Adipotide (FTPP): Monkey Study, Kidney Risk and Legal Status

Adipotide, also sold as FTPP, is a peptide built to destroy the blood vessels that feed white fat. Most research peptides act on a hormone receptor; this one doesn’t. It has the most striking primate weight-loss data of any compound on this site, and one of the clearest kidney-toxicity signals to go with it.

Dosing: why no common protocol exists for it.

What is adipotide?

Adipotide, also called FTPP or prohibitin-targeting peptide 1, was designed at MD Anderson Cancer Center. Rather than mimicking a hormone, it destroys blood vessels. It joins 2 parts (Kolonin 2004 - Kolonin MG, Saha PK, Chan L et al. Reversal of obesity by targeted ablation of adipose tissue. Nat Med. 2004;10(6):625-32., in the references below):

• a short “homing” sequence (CKGGRAKDC), found by screening (phage display) for peptides that stick to the blood vessels of white fat
• a second section that triggers programmed cell death (apoptosis) in whatever cell it reaches.

The homing sequence binds prohibitin, a protein the original research found largely specific to the blood vessels of white fat (Kolonin 2004 - Kolonin MG, Saha PK, Chan L et al. Reversal of obesity by targeted ablation of adipose tissue. Nat Med. 2004;10(6):625-32., in the references below). Delivering the cell-killing half to those vessels kills them, cutting off the fat’s blood supply so the body reabsorbs it.

A later study screened a peptide library directly in human cancer patients. It independently found the same prohibitin target, paired with a protein called annexin A2, in the blood vessels of normal human white fat (Staquicini 2011 - Staquicini FI, Cardó-Vila M, Kolonin MG et al. Vascular ligand-receptor mapping by direct combinatorial selection in cancer patients. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 2011;108(46):18637-42., in the references below). That confirms the target exists in people, though the study did not give adipotide itself.

Adipotide structure

Length

25 amino acids

Sequence

CKGGRAKDCGGKLAKLAKKLAKLAK

Modifications

Disulfide-cyclised CKGGRAKDC targeting motif, a GG spacer, then the pro-apoptotic (KLAKLAK)2 domain made of D-amino acids.

PubChem's "Adipotide" record (CID 163360068) is drawn without the disulfide ring, so it is not used.

Sequence checked against Science Translational Medicine (Barnhart et al. 2011), via PubMed.

Does adipotide work? The mouse and primate evidence

The first evidence came from mice. The researchers who described the compound reported that it reversed established obesity in obese mice, shrinking existing white fat and normalising metabolic measures. They saw no adverse effect in that species (Kolonin 2004 - Kolonin MG, Saha PK, Chan L et al. Reversal of obesity by targeted ablation of adipose tissue. Nat Med. 2004;10(6):625-32., in the references below).

The primate data is the strongest evidence, and the reason adipotide reached a human trial. A peer-reviewed study tested it in 3 species of Old World monkeys: rhesus macaques, baboons and cynomolgus macaques (Barnhart 2011 - Barnhart KF, Christianson DR, Hanley PW et al. A peptidomimetic targeting white fat causes weight loss and improved insulin resistance in obese monkeys. Sci Transl Med. 2011;3(108):108ra112., in the references below).

• Dose-finding. Obese rhesus macaques got 1 of 4 daily doses injected under the skin: 0.10, 0.25, 0.43 or 0.75 mg/kg. The researchers picked 0.43 mg/kg/day as the best balance of effect and safety.
• Fixed-dose study. 15 obese rhesus macaques (5 controls, 10 treated) had 28 daily injections at that dose, then a 4-week recovery period. The treated group lost an average of 10.6% of body weight, 10.0% of BMI and 8.4% of abdominal circumference, all statistically significant. Insulin sensitivity improved on glucose tolerance testing.
• After stopping. The losses began to reverse during the recovery period (Barnhart 2011 - Barnhart KF, Christianson DR, Hanley PW et al. A peptidomimetic targeting white fat causes weight loss and improved insulin resistance in obese monkeys. Sci Transl Med. 2011;3(108):108ra112., in the references below).

Was adipotide tested in humans?

Once, and the trial stopped early. A single first-in-human Phase 1 trial ran at MD Anderson Cancer Center, sponsored by the biotech company that licensed the compound. It enrolled men with metastatic prostate cancer and no standard treatment options left, who also met a BMI threshold for obesity.

