KPV on Juno

KPV

Also known as: Lys-Pro-Val, α-MSH(11-13) C-terminal tripeptide

Short tripeptide fragment of a natural hormone (alpha-MSH). Appears to carry the anti-inflammatory signaling of the parent hormone without its pigmentation effects. Growing animal and early-human work, especially for inflammatory bowel disease.

Reviewed 2026-05-04

What it does

KPV is a synthetic short peptide (three amino acids) corresponding to a fragment of the natural hormone alpha-MSH. It is included in this library because it is one of the most clinically interesting short anti-inflammatory peptides: it appears to retain alpha-MSH's anti-inflammatory effects on immune cells and the intestinal lining without engaging the receptors responsible for the parent hormone's pigmentation, blood-pressure, and sexual-function effects. The preclinical and early-human evidence is concentrated in inflammatory bowel disease (oral KPV) and in dermatologic and ocular inflammation. The human-trial base is still thin.

Used for

Dose

Starting: 250 mcg · 1–2× daily
Common: 625 mcg · 1–2× daily
Upper: 1,000 mcg · 1–2× daily
When: Before activityα-MSH fragment; community use for inflammatory bowel symptoms is typically pre-meal so peak activity overlaps the digestive window. No human RCT data on time-of-day.
Site: oral (gut-targeted, IBD context)

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⚠ Caution

Pregnancy and breastfeeding (no human safety data)
Active malignancy of the GI tract (immunomodulator caution)
Known hypersensitivity to peptide formulations or excipients

Often stacked with

BPC-157 — BPC-157 drives mucosal healing via VEGF/NO pathways; KPV suppresses NF-κB-driven intestinal inflammation via PepT1 — mechanistically complementary for IBD-adjacent stacks.
GHK-Cu — GHK-Cu remodels collagen/ECM and modulates antioxidant gene expression; KPV suppresses NF-κB/TNF-α via PepT1 — complementary anti-inflammatory and tissue-repair mechanisms without receptor overlap.
TB-500 — KPV blunts NF-κB-driven inflammation at the tissue level; TB-500 accelerates cell migration and tissue remodeling — sequential anti-inflammatory + repair targeting.

Your stack

Track this peptide in your protocol — dose, schedule, vials on hand, refill projection. Stays in your browser; no account needed.

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Use this peptide

Featured in protocols

Immune Resilience — Phase 2 — Antimicrobial + anti-inflammatory layer (optional)
Gut Healing — Phase 2 — Anti-inflammatory layer (+KPV)

Related peptides

Part of these blends

Klow

Co-injection & overlap

Can share a syringe with: BPC-157, GHK-Cu, TB-500

Reconstitution & storage

Oral KPV is supplied as capsules or powder in some channels — no reconstitution. Lyophilized injection-grade powder reconstituted with bacteriostatic water: a 50 mg vial in 5 mL BAC water = 10 mg/mL, making a 500 mcg dose = 5 units on a U-100 syringe. Use the Juno calculator to verify.

Storage. Lyophilized: refrigerate. Reconstituted: refrigerate 2–8 °C, use within 30 days. Oral capsule formulations: room temperature, dry.

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Monitoring & questions

Reported side effects

Generally well tolerated in animal and early human work
Injection-site reactions with SubQ use
Mild GI symptoms reported with oral use
Long-term human safety data is limited
Notably absent: the pigmentation, blood-pressure, and sexual-function effects associated with parent-hormone α-MSH or full-length analogs

Reference

How it works

Anti-inflammatory signaling appears to be mediated intracellularly via direct action on NF-κB and downstream cytokine production (IL-1, IL-6, TNF-α suppression) — possibly via PepT1 transporter uptake into intestinal epithelial and immune cells, where it acts without engaging cell-surface melanocortin receptors. This receptor-independent mechanism is the likely explanation for the absence of pigmentation and cardiovascular effects despite the parent-hormone lineage.

Juno's take

KPV's mechanism story is unusually clean for a community-marketed peptide — the receptor-independent anti-inflammatory action is genuinely novel, and the inflammatory bowel disease data is consistent across multiple animal studies and one small early human trial. The catch is the missing piece: no published Phase 2 randomized trial yet. The IBD case is the strongest one this peptide makes; the 'systemic anti-inflammatory wellness' framing is much further out from the evidence.

EvidenceTier 3 — Animal / in vitro

Tiers are per indication. The same molecule can be Tier 1 for one use and Tier 4 for another — the tier reflects published literature, not community framing.

Inflammatory bowel disease (ulcerative colitis, Crohn's)

Tier 3high confidence

Multiple animal IBD models (Dalmasso et al. and others) demonstrate consistent reduction in colitis severity with oral KPV. A small early-phase human trial in active UC reported tolerability and signal toward symptom improvement. No published Phase 2 RCT yet. Tier 3 with a meaningfully better mechanism-to-evidence ratio than most community peptides.

Dalmasso G et al. 2008 Kannengiesser K et al. 2008

Dermatologic / topical anti-inflammation (eczema, allergic skin)

Tier 3medium confidence

Topical KPV has been studied in animal models of allergic contact dermatitis and atopic-style inflammation. Some early human work and dermatology clinic use. Limited controlled-trial evidence.

Kannengiesser K et al. 2008

Ocular inflammation / dry eye

Tier 3medium confidence

Animal models of ocular surface inflammation show response to topical KPV. Limited human work.

No primary citations are anchored to this indication — the tier reflects the absence of usable literature, not a missing reference.

General 'systemic anti-inflammatory' / wellness use

Tier 4high confidence

Community use as a generic anti-inflammatory adjunct in stacks has no controlled-trial support beyond gut-specific contexts. Mechanism is plausible; the broad-systemic claim is not evidenced.

No primary citations are anchored to this indication — the tier reflects the absence of usable literature, not a missing reference.

Citations (2)

[1]
PepT1-mediated tripeptide KPV uptake reduces intestinal inflammation
Dalmasso G, Charrier-Hisamuddin L, Nguyen HT, Yan Y, Sitaraman S, Merlin D. · Gastroenterology · 2008 · PMID 18248864
Foundational mechanistic and animal IBD evidence; characterizes PepT1-mediated uptake and anti-inflammatory effect.
View source
[2]
Melanocortin-derived tripeptide KPV has anti-inflammatory potential in murine models of inflammatory bowel disease
Kannengiesser K, Maaser C, Heidemann J, et al. · Inflammatory Bowel Diseases · 2008 · PMID 18581420
Independent replication of anti-inflammatory effect in IBD animal model; supports Tier 3 framing across inflammation indications.
View source