Part of the skin and hair peptide hub: every topical and cosmetic peptide we cover, with its evidence grade.

Evidence: LowPeptide Research Only Cosmetic & Skin

Acetyl Pentapeptide-1

also known as: Ac-RKDVY

Ac-RKDVY: the thymopentin sequence with an acetyl cap, sold as a cosmetic ingredient. PubMed holds no study of it.

Acetyl pentapeptide-1 is a synthetic pentapeptide, Ac-Arg-Lys-Asp-Val-Tyr (PubChem's record, under its INCI name). Its five residues are those of thymopentin, the thymopoietin fragment, with an acetylated N-terminus, which makes it a different molecule; nothing studied for thymopentin transfers to it. A title-and-abstract search of PubMed for its INCI name finds no study of it. It is not a drug.

No dosing data yet Details ↓

Dosing

Recommended Dosing

No dosing data yet

This page has no dosing data yet.

Mechanism of action

Not established: no published study describes its action.

Primary uses

Cosmetic skin-care formulations

Typical dosing

Not established for human use

No published study states an amount of this ingredient used on skin, and a supplier's use level is not a source on this site, so none is given.

Regulatory status

Not a drug: PubChem lists it under its INCI name as a cosmetic ingredient (CID 156589015). Drugs@FDA and the EMA medicines list hold no record for it (searched October 28, 2026).

Status as of this entry's last review, October 28, 2026. Approvals, compounding rules and sport rules change; the regulatory tracker is checked more often.

What we checked

Acetyl Pentapeptide-1 is a cosmetic peptide ingredient with little or no published literature; this section records what can be checked.

Identity, computed

Sequence	Ac-Arg-Lys-Asp-Val-Tyr (Ac-RKDVY)
Formula	C32H51N9O10
Average mass	721.81 g/mol
Monoisotopic mass	721.3759 Da
Isoelectric point	7.05 (net charge +0.0 at pH 7)

The sequence is the one PubChem's record gives for the INCI ingredient; the values below are computed and agree with PubChem's formula.

Regulatory status, read October 28, 2026

Drugs@FDA: 0 records for “acetyl pentapeptide-1”. EMA medicines list: 0 records for “acetyl pentapeptide-1”. Run for semaglutide, the same queries return 6 and 5 records (and the registry search 80 trials), so a zero here is an absence, not a broken search. Not named on the WADA 2026 and 2027 Prohibited Lists. As a substance with no current approval for human therapeutic use, it falls under section S0 (non-approved substances), which is prohibited at all times; the lists were read on October 28, 2026.

What we looked for and did not find

No published study of any kind, no registry record and no drug approval.

Source	Query	What it was
PubMed	("pentapeptide-1"[tiab] AND acetyl[tiab])	name matched word by word in title/abstract (a phrase search misses hyphen-numbered names)
ClinicalTrials.gov	acetyl pentapeptide-1
Drugs@FDA (openFDA)	acetyl pentapeptide-1
EMA medicines list	acetyl pentapeptide-1

References

[other] PubChem CID 156589015, Acetyl Pentapeptide-1: formula C32H51N9O10, molecular weight 721.8. Read October 28, 2026. https://pubchem.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/compound/156589015

Related peptides

Thymopentin

A synthetic five-amino-acid fragment of thymopoietin (TP-5), sold as Timunox. Small 1980s and 1990s trials found modest benefits over placebo in atopic dermatitis and rheumatoid arthritis. Not approved in the US.

Acetyl Tetrapeptide-2

A firming cosmetic peptide sold as Uplevity, sequence undisclosed. Its supplier's claims are unpublished; one hair-lotion trial used it among several actives.

Palmitoyl Pentapeptide-4

The palmitoylated procollagen fragment sold as Matrixyl (pal-KTTKS): in a 12-week split-face trial in 93 women a moisturiser containing it reduced wrinkles more than the same moisturiser alone. A cosmetic ingredient, not a drug.

Acetyl Tetrapeptide-22

Ac-HLLR, a cosmetic tetrapeptide. PubMed holds no study of it.

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Disclaimer

This entry is for educational purposes only and does not constitute medical advice. Dosing information reflects published regulatory or research data and is not a recommendation. Many compounds described here are not approved for human use in the United States. Consult a licensed medical professional before considering any peptide therapy.