Cardiovascular · Investigational
Apelin-13
No lawful US pathway
01 · Overview
Apelin-13 is a 13-amino acid endogenous peptide and one of the most potent isoforms of the apelin family. It is a ligand for the APJ (apelin) receptor, a G protein-coupled receptor expressed in vascular endothelium and cardiomyocytes (PMID 25652330).
Apelin signaling causes vasodilation, increases cardiac contractility, and influences fluid balance, which underlies interest in heart failure and pulmonary hypertension (PMID 25652330). The conserved C-terminal portion of the peptide is critical for receptor binding and activity.
02 · Research summary & key findings
In rodents, apelin improved cardiac performance and attenuated remodeling in heart failure models (PMID 22082814) and reduced cardiac fibrosis after myocardial infarction (PMID 32207519). In humans, randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled studies in patients with chronic heart failure and healthy volunteers showed that apelin caused peripheral and coronary vasodilation and increased cardiac output, though forearm vasodilation to apelin was blunted in heart failure patients (PMID 20385929). No large randomized outcome trials have been completed, and apelin's very short half-life has pushed development toward longer-acting analogues and small-molecule APJ agonists (PMID 33663236).
03 · Regulatory status
Apelin-13 is in the investigational stage. While preclinical and early-phase data exist, it has not received regulatory approval for clinical use in the United States.
No lawful pathway today
Apelin-13 is not FDA-approved and does not currently have a lawful prescription or compounding pathway in the United States, so we do not sell it and will not book a consultation for it. That can change: in 2026 FDA began reviewing several peptides for compounding.
See the 4 FDA-approved compounds in Cardiovascular
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04 · Administration routes
- Intravenous
References
- [1]Acute cardiovascular effects of apelin in humans: potential role in patients with chronic heart failure Circulation, 2010. PMID 20385929
- [2]Cardioprotective effect of apelin-13 on cardiac performance and remodeling in end-stage heart failure Circ J, 2012. PMID 22082814
- [3]Effects of apelin on the cardiovascular system Heart Fail Rev, 2015. PMID 25652330
- [4]Apelin-13 alleviated cardiac fibrosis via inhibiting the PI3K/Akt pathway to attenuate oxidative stress in rats with myocardial infarction-induced heart failure Biosci Rep, 2020. PMID 32207519
- [5]In Vitro and In Vivo Evaluation of a Small-Molecule APJ (Apelin Receptor) Agonist, BMS-986224, as a Potential Treatment for Heart Failure Circ Heart Fail, 2021. PMID 33663236
Primary literature
- PubMed: "Apelin-13"
Peer-reviewed literature indexed by the National Library of Medicine.
- ClinicalTrials.gov: "Apelin-13"
Registered interventional and observational studies, including status and phase.
- PubChem: "Apelin-13"
Chemical structure, molecular properties, and bioactivity data.
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