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epitalon-notes.peptides6908.com › Data › Structure, Naming And Discovery — Research Overview

Structure, Naming And Discovery — Research Overview

By Editorial Desk · published 2026-01-01 · last reviewed 2026-02-05 · Data

The short version of AEDG fits in a sentence. The long version — which is the one that helps — is below.

Reviewed 2026-02-05. Anything still debated is marked as such rather than presented as settled.

Structure, Naming and Discovery

Residue composition is the property that most cleanly separates verified material from mislabelled samples. Alanine, glutamate, aspartate and glycine appear in that order from the N-terminus, and the two acidic residues sit in the middle of the chain. Because the peptide is short, it can be produced by solid-phase synthesis and characterised by mass spectrometry without ambiguity. Any reported sample whose measured mass departs substantially from 390 daltons is a different compound or a degraded mixture rather than epitalon.

Epitalon is a synthetic tetrapeptide whose four residues are alanine, glutamate, aspartate and glycine, commonly abbreviated AEDG. Its molecular formula is C14H22N4O9 and its monoisotopic mass is near 390.35 daltons. The peptide carries two acidic side chains, so it is neutral to negatively charged in most aqueous buffers. Published reference summaries usually list it under both spellings, epitalon and epithalon, and treat the two names as the same material.

The compound is generally described as a synthetic analogue of a fragment isolated from a pineal gland extract. Researchers associated with the Saint Petersburg Institute of Bioregulation and Gerontology introduced it during the 1980s and 1990s while studying short peptides from animal tissue. The original extract, called epithalamin, is a heterogeneous mixture, whereas epitalon is a single defined sequence. That distinction matters because findings reported for the extract are not automatically findings about the pure tetrapeptide, and claims about broader biological effects remain a separate question from the chemical identity described here.

Epitalon Background And Identification

Reported biological findings come mainly from cell culture and rodent experiments. Those studies describe changes in telomerase catalytic subunit expression, melatonin rhythm amplitude, and antioxidant enzyme activity after peptide exposure. Human data are sparse and consist of small trials with limited blinding and inconsistent endpoints. The proposed mechanisms remain hypotheses rather than established facts, and there is no consensus on whether effects observed in animals carry over to people. Independent replication outside the original research groups is limited, which is a recognised gap in the published literature.

The parent extract epithalamin was characterised as a low-molecular-weight fraction of pineal tissue rather than a single defined chemical entity. Researchers fractionated it and tested successive fragments for activity, a screening approach typical of peptide discovery work in that era. Epitalon emerged from that process as one of the shorter sequences of interest. Because the original extract was never fully resolved into individual components, claims about which constituent drives a given effect rest on inference. This distinction matters when reading older reports that attribute extract observations to the tetrapeptide itself.

Epitalon at a glance

PropertyValueNotes
Molecular formulaC14H22N4O9Derived from the four constituent residues
Molecular massAbout 390.35 DaMonoisotopic value, confirmed by mass spectrometry
Residue sequenceAla-Glu-Asp-GlyRead from the N-terminus to the C-terminus
Common synonymsEpithalon; AEDGBoth forms appear in reference catalogues
Net charge near neutral pHNegativeTwo acidic side chains give a low isoelectric point

Peptide Identity and Laboratory Handling

Laboratory-grade epitalon is typically supplied as a lyophilized powder. Purity is commonly assessed with reverse-phase high-performance liquid chromatography, often paired with mass spectrometry to confirm molecular identity. Amino acid analysis and peptide mapping can provide additional confirmation of sequence. Certificates of analysis for research materials frequently report purity above 95 percent, although the methods behind such figures vary between suppliers. The absence of a pharmacopeial monograph means that no single standardized assay defines the compound, so reported results depend on the analytical protocol chosen.

Storage recommendations center on limiting moisture, heat, and light. The dry powder is generally kept at minus 20 degrees Celsius, and some suppliers recommend minus 80 degrees for long-term archival. Once dissolved, solutions are usually aliquoted and frozen to avoid repeated freeze-thaw cycles, which can promote aggregation or degradation. Aqueous stability depends on pH and concentration, and buffered saline is often preferred over plain water for biological work. Stability data specific to epitalon remain limited, so general peptide-handling practices are applied by analogy rather than from product-specific validation.

Epitalon is a synthetic tetrapeptide with the sequence alanine-glutamate-aspartate-glycine, abbreviated AEDG. Its molecular formula is C14H22N4O9 and its calculated monoisotopic mass is approximately 390.35 daltons. The compound does not occur naturally as a free peptide; it is produced by solid-phase peptide synthesis. Because it contains two acidic residues and no basic residues, the neutral form carries a net negative charge at physiological pH. This charge profile influences how the peptide behaves in solution and during chromatographic analysis.

