What is AOD-9604?
AOD-9604 is a modified variant of the lipolytic GH fragment 176-191, which you also find individually in the lexicon. An extra chemical group makes it more stable. The idea is the same: use the fat-mobilizing part of growth hormone without its growth and blood-sugar effects.
Up front: in human weight-loss studies the effect was limited.
Comparison
Growth hormone and its pieces
Compounds from the TPD lexicon around growth hormone, as described there. Tap a card to open its entry.
Simplified: whole growth hormone acts through its receptor. AOD9604 did not bind to it in cell assays. There is no comparison in humans. 2
How it works
AOD-9604 stimulates fat burning in fat cells and inhibits the formation of new fat, without notably affecting IGF-1, insulin sensitivity or blood sugar. That is the selling point: the fat-loss part of GH without the typical GH side effects.
Where it acts
Where AOD9604 acted in experiments
Tap a point or a card. Colour = target, grey = observed. All from animal studies.
Targets in the ChEMBL database7
Compound CHEMBL6068615 (LAT-8881): two recorded mechanisms, type of action on each card.
- Gene
- GHR
- UniProt
- P10912
- ChEMBL
- CHEMBL1976
- Action
- No binding and no cell division via the receptor (cell assay)
What you need
Supplies
2 things, numbered as in the picture
Tick off what you already have. Vial and BAC water are our real shop photos at the same size.
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AOD-9604 vial
The AOD-9604 vial (lyophilized powder).
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Water and supplies
Bacteriostatic water, U-100 insulin syringes, alcohol swabs.
Reconstitution
Use the peptide calculator. A 5mg vial with 2ml water gives 2500mcg per ml, 300mcg is then 12 units on the U-100 syringe. Just add the water to the vial and let it dissolve.
Step by step
Dissolving the powder
Four steps, the same for every vial size.
- 1Wipe the cap
Clean the rubber stopper with an alcohol swab.
- 2Add BAC water
Just add it, it does not matter if it hits the powder directly.
- 3Swirl or shake
Until everything has dissolved, both are fine.
- 4Draw up
With the U-100 insulin syringe.
Dosing
Dosing
Dosing, titration and syringe
Loading the dosing information …
- Getting started and stepping up, drawn as a staircase
- Units on the U-100 syringe for every step
- How long one vial lasts
Injection
The injection is subcutaneous, into the fat layer under the skin. Common spots are the abdomen (keep about two finger-widths clear of the navel), the front and the inner side of the thigh, or the back of the upper arm.
The short version:
Injection
Where and at what angle
Pick a spot or switch the angle. Subcutaneous means: into the fat layer, not the muscle.
Rotate the spot each time, never the same one twice in a row.
Rule of thumb: where there is more fat under the skin, insert straight at 90 degrees. In lean people with little fat, 45 degrees, so the needle stays in the fat layer. Simplified diagram.
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Clean the spot with an alcohol swab and let it dry
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Pinch up a small fold of skin
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Insert the needle: at 90 degrees where there is more fat under the skin, at 45 degrees in lean people with little fat
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Inject slowly, wait a moment, then withdraw
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Put the needle straight into the sharps container
Rotate the site each time so the tissue does not get irritated. Never the same spot twice in a row.
AOD-9604 is ideally injected fasted before cardio.
What the research shows
The basis comes from the GH fragment (Heffernan, 2001): in obese mice GH and the fragment triggered weight loss and increased fat burning. Important: in later human weight-loss studies AOD-9604 showed only limited effects. Stay realistic, it does not replace a calorie deficit.
Study results
What the trials measured
Interactive: switch tabs, tap points, show or hide arms. Arms are named relative to each other, no dosing advice.
Weight gain of obese Zucker rats3
Gain over 19 days in grams, AOD9604 daily by mouth
Means from the abstract, error ranges omitted. Unlike with growth hormone, insulin sensitivity stayed unchanged. Rats, not humans.
Research status
Where the research stands
No trial is registered under the name AOD9604. ChEMBL also lists the compound as LAT8881, under this name there are three completed trials on pain and migraine. Weight-loss trials are not registered. As of 26 Oct 2026. 5
- Preclinical Rats and mice, fat metabolism
- Phase 1 1 trial, 1 completed
- Phase 2 2 trials, 2 completed
- Phase 3 no registered trial
- Approval not yet
Show all 2 phase 2 trials on a timelineHide timeline
NCT03865953 · 53 participants, started Apr 2019, primary endpoint reached Apr 2020.
Registry entry ↗ · Results not yet in PubMed
NCT04153409 · 21 participants, started Sept 2019, primary endpoint reached Feb 2020.
Registry entry ↗ · Results not yet in PubMed
Bar: start to primary endpoint (planned for running trials). Green = completed, blue = progress until 26 Oct 2026. Phase 1: 1 trial on safety and pharmacokinetics, not shown as bars.
Side effects
- Generally well tolerated, mainly local reactions at the injection site.
- Since little effect on blood sugar and IGF-1, the typical GH side effects are largely absent.
- The effect itself is less established in humans than hoped.
Storage
Before mixing the powder is robust, normal room temperature (around 20 to 25 degrees) is fine, ideally kept in the dark. After mixing, keep in the fridge (2 to 8 degrees), do not freeze. It stays good there for at least 4 to 6 months with barely any loss of potency, in practice considerably longer. Swirl or shake to mix, both are fine.
Shelf life
How long it keeps
Robust, no fridge needed. Best kept in the dark.
At least 4 to 6 months with barely any loss of potency. The bacteriostatic water brings a preservative.
- Keep it dark
- Dissolved: 2 to 8 degrees
- Note the mixing date on the vial
