 2 records each, both reviews without original data; "non-DAC" combined with "CJC" 0 records. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/?term=CJC-1295
- Gajda PM, Holm NB, Hoej LJ, Rasmussen BS, Dalsgaard PW, Reitzel LA, Linnet K (2019). Glycine-modified growth hormone secretagogues identified in seized doping material. Drug Testing and Analysis 11(2):350-354. PMID 30136411. DOI 10.1002/dta.2489. Powders seized by Danish customs contained analogues of GHRP-2, GHRP-6, ipamorelin and "modified growth hormone releasing factor (modified GRF 1-29)", each carrying an additional glycine at the N-terminus. The authors call for detection methods to be adapted.
- FDA. Certain bulk drug substances for use in compounding that may present significant safety risks; page updated 22 April 2026; CJC-1295 listed in the table "Bulk drug substances nominated but withdrawn". Retrieved 7 September 2026. https://www.fda.gov/drugs/human-drug-compounding/certain-bulk-drug-substances-use-compounding-may-present-significant-safety-risks
- Mendias CL, Awan TM (2026). Evaluation of research grade peptides marketed directly to consumers reveals extensive variability in purity and measured abundance. Preprint. DOI 10.20944/preprints202604.1748.v1. 6,441 samples across fourteen substances including CJC-1295.
- Coutinho LFD, de Oliveira Neves LF, Camilo RP (2026). A new era of doping? Use of peptide and peptide-analog drugs in recreational and professional sport and bodybuilding: a critical review. Journal of Sports Medicine and Physical Fitness 66:880-885. PMID 41880199. DOI 10.23736/S0022-4707.26.17773-1. On product quality: "The largely unregulated supply chain exacerbates these dangers, as products are often mislabeled or contaminated."
- Therapeutic Goods (Poisons Standard—June 2026) Instrument 2026, F2026L00633, registered 28 May 2026, Australia. Schedule 4 carries the entry "CJC-1295 (CAS No. 863288-34-0)." and the index lists it under Schedule 4 and Appendix D, clause 5. Appendix D clause 5 is headed "Poisons for which possession without authority is illegal"; CJC-1295 is item 7, alongside BPC-157 (5), capromorelin (6), hexarelin (22), ibutamoren (23), ipamorelin (25) and pralmorelin (30). Items 18 and 21 of the same table cover growth hormone-releasing hormones and growth hormone secretagogues generally. Full text checked 7 September 2026. https://www.legislation.gov.au/F2026L00633
- World Anti-Doping Agency. The 2026 Prohibited List, in force from 1 January 2026, section S2.2.4: "Growth hormone releasing factors, including, but not limited to: growth hormone-releasing hormone (GHRH) and its analogues (e.g. CJC-1293, CJC-1295, sermorelin and tesamorelin) ...". Category S2, prohibited at all times, non-specified substance. The 2025 list carries identical wording and indexes both CJC-1293 and CJC-1295 by name. Full texts checked 7 September 2026. https://www.wada-ama.org/en/prohibited-list
- Mayfield CK, Bolia IK, Feingold CL, Lin EH, Liu JN, Rick Hatch GF, Gamradt SC, Weber AE (2026). Injectable peptide therapy: a primer for orthopaedic and sports medicine physicians. American Journal of Sports Medicine 54(1):223-229. PMID 41476424