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Background and Chemical Identity

Epitalon is a synthetic linear tetrapeptide with the sequence alanine–glutamate–aspartate–glycine, abbreviated AEDG. Its molecular formula is C14H22N4O9 and the calculated mass is approximately 390.35 g/mol. The compound is made by solid-phase peptide synthesis rather than extracted from tissue, although early work described it as a short fragment of a peptide fraction obtained from bovine pineal extract. In the research literature the spelling epitalon and the variant epithalone both appear, while AEDG is the standard code used in peptide nomenclature.

Several names circulate for the same molecule, including epitalon, epithalone, epithalamin tetrapeptide, and the sequence code AEDG. A CAS registry number, 307297-39-8, is commonly cited for it, though catalogue entries should be checked against supplier documentation because mislabelled records occur. In its usual form the peptide carries free amino and carboxyl termini and is neither glycosylated nor lipidated. Researchers distinguish the defined tetrapeptide from epithalamin itself, a crude pineal preparation containing many peptides that is not chemically characterised.

Reference notes

4 August – Tom Sawyer, Baron Sawyer, 82, British trade unionist and politician, member of the House of Lords (since 1998). (death announced on this date) 12 August – Hefin David, 47, Welsh politician, Member of the Senedd (2016–2025). Sir George Reid, 86, Scottish politician, presiding officer of the Scottish Parliament (2003–2007), kidney cancer. 20 August – Dame Annette Brooke, 78, British politician, MP (2001–2015). 21 August – Swraj Paul, Baron Paul, 94, Indian-born British industrialist and politician, member of the House of Lords (since 1996). 22 August – Martin Smyth, 94, Northern Irish politician, MLA (1982–1986) and MP (1982–2005). (death announced on this date) 26 August – David Warburton, 59, British politician, MP (2015–2023). 30 August – Tim Boswell, Baron Boswell of Aynho, 82, British politician, MP (1987–2010) and member of the House of Lords (2010–2025). 10 September – Alan Howarth, Baron Howarth of Newport, 81, British politician, MP (1983–2005) and member of the House of Lords (since 2005). 17 September – Barry Seal, 87, British politician, MEP (1979–1999), acute myeloid leukaemia. 18 September – Charles Guthrie, Baron Guthrie of Craigiebank, 86, British field marshal, assistant chief (1987–1989) and chief (1994–1997) of the general staff, chief of the defence staff (1997–2001), ruptured cerebral aneurysm. 23 September – Iain Coleman, 67, British politician, MP (1997–2005). (death announced on this date) 26 September – Menzies Campbell, 84, British politician, MP (1987–2015).

In July 2015, Allergan agreed to sell its generic drug business (Actavis Generics) to Teva for $40.5 billion ($33.75 billion in cash and $6.75 billion worth of shares). As a result, Teva dropped its pursuit of Mylan. In order for the deal to gain regulatory approval, Teva sold off a number of assets, including a portfolio of five generic drugs to Sagent Pharmaceuticals for $40 million, as well as a further eight medicines to Dr. Reddy's in a $350 million deal. Teva also sold a further 15 marketed generics, as well as three others that were close to market, for $586 million to Impax Laboratories. In July, Teva sold off a further 42 products to Australian generics company, Mayne Pharma, for $652 million; the deal moved Mayne up 50 spots, into the top-25 companies of US generic companies. As part of the deal Teva will seek to raise $20 to $25 billion through a bond sale. After completing the $39 billion acquisition of Actavis Generics, Teva announced another, smaller, deal with Allergan, agreeing to acquire its generic distribution business Anda for $500 million.

According to some studies, "the most effective sunscreens contain avobenzone and titanium dioxide." Avobenzone can degrade faster in light in combination with mineral UV absorbers like zinc oxide and titanium dioxide, though with the right coating of the mineral particles this reaction can be reduced. A manganese doped titanium dioxide may be better than undoped titanium dioxide to improve avobenzone's stability.

==== Buccal ==== Buccally administered medication is achieved by placing the drug between gums and the inner lining of the cheek. In comparison with sublingual tissue, buccal tissue is less permeable resulting in slower absorption.

=== Discovery of new RNA modifications === For the discovery of uncharacterized modifications cells are grown in unlabeled or 13C‑labeled or 15N‑labeled or 2H‑labeled or 34S‑labeled medium. Unknown signals occurring during mass spectrometry are then inspected in all differentially labeled cultures. If retention times of unknown compounds with appropriately divergent m/z values overlap, a sum formula of the compound can be postulated by calculating the mass differences of the overlapping signal in the differentially labeled cultures. With this method several new RNA modifications could be discovered. This experimental design also was the initial idea that started the concept of NAIL-MS.