Trade-press coverage of the trial’s opening describes:

• daily injections under the skin for 28 days
• up to 5 dose groups of 3 people, moving to a higher dose only if the previous group tolerated it
• goals of finding the highest tolerated dose and measuring how the body handles the drug, with weight and prostate-cancer status as secondary measures.

That is a standard Phase 1 safety design, not an efficacy trial. The prostate-cancer angle came from the idea that white fat makes substances that can feed prostate-cancer growth.

The trial was ended early at the investigator’s request, well short of its plan. No peer-reviewed human efficacy or safety result has ever been published from it, positive or negative.

Separately, the unrelated screening study described above found adipotide’s target in human fat (Staquicini 2011 - Staquicini FI, Cardó-Vila M, Kolonin MG et al. Vascular ligand-receptor mapping by direct combinatorial selection in cancer patients. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 2011;108(46):18637-42., in the references below). Many of its patients were having surgery for other cancers, and it infused a phage library to map receptors, not adipotide.

Adipotide side effects

The only documented safety profile comes from the primate study. There is no published human adverse-event list, because the one human trial never reported.

Kidney injury: the primary risk

The primate study names kidney injury and altered kidney-tubule function as adipotide’s primary side effect (Barnhart 2011 - Barnhart KF, Christianson DR, Hanley PW et al. A peptidomimetic targeting white fat causes weight loss and improved insulin resistance in obese monkeys. Sci Transl Med. 2011;3(108):108ra112., in the references below). It rose with the dose:

• Serum creatinine rose more, and faster, at higher doses, with a clear signal above 0.25 mg/kg/day.
• At the highest dose (0.75 mg/kg/day), kidney tissue showed more marked tubule damage and regrowth.
• Serum phosphorus and potassium fell.
• Urine showed mild to marked glucose (glucosuria) and mild to moderate protein (proteinuria) (Barnhart 2011 - Barnhart KF, Christianson DR, Hanley PW et al. A peptidomimetic targeting white fat causes weight loss and improved insulin resistance in obese monkeys. Sci Transl Med. 2011;3(108):108ra112., in the references below).

The study did not see abnormal fat build-up, including fatty liver, in any treated monkey (Barnhart 2011 - Barnhart KF, Christianson DR, Hanley PW et al. A peptidomimetic targeting white fat causes weight loss and improved insulin resistance in obese monkeys. Sci Transl Med. 2011;3(108):108ra112., in the references below).

Is adipotide legal?

What is sold as “adipotide” today is unregulated research-chemical material, and no regulator checks that a vial matches its label for content, purity or concentration. To judge a seller of any research peptide, see the peptide vendor checklist and how to read a peptide certificate of analysis. Regulatory changes for this compound and others, as they happen: US peptide regulation tracker.

Related

• Adipotide dosage: why this page has no protocol to give
• AOD-9604: the hGH-fragment peptide whose own trial failed
• Semaglutide (Ozempic, Wegovy): the approved label, not the grey market
• Are peptides safe?
• Research peptides and US law

How Adipotide compares

Other fat-loss compounds. Doses for unapproved compounds are common practice, not trial-established. All weight loss and metabolism peptides →

Compound	Main use	Evidence	Usual dose	US status
AOD-9604	Originally developed as an anti-obesity drug candidate; its developer reported that its Phase IIb human obesity trial did not succeed, and development for that indication was discontinued. Now sold to consumers as a research-chemical fat-loss product.	Limited human data	250-500 mcg, once daily, fasted (some protocols run 5 days on, 2 days off)	Unapproved drug
HGH Fragment 176-191	Sold to consumers as a research-chemical fat-loss product, marketed on the claim that this slice of growth hormone carries its fat-metabolising activity without the growth-promoting or blood-sugar effects of the whole hormone. Never developed into an approved drug under this exact sequence.	Animal / lab only	200-500 mcg, once or twice daily, fasted	Unapproved drug
Adipotide	Developed at MD Anderson Cancer Center as a targeted anti-obesity drug candidate that induces apoptosis in the blood vessels feeding white fat. A first-in-human Phase 1 trial in men with prostate cancer and obesity was terminated early with no published results, and it is now sold to consumers as an unregulated research-chemical weight-loss product.	Animal / lab only	No consistent protocol	Unapproved drug
5-Amino-1MQ	An NNMT-inhibiting research chemical marketed for fat loss and metabolic health. Every efficacy result I could locate comes from mouse studies; no published human trial exists.	Animal / lab only	50-150 mg, once daily	Unapproved drug
Tesofensine	Originally developed for Parkinson's and Alzheimer's disease; weight loss observed as a side effect in those trials led to its repositioning as an obesity candidate. It has completed placebo-controlled obesity trials but remains unapproved everywhere, and is now also sold as a grey-market research chemical.	Limited human data	0.25-1 mg, once daily, in the morning, titrated upward over several weeks	Unapproved drug

Where to buy Adipotide for research

Each vendor is checked against my vendor checklist.

