What it is claimed to help
These are the uses attached to MOTS-c in research, clinical practice, or marketing. Listing a claim is not endorsing it — tap any of them to see every other compound carrying the same claim.
What the human evidence actually is
Preclinical animal and cell work. No meaningful human evidence.
None for administration. The human evidence is observational: MOTS-c levels correlate with insulin sensitivity, rise with exercise, and a specific variant is associated with longevity in Japanese men. Nobody has run a trial giving MOTS-c to humans. WADA added it to the Prohibited List, which tells you how the sports world views the potential.
How it is supposed to work
Encoded in mitochondrial DNA; translocates to the nucleus under metabolic stress and activates AMPK and folate-cycle-linked stress responses.
Safety
No human safety data. Peptides that shift nuclear stress-response programmes are not trivially safe.
Storage and handling
Lyophilised peptide is generally stored at 2–8 °C, or below −20 °C for long-term storage. Reconstituted in bacteriostatic water (0.9% benzyl alcohol) a solution is typically treated as usable for about 28 days refrigerated, versus roughly 24 hours for plain sterile water, which has no preservative. Add the water slowly down the vial wall and swirl — never shake, which shears peptide chains and foams the solution.
Whatever number a protocol or a prescriber gave you, converting it into syringe units is where a misplaced decimal becomes a tenfold error. Our calculators do that conversion and nothing else — they never invent a dose.
Open the calculatorsSources
- Lee C et al. MOTS-c regulates insulin sensitivity, Cell Metabolism 2015
- Reynolds JC et al. MOTS-c and exercise, Nature Communications 2021
- FDA PCAC briefing and vote, July 2026
- WADA Prohibited List
Verified against primary sources on 27 August 2026. Regulatory status in this field changes several times a year. See How We Rate Evidence.