TCAP-1 (Teneurin C-terminal Associated Peptide-1)
A 41-amino-acid peptide from the tip of the teneurin proteins that acts as a natural brake on the body's stress hormone CRF — reducing anxiety in animals. A research peptide, not a drug
Teneurin C-terminal associated peptide-1 (TCAP-1) is a short bioactive peptide tucked at the very end of a much larger protein: teneurin-1, one of a family of four cell-surface proteins that help nerve cells find and stick to their partners in the developing brain. At the distal tip of each teneurin sits a 41-amino-acid sequence that can be released as its own signalling peptide — the TCAP. TCAP-1 is the best studied. It looks, in part, like corticotropin-releasing factor (CRF), the hormone that launches the body's stress response, and it behaves as a functional brake on that system. In rodents, TCAP-1 given into the brain or body blocks CRF-driven stress signals in the limbic brain, reduces anxiety-like behaviour, and even damps CRF-triggered relapse to cocaine seeking — while reshaping the fine branches (dendrites) of hippocampal neurons. In cells it binds the teneurin receptor latrophilin (also called ADGRL), controls the flow of calcium, and tunes the growth factor BDNF. The peptide is strikingly ancient, conserved from invertebrates to humans. TCAP-1 has been described as a drug candidate for stress and anxiety disorders, but it is not an approved medicine, has no registered clinical trial, and this page records what the published science shows — it is not a dose or a therapy.
No established human dose Details ↓
Recommended Dosing
No established human dose
TCAP-1 is a teneurin-derived peptide that has not been given to people in any registered trial. The published work is in animals and cells, where TCAP-1 is given into the brain, under the skin or into the nose at experimental amounts that do not carry over to people.
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What is it?
The teneurins are a family of four large proteins that span the surface of nerve cells and help wire the brain, guiding cells to their partners during development. At the far tip of each teneurin, facing out from the cell, lies a 41-amino-acid sequence that can act as a signalling peptide in its own right — the teneurin C-terminal associated peptide, or TCAP. Four exist (TCAP-1 to -4); TCAP-1, from teneurin-1, is by far the most studied.
TCAP-1's defining feature is its relationship to the body's stress system. It shares part of its structure with corticotropin-releasing factor (CRF), the hormone that triggers the stress response, and it behaves as a functional antagonist of CRF. Its natural binding partner is the teneurin receptor latrophilin (ADGRL), an adhesion G-protein-coupled receptor; in cell studies the peptide binds latrophilin, is taken up into cells, reshapes the actin cytoskeleton, and regulates the flow of calcium within the cell — effects that could underlie its CRF-opposing, anti-stress actions.
In animals the anti-stress profile is consistent. Given repeatedly into the brain of rats, TCAP-1 attenuates CRF-induced activation (c-Fos) across the limbic system — hippocampus, amygdala, prefrontal cortex, dorsal raphe — and changes behaviour on anxiety tests, and its effects on behavioural responses to CRF persist for weeks after the last dose. It increases dendritic spine density in the hippocampus and modulates anxiety-like behaviour, and it blunts CRF-driven reinstatement of cocaine seeking, pointing to a role in both stress and addiction circuits. More recent work shows that TCAP-1 given under the skin or into the nose reduces the corticosterone (stress-hormone) rise caused by restraint stress in mice and rats — non-invasive routes that its developers highlight as relevant to a potential anxiolytic.
At the cellular level TCAP-1 also regulates brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) and energy metabolism (glucose uptake in neurons), and the peptide is remarkably conserved: versions are active in fish, tunicates and even oysters, where TCAP reduces cellular and behavioural stress. This deep conservation is part of why it is studied as a fundamental regulator of the stress response rather than a late evolutionary add-on.
TCAP-1 is a teneurin-derived research peptide. It has been described as an early drug candidate (designated PT00114) for stress- and anxiety-related disorders by its clinical developer, but it is not approved anywhere, there is no registered clinical trial of giving it to people, and the published evidence is animal and cell work. Material sold online as 'TCAP-1' is an unregulated research chemical. Nothing here is a dose or a therapy; this page records what the science says about the peptide.
Mechanism of Action
TCAP-1 is a 41-residue amidated peptide released from the C-terminal tip of teneurin-1. It is structurally related to corticotropin-releasing factor (CRF) and acts as a functional CRF antagonist, binding the teneurin receptor latrophilin (ADGRL), regulating intracellular calcium and BDNF, and blunting CRF-driven stress and anxiety in animals.
