Explore Dermorphin dosage trends, reconstitution volumes, and vial size patterns from anonymized WPA peptide calculator data.
Dermorphin is a seven-amino-acid peptide (Tyr-D-Ala-Phe-Gly-Tyr-Pro-Ser-NH₂) originally isolated by Vittorio Erspamer in the early 1980s from the skin of South American Phyllomedusa tree frogs. It is one of the few naturally occurring peptides containing a D-amino-acid residue (D-Ala at position 2), which gives it remarkable resistance to enzymatic degradation and ~1000× the analgesic potency of morphine in rodent assays.
Dermorphin is a high-affinity, highly selective mu-opioid receptor agonist with substantially greater mu-selectivity than morphine and excellent peripheral-to-central transport. The D-Ala²-stabilised peptide bond accounts for its in-vivo activity at doses 1000× lower than morphine on a molar basis.
Dermorphin has been used as a research tool to dissect mu-opioid receptor pharmacology since Erspamer's original characterisation, but has had **no human therapeutic development.** Its most-publicised real-world use is as an illicit performance-enhancing agent in horse racing — multiple positive doping tests across US racetracks between 2009 and 2013 led to extensive racing-board enforcement actions and the molecule's scheduling under various state and federal racing rules.
Dermorphin has a reported half-life of ~30 min (estimated), and the dose intervals researchers model most often fall around as needed. A very short-lived opioid peptide that acts as a brief pulse with no buildup between doses. It is catalogued under Performance Peptides on WPA.
88 Dermorphin reconstitution calculations have been logged by the WPA community. The most common dose entered is 5mcg (16 calculations). The median dose across all sessions is 50mcg. The most common bacteriostatic water volume is 3mL. The most popular vial size is 5mg (59 sessions). The most common dosing frequency is daily (7x/week) (5 logged protocols), followed by 3x/week (3).
These figures come from anonymized WPA peptide calculator sessions.
All figures shown are aggregated from anonymized calculator inputs and are provided strictly for independent laboratory research and educational purposes. They are community usage statistics — not dosing recommendations, and not medical advice.