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Bioregulator Research
Cardiogen Research
Dr. Tharindunee JayakodyPhDPublished 27 August 2026
Cardiogen is a short synthetic peptide sold as a "peptide bioregulator" and developed at the St Petersburg Institute of Bioregulation and Gerontology. This page is short because very little has been published about it.
Conflict of interest runs through this literature, and it is set out below. Research-grade Cardiogen is supplied for laboratory research use only.
The most important thing on this page
Cardiogen has one whole-animal result in the published record, and it is not a cardiac result.
A 2009 study in senescent rats reported that Cardiogen slowed the growth of transplanted M-1 sarcoma [4]. The reported features were hemorrhagic necrosis and increased tumor cell apoptosis. The authors stated the effect was not direct cytostatic action, and that it acted through the tumor's vascular network [4].
That is an animal finding in a tumor model, from a single small study by the originating network, with no replication found. No published study has given Cardiogen to a living animal and measured anything in its heart. The product name is not backed by an in vivo cardiac result.
Identity, and what cannot be resolved
Cardiogen is described as a synthetic tetrapeptide in a 2009 Russian-language paper [2]. The sequence usually quoted, Ala-Glu-Asp-Arg or AEDR, rests essentially on one table in a 2022 paper from the originating institute [1].
There is no MeSH record for Cardiogen, and no PubChem record carrying the name. A PubChem name search returns L-carnitine, an unrelated molecule, and the structure matching AEDR sits in an unnamed record with no CAS number [3]. Two of its nearest siblings do have named PubChem records, so this gap is specific to Cardiogen.
If AEDR is correct, Cardiogen is the tripeptide Pinealon with one alanine added at the front [1]. No study compares the two, so the literature says nothing about what functionally separates them. Pinealon's own literature is not evidence about Cardiogen.
How small the literature is
A PubMed name search returned 19 records in August 2026. Roughly three-quarters are a name collision, chiefly a rubidium-82 cardiac PET generator, cardiogenic shock papers and a cardiomyopathy registry. The genuine Cardiogen literature is about four papers, three of them Russian-language articles in Advances in Gerontology.
All of it comes from the originating network, an institute that developed, patented and sells these compounds. Its founder is a named co-inventor on granted patents covering peptides in this family. Papers from the group nonetheless declare no conflict of interest, including a 2020 statement disclaiming any "patent/licensing arrangement" [7]. The field has not been established outside the group that sells the product.
Cell and tissue work (in vitro)
Cardiogen was tested on explant cultures of rat myocardium from young and old animals [2]. Only the English abstract of that Russian-language paper is accessible, and it describes a single concentration with no dose-response.
A 2006 Russian-language paper tested Cardiogen alongside three sibling peptides on explants from rat heart, lung, prostate and pancreas [5]. A stimulating effect on outgrowth was reported at one concentration only, with no dose-response, no blinding and no statistical detail in the abstract. Explant outgrowth in a dish is a crude endpoint, and it is not an in vivo cardiac outcome.
Searching the sequence itself returns one record. In it, AEDR was among six peptides reported to bind wheat histones, measured by fluorescence quenching [6]. That work used plant proteins and has no bearing on the heart. Fluorescence quenching is an indirect ensemble measure that gives no structural information.
What has not been studied
There is no human data of any kind for Cardiogen. No clinical study exists, and a ClinicalTrials.gov search on 27 August 2026 returned only name collisions.
There is no human pharmacokinetic data. No study has measured whether Cardiogen survives digestion or reaches the bloodstream intact. PepT1, the intestinal transporter for small peptides, handles di- and tripeptides only [8]. Cardiogen is a tetrapeptide, so it has no known route of intact oral absorption. That is a mechanistic inference, and Cardiogen has not been tested as a PepT1 substrate.
There is no lifespan or longevity study of Cardiogen in any species. No formal toxicology package has been published, and absence of published toxicology is not evidence of safety.
Cardiogen is supplied for laboratory research use only. It is not for human consumption.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is there any human data on Cardiogen?
No. There is no clinical study of Cardiogen in people, and no human material appears anywhere in its literature. A ClinicalTrials.gov search on 27 August 2026 returned only hits for unrelated cardiology studies sharing the name. There is also no human pharmacokinetic data.
Has Cardiogen been shown to do anything to a heart in a living animal?
No. Its only whole-animal result is a tumor study, in which it slowed transplanted M-1 sarcoma growth in senescent rats through the tumor's vascular network [4]. The cardiac work is explant culture in a dish [2][5]. Nothing in the published record measures a cardiac outcome in a living animal.
How reliable is the AEDR sequence?
Less reliable than for most compounds in this family. The name-to-sequence mapping rests essentially on one table published by the originating institute [1]. There is no MeSH record, no named PubChem record and no CAS number that resolves [3]. A separate 2009 paper confirms Cardiogen is a synthetic tetrapeptide but does not print the sequence [2].
References
- 1Khavinson V, et al. International Journal of Molecular Sciences. 2022. PMID 35887081. DOI: 10.3390/ijms23147733.
- 2Chalisova NI, et al. Advances in Gerontology (Uspekhi Gerontologii). 2009. PMID 20210190. Russian language, English abstract.
- 3PubChem CID 10917 and CID 11583989. Database records queried 27 August 2026.
- 4Levdik NV, et al. Bulletin of Experimental Biology and Medicine. 2009. PMID 20396706. DOI: 10.1007/s10517-010-0730-9.
- 5Zakutskii AN, et al. Advances in Gerontology (Uspekhi Gerontologii). 2006. PMID 17152728. Russian language, English abstract.
Reviewed & approved for scientific accuracy
Dr. Tharindunee Jayakody
PhD — Scientific Contributor and Reviewer
Dr Jayakody is a molecular pharmacologist with over 15 years of experience in translating complex research into clear, evidence-based explanations, with expertise on peptide therapeutics and other emerging compounds, particularly in delineating the mechanisms of action of therapeutics. As a contributor to research-focused platforms, Dr Jayakody aims to give scientifically literate readers a balanced view of what current data can and cannot support, helping them understand how promising findings in the lab translate, or sometimes fail to translate, into real-world applications.
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