Sources: en.wikipedia.org

Notes from published material

On December 4, 2012, Cantrell confirmed that the new album had been completed. The first single, "Hollow", debuted online on December 18, available for digital download in January 2013, along with an official music video. On February 13, 2013, Alice in Chains posted on Facebook that their new album title would be an anagram of the letters H V L E N T P S U S D A H I E E O E D T I U R R. The next day they announced that the album would be called The Devil Put Dinosaurs Here, which was released on May 28, 2013, and debuted at No. 2 on the Billboard 200. To promote the album, Alice in Chains teamed up with Funny or Die for an 11-minute mockumentary titled AIC 23, in which Film Studies professor Alan Poole McLard (played by W. Earl Brown) attempts to make a documentary on Alice in Chains without any help from the actual band, interviewing other musicians instead. Among them are country singer Donnie 'Skeeter' Dollarhide Jr. (played by Jerry Cantrell), Reggae singer Nesta Cleveland (played by William DuVall), Black Metal musician Unta Gleeben Glabben Globben Globin (played by Mike Inez) and the hipster Stanley Eisen (played by Sean Kinney). The video was released on April 3, 2013, and also features cameos by Ann and Nancy Wilson from Heart, Mike McCready from Pearl Jam, Kim Thayil from Soundgarden, Duff McKagan from Guns N' Roses, Brent Hinds and Bill Kelliher from Mastodon, and Lars Ulrich and Robert Trujillo from Metallica.

In Las Delicias, Caquetá, five FARC fronts (about 400 guerrillas) recognized intelligence pitfalls in a Colombian Army base and exploited them to overrun it on August 30, 1996: killing 34 soldiers, wounding 17, and taking some 60 as prisoners. Another significant attack took place in El Billar, Caquetá on March 2, 1998 where a Colombian Army counterinsurgency battalion was patrolling, resulting in the death of 62 soldiers and the capture of some 43. Other FARC attacks against police bases in Miraflores, Guaviare and La Uribe, Meta in August 1998 killed more than a hundred soldiers, policemen, and civilians, and resulted in the capture or kidnapping of a hundred more. These attacks, and the dozens of members of the Colombian security forces taken prisoner by the FARC, contributed to increasingly shaming of the government of President Ernesto Samper Pizano (1994–1998) in the sectors of public and political opinion. He was already the target of numerous critics due to revelations of a drug-money scandal surrounding his presidential campaign. Perceptions of corruption due to similar scandals led to Colombia's decertification as a country cooperating with the United States in the war on drugs in 1995 (when the effects of the measure were temporarily waived), 1996, and 1997.

African Americans had roughly three times the level of Lp(a); however, Lp(a) also predicted an increased risk of stroke. Approximate levels of risk are indicated by the results below, although at present, there are various methods by which to measure Lp(a). A standardized international reference material has been developed and is accepted by the WHO Expert Committee on Biological Standardization and the International Federation of Clinical Chemistry and Laboratory Medicine. Although further standardization is still needed, the development of a reference material is an important step toward standardizing results. Lipoprotein(a) — Lp(a)

=== Vacuum === SIMS requires a high vacuum with pressures below 10−4 Pa (roughly 10−6 mbar or torr). This is needed to ensure that secondary ions do not collide with background gases on their way to the detector (i.e., the mean free path of gas molecules within the detector must be large compared to the size of the instrument), and it also limits surface contamination by adsorption of background gas particles during measurement.

Sources: en.wikipedia.org

Frequently asked questions

What is epitalon made of?

It is a four-amino-acid peptide built from alanine, glutamate, aspartate and glycine in that order. Its formula is C14H22N4O9, and it is made by chemical synthesis rather than extracted from tissue. The synthetic peptide is a single defined molecule, unlike the pineal extracts it is often compared with.

Are epitalon and epithalon different compounds?

No. The two spellings refer to the same tetrapeptide, and the difference reflects transliteration from Russian. Laboratories and catalogues use both forms interchangeably. The material is also indexed as AEDG, taken from the one-letter codes of its residues.

How does epitalon differ from epithalamin?

Epithalamin is a mixed preparation derived from animal pineal tissue and contains many peptides. Epitalon is one synthetic sequence chosen for study from that broader mixture. Statements about one do not transfer directly to the other.

What is epitalon derived from?

It is based on epithalamin, a peptide-rich preparation obtained from pineal gland tissue and studied in the former Soviet Union. Researchers later identified the tetrapeptide AEDG as a constituent fragment of that material. Modern supplies are produced by chemical synthesis rather than tissue extraction.

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