CRF-system antagonism
TCAP-1 shares structure with CRF but opposes it: it blocks CRF-induced limbic c-Fos and stress behaviour (PMID 19428634) and reduces cytosolic calcium to counter CRF's stress actions (PMID 36467544).
Latrophilin (ADGRL) receptor binding
TCAP-1 associates with the teneurin receptor latrophilin-1, is internalised, and reshapes the actin cytoskeleton and cell adhesion (PMID 30774623).
Anxiolysis and limbic remodelling
In rodents TCAP-1 reduces anxiety-like behaviour and increases hippocampal dendritic spine density (PMID 21411044), and attenuates stress-hormone responses by non-invasive routes (PMID 39651597).
Published Research
These are studies of TCAP-1 read from their PubMed abstracts on November 6, 2026. They include a study of its attenuation of restraint-stress corticosterone by non-invasive routes, animal studies of its effects on dendritic morphology and anxiety, on CRF-induced limbic activation, and on enduring behavioural responses to CRF, a cell study of its calcium-regulating (CRF-antagonist) action, and a cell study of its binding to the latrophilin receptor. TCAP-1 has no registered clinical trial; the evidence is animal and cell work.
TCAP-1 attenuates restraint-stress corticosterone in mice and rats
Subcutaneous TCAP-1 reduced the physiological stress response (corticosterone rise) to tube restraint in male mice and rats, and intranasal TCAP-1 given prophylactically likewise blunted the stress-induced corticosterone increase in male rats. The authors conclude that TCAP-1 delivered by non-invasive routes could have potential as a clinically relevant anxiolytic (a preclinical result).
TCAP-1 reshapes hippocampal dendrites and reduces anxiety
Ten days of TCAP-1 injection increased dendritic spine density in the CA1 and CA3 regions of the rat hippocampus (without changing the amygdala), reduced branching of CA3 basilar dendrites, and on the elevated-plus maze increased open-arm time and decreased closed-arm entries — a reduction in anxiety-like behaviour linked to remodelling of hippocampal neurons (a preclinical result).
TCAP-1 blocks CRF-induced limbic activation
A single central dose of TCAP-1 before CRF attenuated the CRF-induced rise in c-Fos across the limbic system — hippocampus, central and basolateral amygdala, medial prefrontal cortex and dorsal raphe — while leaving some regions unaffected, and altered risk-assessment behaviour on the elevated-plus maze. TCAP-1 regulates stress by blocking CRF-mediated activity in specific stress-sensitive brain areas (a preclinical result).
TCAP-1 produces enduring changes in responses to CRF
Rats given TCAP-1 into the cerebral ventricles once daily for five days, then tested one to three weeks later, showed altered behavioural responses to an acute CRF challenge: in the plus maze and open field the CRF effects were enhanced by prior TCAP-1, whereas in the acoustic-startle test they were diminished. The effects of TCAP-1 on CRF-driven behaviour were long-lasting (a preclinical result).
TCAP-1 regulates intracellular calcium as a CRF antagonist
In hypothalamic cell lines, TCAP-1 reduced cytosolic calcium by driving uptake into mitochondria and efflux through the plasma membrane, independently of the teneurin protein. Although TCAP shares some structure with CRF, it is released from the distal teneurin region and, through this calcium-regulating action, could oppose the stress-inducing actions of CRF — supporting its role as a functional CRF antagonist (a cell study).
TCAP-1 binds the latrophilin receptor
Co-expressed in HEK293 cells, a tagged TCAP-1 peptide and the hormone-binding domain of latrophilin-1 (LPHN1/ADGRL1) co-localised and co-immunoprecipitated, and a fluorescent TCAP-1 labelled the membrane of latrophilin-expressing cells. TCAP-1 modulated the actin cytoskeleton and cell aggregation, indicating it associates directly with latrophilin and may act through it to influence intercellular adhesion (a cell study).
No Established Human Dose
TCAP-1 is a teneurin-derived peptide that has not been given to people in any registered trial. The published work is in animals and cells, where TCAP-1 is given into the brain, under the skin or into the nose at experimental amounts that do not carry over to people. No regulator has approved any dose, and no published human dose exists, so no amount is printed here.
What this rests on: PMID 39651597, PMID 21411044, PMID 18082275.
Educational information, not medical advice. The doses on this page come from approved labels, published studies and, where no study exists, amounts reported by users. None is a recommendation for you. An unapproved compound has no established safe or effective human dose, and products sold for “research use only” are not made or tested for people. Talk to a doctor before acting on anything on this site, including before you start, stop or change any medicine or dose. Full medical disclaimer.
