Just like any other substance, peptides are also susceptible to degradation, deterioration, especially when not stored carefully.
Luckily for you, we’ve created an entire article going in-depth on proper peptide storage, which you should read before ordering larger (or smaller) quantities of both lyophilized and reconstituted peptides.
Powder Form
Lyophilized peptides, or peptides in a so-called powder form, are the most stable and long lasting. This is why most peptides come and are shipped in this form.
Lyophilized peptides, at a temperature of -80 degrees Celsius (-112 Fahrenheit), are generally considered stable up to 1 or even 2,3 years. This is a conservative estimate btw, because, technically, they could last indefinitely. Since the scientists can’t test for “indefinite storage,” generally accepted shelf life for powder peptides is between 1 and 3 years.
Reconstituted Peptides
When we’re talking about reconstituted peptides, things change drastically – shelf life goes down, along with the overall peptide’s stability and its inclination towards deterioration.
Generally speaking, when stored at a temperature of between 2 and 8 degrees Celsius (35.6 – 46.4 Fahrenheit) reconstituted peptides will last a few weeks at max.
But, if you are able to drop the temperature all the way down to -20 to -80 Celsius (-4 to -112 Fahrenheit), you can expect your reconstituted peptide to last several months… Some research suggests it can last up to one full year.
Though we’ve talked about peptide’s shelf life, we gave you some general recommendations, but the exact shelf life depends on other factors as well. Those are:
- The actual peptide – different amino acids (and their combinations) build different peptides. And, depending on the peptide’s composition, its shelf life may vary. This is why reading labels is the first thing you should do to inform yourself on the most precise shelf life data on your given peptide.
- Other substances – besides a pure solvent (like bacteriostatic water), other substances can be added; substances such as preservatives. Preservatives act in such a way to inhibit bacterial growth, thus, extending the shelf life of a given peptide.
- Handling – we already talked a lot about storing and handling your peptides properly, but here what we mean is the way you use your peptide, primarily to avoid putting it through free-thaw cycles. Whenever a peptide goes through this cycle, it degrades and becomes less stable. This is why our advice is to initially divide the peptide up into smaller containers so you can just thaw those, instead of the entire batch.
- pH – this is something you might not even think about but the pH of the reconstituted peptide plays a role in its longevity. So, make sure you keep it within the specified limits.
Final Points
When talking about peptide shelf life, here are the main points to take home:
- Always follow manufacturer’s labels and recommendations
- Make sure you don’t repeat too many freeze-thaw cycles
- Keep an eye for other substances (such as preservatives) when reconstituting
- Make sure you store it properly and in the right temperature
References:
“A Comparative Study of Peptide Storage Conditions Over an Extended Time Frame” by Diana Tran , Victoria Nguyen , Melissa Breck , Brett Phinney , Darren Weber PMCID: PMC3630641
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