Quick answer: there is no established pinealon dosage. The only human dose we found in a published abstract is one 100-microgram (mcg) capsule by mouth twice a day for two weeks, used in a small Russian study of locomotive crew workers.[1] Other Russian human studies do not report doses in their abstracts,[2][3] and animal studies used 10 to 400 mcg per kg injected into the abdomen.[5][6] No published study has tested pinealon injected under the skin in people.
Pinealon (Glu-Asp-Arg, or EDR) is a 3-amino-acid peptide from Vladimir Khavinson’s institute in St. Petersburg, promoted for brain health and sleep.[7] For its full evidence review, see our pinealon profile, the Khavinson peptide bioregulators hub and the longevity peptides hub.
Pinealon dosage in human studies
We found four small Russian human studies listed in PubMed. All were published in Russian, mostly in the journal Advances in Gerontology, and their abstracts give few design details.
| Study | People | Dose reported |
|---|---|---|
| Locomotive crew workers (2012) | Railway workers; number not given in abstract | 100 mcg capsule twice daily for 2 weeks[1] |
| Adults with organic brain syndrome (2015) | 32 adults aged 41 to 83 | Not stated in abstract[2] |
| Professional truck drivers (2012) | Truck drivers, compared with metal workers | Not stated in abstract[3] |
| Comparison of anti-aging methods (2016) | 110 people of different ages | Not stated in abstract[4] |
In the worker study, the authors reported better “biological age” scores and markers of adaptation to stress.[1] The other three reported similar changes, often with pinealon combined with a related peptide, vesugen.[2][3][4]
That 100 mcg capsule is the closest thing to a published human dose. It is a small amount: 0.1 mg per capsule, or 0.2 mg a day.
Pinealon doses in animal studies
Animal studies used injections into the abdominal cavity (intraperitoneal), a route used in lab animals, not in people.
| Study | Animals | Dose and schedule |
|---|---|---|
| Prenatal high-homocysteine model (2012) | Pregnant rats | 10 mcg/kg daily for 5 days[5] |
| Alzheimer’s disease model (2021) | 5xFAD mice | 400 mcg/kg daily for 2 months[6] |
- Rats: pups born to treated mothers learned a water maze faster, and their brain cells resisted oxidative stress better.[5] The pups’ homocysteine levels stayed high, so pinealon did not fix the underlying problem.[5]
- Mice: pinealon prevented the loss of dendritic spines, the contact points between nerve cells, in mice bred to develop Alzheimer’s-like changes.[6]
Why animal doses don’t translate
Doses per kilogram in rodents cannot simply be multiplied up to a human weight. Body size, metabolism and route all change how much reaches the bloodstream. No study has measured pinealon’s pharmacokinetics in people, meaning how it is absorbed, how long it lasts and how it is cleared. Even how such a short peptide gets into cells has been studied mainly by computer modeling.[9]
How to read the study doses
Research papers mix units, which makes online comparisons easy to get wrong:
- mcg vs mg: 100 micrograms (mcg, sometimes written µg or “mkg” in translated Russian abstracts) equals 0.1 milligrams (mg). The human capsule dose was 0.1 mg, not 100 mg.[1]
- Per kilogram: animal doses are given per kg of body weight, so a 400 mcg/kg dose in a mouse weighing about 25 grams is a tiny absolute amount.[6]
- Route: injections into the abdominal cavity are a lab-animal method. Capsules, injections under the skin and nasal sprays each reach the blood differently, and none has been measured for pinealon.
What lab studies say about dose
In dish studies, pinealon’s effects depended on concentration. It reduced harmful reactive oxygen species and cell death in brain cells, immune cells and a nerve-like cell line. Those protective effects leveled off at lower concentrations, while effects on the cell cycle kept rising at higher ones.[7]
Another Russian lab study found that short peptides including pinealon had no direct antioxidant activity and raised the steady level of reactive oxygen species inside nerve cells, even as fewer cells died.[8] More is not clearly better, and the dose that might matter in a living person is unknown.
Pinealon injection and nasal spray
Pinealon is sold online mainly as injectable vials (often 10 mg) and nasal sprays. We found:
- No published human study of pinealon injected under the skin.
- No published human study of pinealon nasal spray.
- No absorption data for either route.
A 10 mg vial holds 100 times the single 100 mcg capsule dose from the one human study that reported a dose.[1] Online “protocols” for these products come from sellers and forum users, not trials. Our peptide calculator can show how concentration and syringe units relate, but it cannot turn an untested amount into a studied dose.
Side effects at studied doses
Safety data are thin. In the 32-person study of adults with organic brain syndrome, the authors reported pro-oxidant activity and a drop in CD34+ blood stem cells with pinealon and vesugen, while still calling the peptides safe at the level of chromatin (the packaged DNA in cell nuclei).[2] No long-term, reproductive or cancer studies have been published. Products sold as research chemicals are not checked for purity, dose or sterility by any regulator.
Legal status and why there is no label dose
Pinealon is not approved as a medicine in any country we could confirm. It does not appear on any of FDA’s 503A compounding categories as of May 14, 2026, which suggests no one has nominated it for US pharmacy compounding.[10] So there is no prescribing label and no legal US pharmacy product with a set dose.
Pinealon vs epitalon dosing
Pinealon is often paired with epitalon, another Khavinson peptide. The two have different structures and research histories; see our comparison of epitalon vs pinealon. For other peptides promoted for aging, see epitalon vs TA-65 and the best peptides for longevity.
Questions to ask a clinician
- What is causing my memory, focus or sleep problem, and has it been checked?
- Which approved or well-studied treatments fit my situation?
- If I have used pinealon, what blood tests or follow-up would make sense?
- How could it interact with my other medicines or supplements?
A clinician, not a seller’s chart, should guide any treatment decision. For other brain-focused peptides with more clinical history, see Selank vs Semax.
This is general information, not medical advice.
