Klotho (KP1) vs Epitalon
Klotho (KP1) and Epitalon (also spelled Epithalon) both turn up in searches about ageing research, but they have nothing in common chemically. KP1 is a 30-amino-acid piece of the Klotho protein that blocks TGF-beta receptor 2 in cell and mouse studies. Epitalon is the four-amino-acid peptide Ala-Glu-Asp-Gly, designed from a cattle pineal extract and studied mainly for telomerase activity. This page compares them as research compounds.
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| Klotho (KP1) | Epitalon | |
|---|---|---|
| What it is | 30-amino-acid fragment of human alpha-Klotho (residues 57 to 86) | Tetrapeptide Ala-Glu-Asp-Gly (AEDG) |
| Origin | Found by screening peptides from the Klotho protein sequence (2022) | Designed from Epithalamin, a cattle pineal gland extract (patented 2000) |
| Proposed mechanism | Binds TGF-beta receptor 2 and blocks TGF-beta signalling | Telomerase activation reported in cultured human cells |
| Main research models | Mouse kidney and liver fibrosis, kidney injury | Cultured cells and rodents |
| Human data | None | The human studies usually quoted used the extract Epithalamin, not Epitalon |
| Who has studied it | One research group so far | Mostly the originating network; one independent cell study (2025) |
| Peptx availability | Not stocked, waitlist on this page | Factory Direct kits |
- What it is
- 30-amino-acid fragment of human alpha-Klotho (residues 57 to 86)Tetrapeptide Ala-Glu-Asp-Gly (AEDG)
- Origin
- Found by screening peptides from the Klotho protein sequence (2022)Designed from Epithalamin, a cattle pineal gland extract (patented 2000)
- Proposed mechanism
- Binds TGF-beta receptor 2 and blocks TGF-beta signallingTelomerase activation reported in cultured human cells
- Main research models
- Mouse kidney and liver fibrosis, kidney injuryCultured cells and rodents
- Human data
- NoneThe human studies usually quoted used the extract Epithalamin, not Epitalon
- Who has studied it
- One research group so farMostly the originating network; one independent cell study (2025)
- Peptx availability
- Not stocked, waitlist on this pageFactory Direct kits
Why they get compared
Both are discussed as ageing-research peptides, and both are newer to most buyers than compounds like BPC-157. That is where the similarity ends. KP1 comes from Klotho, a protein made mainly in the kidney whose absence in mice causes a syndrome resembling ageing. Epitalon was designed by a St Petersburg group from the amino acid make-up of a pineal extract.
Different mechanisms, different evidence
KP1 was selected because it binds TGF-beta receptor 2, the receptor for the main signal behind fibrosis. In mice it reduced kidney and liver fibrosis, protected against acute kidney injury and restored the kidneys' own Klotho production. These five studies come from the group that discovered it.
Epitalon's best-known claim is that it switches on telomerase and lengthens telomeres. That has been reported in cultured human cells by its originating group in 2003 and by an independent team at Brunel University London in 2025. The animal lifespan results are modest and come from the originating network, and the human mortality studies often quoted used the pineal extract, not synthetic Epitalon.
What is not known
Neither compound has controlled human trial data. For KP1, no laboratory outside the discovering group has published results, and nothing is known about it beyond mouse kidney and liver models. No study has compared the two.
Bottom line for research labs
Klotho (KP1) and Epitalon share a research theme, not a mechanism. KP1 is a TGF-beta receptor blocker with a small, recent set of mouse studies from one group. Epitalon is a tetrapeptide with a longer but mostly single-network history centred on telomerase. Labs choosing between them are choosing between fibrosis signalling and telomere biology.