What a Buyer Needs to Know
What is sold, how it is mixed, stored and taken, and what is known about its safety, quality and legal status. Each part names its source. Where we have none, it says unknown.
What is sold
Unknown: we hold no label and no published test that says what forms or vial sizes TCAP-1 (Teneurin C-terminal Associated Peptide-1) is sold in. A vial's own label is a seller's claim, not a source.
Mixing a vial: a worked example
Unknown: no human dose of TCAP-1 (Teneurin C-terminal Associated Peptide-1) has been established (see No Established Human Dose below), so there is no amount to work out. The reconstitution calculator does the arithmetic for any vial, water and dose.
Storage before and after mixing
Unknown: no label or published stability study on file says how to store TCAP-1 (Teneurin C-terminal Associated Peptide-1), before or after mixing. The mixing guide sets out the general rules, with their sources: keep a mixed vial in the fridge, and use it promptly, as the bacteriostatic water label says of any drug dissolved in it. The 28 days often quoted is the limit for an opened multiple-dose vial from a manufacturer, an outer limit set for sterility, not a time a mixed solution has been shown to keep. Nobody has published how long TCAP-1 (Teneurin C-terminal Associated Peptide-1) stays intact once mixed.
How it is taken
Unknown: with no established human dose, there is no established way of taking TCAP-1 (Teneurin C-terminal Associated Peptide-1). What the human studies gave and how is set out under No Established Human Dose.
What to expect, and when
How long it stays in the body: a half-life of not established for humans as a drug; a teneurin-derived peptide. After about five half-lives almost none is left.
When effects appear: unknown; no source on this page gives a time to effect for TCAP-1 (Teneurin C-terminal Associated Peptide-1). Results reported in the studies are under Published Research.
Source: half-life: PMID 36467544.
Side effects, and when to stop or get help
From the Side Effects section: No human adverse-event data exist: there is no registered clinical trial of TCAP-1; In animals it reduces stress-hormone and anxiety responses and reshapes hippocampal dendrites (PMIDs 39651597, 21411044) — preclinical signals, not a human safety profile; It is structurally related to CRF and binds the latrophilin receptor, so its effects on the stress axis and on neural wiring are the focus of ongoing study; Material sold online as 'TCAP-1' is an unregulated research chemical of unverified content. Full list and cautions ↓
When to stop or get help: unknown; no label or trial on file sets rules for stopping TCAP-1 (Teneurin C-terminal Associated Peptide-1). Treat a severe or unexpected reaction as a reason to stop and see a doctor.
Source: the Side Effects section below (“TCAP-1 is a research peptide that has not been given to people in a registered trial, so there is no human safety profile; the points below reflect that research status”).
Interactions
Unknown: a PubMed search for human interaction studies of TCAP-1 (Teneurin C-terminal Associated Peptide-1) (reviewed 2026-11-06) found none. Unknown is not the same as safe to combine.
Every peptide's record, with its source: the interaction matrix.
Checking what you bought
Unknown: no published independent test of TCAP-1 (Teneurin C-terminal Associated Peptide-1) products is in our lab-results database yet, so how products sold under this name measure up is not known.
To read a certificate of analysis, paste it into the COA decoder. Trust & Verification explains what independent testing can and cannot show.
Legal status
US: Research Chemical (Not a drug: Drugs@FDA and the openFDA label endpoint hold no record, ClinicalTrials.gov holds no registered trial, and FDA GSRS and ChEMBL hold no substance record for TCAP-1 (searched November 6, 2026)). Sport: Not on the 2026 List.
Country by country ↓ · Regulatory tracker
Source: this entry's approval status and the WADA Prohibited List, as in Legal Status below.
Side Effects & Contraindications
Reported Side Effects
TCAP-1 is a research peptide that has not been given to people in a registered trial, so there is no human safety profile; the points below reflect that research status.
Contraindications & Cautions
TCAP-1 has no approved use and no label. These points reflect its research status.
Legal Status
TCAP-1 is a teneurin-derived peptide studied as a research compound and early drug candidate; it is not a drug and is not approved in any country.
Frequently Asked Questions
?What is TCAP-1?
Teneurin C-terminal associated peptide-1: a 41-amino-acid peptide released from the tip of teneurin-1, one of a family of cell-surface proteins that help wire the brain. It is structurally related to the stress hormone CRF and acts as a functional CRF antagonist.
?What does it do?
