What is copper peptide?
The ingredient this is built around.
The molecule
GHK-Cu is a tripeptide — glycine, histidine and lysine — bound to a copper ion. It was first isolated from human plasma in 1973 by the biochemist Loren Pickart, who measured it at around 200 ng/ml in people in their twenties and roughly 80 ng/ml by sixty.
Where it comes from
The body makes it. GHK sits within the alpha-2 chain of type I collagen and is released when tissue is damaged, which is why the early research looked at wound healing. In skin it behaves as a copper chaperone, carrying copper to the enzymes that use it.
Why it matters
Plasma levels of GHK fall with age — Pickart measured roughly 200 ng/ml in people in their twenties and around 80 ng/ml by sixty. The body doesn't stop making it. It makes less.
What the research shows
Published work on topical GHK-Cu reports improvements in the look of skin thickness, firmness and fine lines, in studies measured over weeks and months rather than days. Those studies use leave-on products at their own concentrations, over their own timeframes. They're research on the ingredient, not on this patch. Much of the foundational work traces back to Pickart himself, and large independent trials remain thin — worth knowing when you read anyone's claims about it, including ours.
Where it sits in our formula
Low on the list, and that is normal. GHK-Cu is used at fractions of a percent across the whole category, in patches and in expensive serums alike. It is a signalling molecule rather than a bulk ingredient, and the research uses it at those levels too.
Why it is uncommon in a patch
It costs more than caffeine and hyaluronic acid, and a category that has sold the same clear gel for a decade had little reason to change. We took the other view.