A quiet analytical research laboratory at night, racks of glass vials along a dim bench.

Compound Library

Each profile answers the same five questions: what the molecule is, what the evidence shows and at what tier, where it stands legally, why it is hard to deliver, and what encapsulation could change. Vegalab does not sell any compound in this library.

Nutrients and supplement ingredients

NAD+ and its precursors (NMN, nicotinamide riboside), antioxidants and thiols (NAC, glutathione, CoQ10 and PQQ, astaxanthin), polyphenols (resveratrol and pterostilbene, curcumin, fisetin and quercetin), berberine, urolithin A, spermidine, L-carnitine and melatonin. Most are lawful supplement or natural health product ingredients in at least one major market, with status varying by jurisdiction and dose. Their common problems are solubility, oxidation and first-pass metabolism. Several profiles group related compounds on one page.

Approved and investigational peptide drugs

Semaglutide, tirzepatide, next-generation incretins (retatrutide, mazdutide, survodutide), cagrilintide, elamipretide, bremelanotide, tesamorelin and related GHRH analogs. These are prescription drugs or investigational products in clinical trials. Profiles cover their approved route, half-life extension strategies, and the published work on oral versions, and serve partners evaluating delivery research, not consumers. For approved drugs, delivery research can only run with or through the product's sponsor or after exclusivity, and any new route is a new drug application. Vegalab positions itself as a formulation partner in that work.

Research peptides and cosmetic peptides

BPC-157, thymosin beta-4, KPV, LL-37, thymosin alpha-1, MOTS-c, ghrelin mimetics, AOD-9604, Selank and Semax, DSIP, epitalon and pinealon, oxytocin and kisspeptin, and the exercise mimetics SLU-PP-332 and 5-amino-1MQ. Most have no approved human use in the US or EU and several are prohibited in sport; profiles say so. GHK-Cu and SNAP-8 are established cosmetic ingredients and link to Beauty Science. Status is reviewed annually. Where a compound is also used in Beauty Science, the profile links to that page.

Key facts

  • Peptides of 40 amino acids or fewer are regulated as drugs, not biologics, in the US (FDA, Definition of the term biological product, 21 CFR 600.3(h))
  • BPC-157 is prohibited in sport under the S0 non-approved substances category (WADA Prohibited List 2026, S0)
  • Oral semaglutide with SNAC has bioavailability of about 0.4 to 1% (FDA label, Rybelsus 2019)

How our delivery technology applies

The library groups compounds by the delivery problem they share. Hydrophilic, unstable small molecules need protection from water and oxygen. Lipophilic polyphenols and quinones need dispersion. Peptides need protease shielding and, for non-injected routes, permeation support. Multi-layer encapsulation addresses each through different layer chemistry, and each profile states which lever applies.

Evaluating a compound for a delivery program? Request a feasibility review.

NMN (Nicotinamide Mononucleotide)

NMN is a direct precursor of NAD+ that raises NAD+ in mouse tissues and in human blood, with modest and mixed human outcome data so far.

Nicotinamide Riboside (NR)

Nicotinamide riboside is the NAD+ precursor with the most complete regulatory file: US GRAS notification, EU novel food authorization, and human pharmacokinetic trials showing raised blood NAD+.

NAC (N-Acetylcysteine)

NAC is a cysteine donor for glutathione synthesis with two approved drug uses and a large supplement market.

Glutathione

Glutathione is the main intracellular antioxidant, and one of the most contested oral supplements.

CoQ10 and PQQ

Coenzyme Q10 is one of the hardest supplement ingredients to absorb: at 863 Da and almost completely water-insoluble, a large fraction of an oral dose passes through unabsorbed.

Resveratrol and Pterostilbene

Resveratrol is the textbook case of high absorption and near-zero bioavailability: roughly three quarters of an oral dose is absorbed, yet less than 1% reaches circulation as the unchanged molecule.

Curcumin

Curcumin fails on three delivery fronts at once: it barely dissolves in water, it degrades within minutes at intestinal pH, and what is absorbed is quickly conjugated.

Berberine

Berberine reaches blood poorly: oral bioavailability in rats is under 1% because of efflux by P-glycoprotein and extensive first-pass metabolism in the gut wall.

Urolithin A

Urolithin A is made by gut bacteria from ellagitannins in pomegranate, berries and walnuts, but many people produce little or none.

Spermidine

Spermidine is not a hard molecule to absorb; it is a small, water-soluble polyamine.

Fisetin and Quercetin

Fisetin and quercetin are flavonols studied as senolytics, compounds that selectively clear senescent cells.

Astaxanthin

Astaxanthin's delivery problems are stability and fat-dependent absorption.

L-Carnitine

L-carnitine is absorbed by a saturable transporter, so bioavailability from supplement doses is only about 14 to 18%, against 54 to 87% from the small amounts in food.

Melatonin

Melatonin's delivery problem is timing: oral bioavailability averages about 15% and its half-life is under an hour, so an immediate-release dose peaks and clears well before the night is over.

GLP-1 Receptor Agonists: Semaglutide

Semaglutide is the reference point for peptide delivery: an approved GLP-1 receptor agonist engineered for a one-week half-life by injection, and the first peptide of its class given orally, with SNAC, at about 0.4 to 1% bioavailability.

Tirzepatide

Tirzepatide is an approved once-weekly injectable peptide that activates both GIP and GLP-1 receptors.

BPC-157

BPC-157 is an unapproved research peptide with no approved human use anywhere.

Thymosin Beta-4 (TB-500)

Thymosin beta-4 is a naturally occurring 43-amino-acid peptide that has been tested in human trials, notably as RGN-259 eye drops.

GHK-Cu

GHK-Cu is a copper-binding tripeptide with a long cosmetic track record and a thin clinical one.

LL-37

LL-37 is the only human cathelicidin antimicrobial peptide.

Thymosin Alpha-1 and Thymalin

Thymosin alpha-1 is the only immunomodulatory thymic peptide with national drug approvals: as thymalfasin (Zadaxin) it is approved in a number of countries, mainly in Asia and Latin America, but not in the US or EU.

SS-31 (Elamipretide)

SS-31, developed as elamipretide, is a mitochondria-targeted tetrapeptide that received FDA accelerated approval in September 2025 as Forzinity for Barth syndrome.

MOTS-c

MOTS-c is a 16-amino-acid peptide encoded by mitochondrial DNA that regulates metabolism in mice.

Selank and Semax

Selank and Semax are synthetic heptapeptides registered as intranasal medicines in Russia and not approved by the FDA, EMA or Health Canada.

Hyaluronic Acid

Hyaluronic acid (HA) behaves as a different ingredient at every molecular weight: high molecular weight HA hydrates the skin surface but does not penetrate it, while low molecular weight fragments penetrate further and have different biology.

Alpha-Lipoic Acid

Alpha-lipoic acid (ALA) is absorbed quickly but cleared within about half an hour, loses a large share of each oral dose to first-pass metabolism, and polymerizes under heat.

Sulforaphane

Sulforaphane is unstable as a pure compound, so most products deliver its precursor glucoraphanin and rely on the enzyme myrosinase to convert it.

Oxytocin and Kisspeptin

Oxytocin is an approved prescription drug for obstetric use, given by infusion or injection under medical supervision.

Cosmetic Peptides: SNAP-8

SNAP-8 is the trade name for acetyl octapeptide-3, a cosmetic ingredient designed to reduce the appearance of expression lines by competing with SNAP-25 in the SNARE complex.

Related reading

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