In animals it blocks CRF-driven stress signalling in the limbic brain and reduces anxiety-like behaviour (PMIDs 19428634, 21411044), and attenuates the stress-hormone rise to restraint when given under the skin or into the nose (PMID 39651597). In cells it binds the latrophilin receptor and regulates calcium (PMIDs 30774623, 36467544).
?What does 'TCAP' mean, and is it the same as the TCAP muscle gene?
Here TCAP stands for teneurin C-terminal associated peptide. It is unrelated to the separate 'TCAP' gene that encodes telethonin (titin-cap), a muscle protein — the shared abbreviation is a coincidence.
?Is it approved or available to buy?
No. TCAP-1 is not a medicine, has no FDA application or label, and no registered clinical trial; it is described as an early drug candidate (PT00114). Material sold online as TCAP-1 is an unregulated research chemical. Grey Peptides lists no sellers and recommends no source; this page records the published science.
References
- [animal] Mueller LE, et al. "Teneurin C-Terminal Associated Peptide (TCAP)-1 Attenuates Restraint Stress-Induced Corticosterone Increases in Male Mice and Rats." Pharmacol Res Perspect, 2024;12(6):e70045. PMID: 39651597.
- [animal] Tan LA, et al. "Teneurin C-terminal associated peptide (TCAP)-1 modulates dendritic morphology in hippocampal neurons and decreases anxiety-like behaviors in rats." Physiol Behav, 2011;104(2):199-204. PMID: 21411044.
- [animal] Tan LA, et al. "Teneurin C-terminal associated peptide (TCAP)-1 attenuates corticotropin-releasing factor (CRF)-induced c-Fos expression in the limbic system and modulates anxiety behavior in male Wistar rats." Behav Brain Res, 2009;201(1):198-206. PMID: 19428634.
- [animal] Tan LA, et al. "Repeated intracerebral teneurin C-terminal associated peptide (TCAP)-1 injections produce enduring changes in behavioral responses to corticotropin-releasing factor (CRF) in rat models of anxiety." Behav Brain Res, 2008;188(1):195-200. PMID: 18082275.
- [mechanism] Hogg DW, et al. "Distal extracellular teneurin region (teneurin C-terminal associated peptide; TCAP) possesses independent intracellular calcium regulating actions, in vitro: A potential antagonist of corticotropin-releasing factor (CRF)." Biochem Biophys Rep, 2022;32:101397. PMID: 36467544.
- [mechanism] Husić M, et al. "Teneurin C-Terminal Associated Peptide (TCAP)-1 and Latrophilin Interaction in HEK293 Cells: Evidence for Modulation of Intercellular Adhesion." Front Endocrinol (Lausanne), 2019;10:22. PMID: 30774623.
- [other] UniProt Q9UKZ4 (teneurin-1, TENM1 gene), read November 6, 2026: the teneurin C-terminal associated peptide (TCAP) is a bioactive sequence at the distal C-terminal tip of the teneurin transmembrane proteins; TCAP-1 is the 41-residue amidated peptide associated with teneurin-1, and the family carries four such peptides (TCAP-1 to -4). https://www.uniprot.org/uniprotkb/Q9UKZ4/entry
- [other] TCAP-1 was identified at the carboxyl terminus of the teneurin proteins and shown to have structural similarity to the corticotropin-releasing factor (CRF) family and to act through the teneurin receptor latrophilin (ADGRL); its 41-residue amidated structure and CRF-related activity are from the studies carded on this page (read November 6, 2026).
- [other] US FDA, Drugs@FDA and the drug label endpoint (openFDA), searched November 6, 2026: no application and no label record for teneurin C-terminal associated peptide / TCAP-1. ClinicalTrials.gov holds no registered trial of TCAP-1 (PT00114). FDA GSRS and ChEMBL hold no substance record for it.
Sources & Citations
The six studies carded above were read from their PubMed records on November 6, 2026. Identity comes from UniProt (Q9UKZ4, teneurin-1) and the studies carded here: TCAP-1's status as the 41-residue C-terminal peptide of teneurin-1, its structural relationship to and functional antagonism of CRF, its binding to the latrophilin (ADGRL) receptor, and its anti-stress, anxiety-reducing and dendrite-remodelling actions in animals are from those studies; the absence of US approval, of a registered clinical trial, and of a drug substance record from Drugs@FDA, openFDA, FDA GSRS and ChEMBL was checked the same day. Grey Peptides sells nothing and links to no vendor.
Medical Disclaimer: This content is for educational and informational purposes only. It is not medical advice, and nothing here is an instruction to obtain or use any compound. Talk to a licensed clinician about your own situation.