1. 1.Next Level PharmFeatured

   2 mg vial

   • No FDA warning letter found
   • Names its testing lab
   • Batch COAs published
   • Takes card payment

   $49.99as of 3 October 2026

   View product →My Next Level Pharm review

See all vendors and how they compare →

Common questions

Does adipotide work for weight loss?

In monkeys, yes. In a peer-reviewed study, obese monkeys given the best dose for 28 days lost meaningful weight and waist size and gained insulin sensitivity; the results partly reversed after dosing stopped. That is real animal evidence, not proof it works in people. The only human trial never published a result.

Is adipotide safe? Does it damage the kidneys?

The primate study that showed its weight loss also found kidney injury as its main side effect, at every dose tested, in all 3 species. It was described as generally mild and reversible, under close monitoring and controlled dosing. There is no comparable human safety data, and a vial bought outside a trial comes with none of that monitoring.

Is adipotide the same as AOD-9604?

No. Both are sold as grey-market fat-loss peptides, but they work completely differently. AOD-9604 is a growth-hormone fragment with no direct effect on blood vessels; adipotide is designed to destroy the blood vessels feeding fat. The AOD-9604 page covers how its own human trial turned out.

What does FTPP stand for?

FTPP and "prohibitin-targeting peptide 1" are both names for adipotide. The name describes its target: prohibitin, a protein researchers identified as a marker of the blood vessels of white fat.

What does adipotide peptide do?

It was designed to kill the blood vessels that feed white fat, so the starved fat is reabsorbed. In obese monkeys, 28 days of dosing produced weight loss and better insulin sensitivity, along with kidney injury. No human result has been published; see the mouse and primate evidence section above.

What are the risks of using adipotide?

The documented risk is kidney injury, which rose with dose and appeared in every primate species studied. I found no published human safety data at all. Anything sold online is an unregulated research chemical, and no regulator checks that a vial matches its label.

References (6 sources)

Show

Bibliographic detail is fetched from PubMed, not written by me - so a citation here cannot drift from the paper it names. Study design comes from PubMed's own tags rather than my judgement.

1. 1.Kolonin MG, Saha PK, Chan L et al. Reversal of obesity by targeted ablation of adipose tissue. Nat Med. 2004;10(6):625-32.StudyPMID 15133506
2. 2.Barnhart KF, Christianson DR, Hanley PW et al. A peptidomimetic targeting white fat causes weight loss and improved insulin resistance in obese monkeys. Sci Transl Med. 2011;3(108):108ra112.StudyPMID 22072637full text
3. 3.Staquicini FI, Cardó-Vila M, Kolonin MG et al. Vascular ligand-receptor mapping by direct combinatorial selection in cancer patients. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 2011;108(46):18637-42.StudyPMID 22049339full text
4. 4.Fierce Biotech - Arrowhead Announces Dosing of First Patient with Anti-Obesity Treatment Adipotide in a Phase 1 Clinical Trial. Trial design, population and purpose for the human study discussed on this page.- Fierce Biotechother
5. 5.FDA - Certain Bulk Drug Substances that May Present Significant Safety Risks. Confirms adipotide, FTPP and prohibitin do not appear in the safety-risk or withdrawn-nomination tables (checked 27 September 2026, page content current 22 April 2026).- U.S. Food and Drug Administrationregulatory
6. 6.ClinicalTrials.gov - registry entry for the MD Anderson-run, first-in-human Phase 1 trial of adipotide (prohibitin-targeting peptide 1) in men with metastatic prostate cancer and obesity. Search "prohibitin targeting peptide" on the site to find it directly. Confirms the trial status as terminated, per the principal investigator's request, with no results posted.- ClinicalTrials.gov, US National Library of Medicinedatabase

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