The short version of tetrapeptide fits in a sentence. The long version — which is the one that helps — is below.
This page was last updated on 2026-01-22 and is reviewed periodically as new material appears.
The compound is generally described as a synthetic analogue of a fragment isolated from a pineal gland extract. Researchers associated with the Saint Petersburg Institute of Bioregulation and Gerontology introduced it during the 1980s and 1990s while studying short peptides from animal tissue. The original extract, called epithalamin, is a heterogeneous mixture, whereas epitalon is a single defined sequence. That distinction matters because findings reported for the extract are not automatically findings about the pure tetrapeptide, and claims about broader biological effects remain a separate question from the chemical identity described here.
Residue composition is the property that most cleanly separates verified material from mislabelled samples. Alanine, glutamate, aspartate and glycine appear in that order from the N-terminus, and the two acidic residues sit in the middle of the chain. Because the peptide is short, it can be produced by solid-phase synthesis and characterised by mass spectrometry without ambiguity. Any reported sample whose measured mass departs substantially from 390 daltons is a different compound or a degraded mixture rather than epitalon.
Identity is normally established by reversed-phase high-performance liquid chromatography combined with mass spectrometry, a pairing that separates components and confirms molecular mass at once. Purity is quoted as a percentage from the chromatogram, and figures above ninety-five percent are a frequent commercial specification. Amino acid analysis or sequencing supplies further confirmation when required. Because many short peptides behave similarly under chromatography, retention time alone does not establish sequence; the mass measurement is what separates one tetrapeptide from another, and certificates should report both.
Short peptides such as AEDG are normally supplied as a freeze-dried solid and are kept dry, cold, and shielded from light. Holding at minus twenty degrees Celsius is common for the long term, while a refrigerator suffices for brief periods before use. The material takes up moisture to some degree, so containers should stay sealed and be allowed to reach room temperature before opening, which limits condensation on the contents. Repeated warming and cooling of a single container is discouraged because it admits water and can lower the amount of intact peptide.
| Property | Value | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Molecular formula | C14H22N4O9 | Derived from the four constituent residues |
| Molecular mass | About 390.35 Da | Monoisotopic value, confirmed by mass spectrometry |
| Residue sequence | Ala-Glu-Asp-Gly | Read from the N-terminus to the C-terminus |
| Common synonyms | Epithalon; AEDG | Both forms appear in reference catalogues |
| Net charge near neutral pH | Negative | Two acidic side chains give a low isoelectric point |
The compound is described in the literature as a derivative of epithalamin, a preparation obtained from bovine pineal tissue. Work on this peptide family was carried out mainly by a research group in Saint Petersburg beginning in the 1980s, and the substance was later registered for clinical use in Russia under the name Epitalon. Outside that region it is generally treated as a research chemical rather than an approved medicine. Statements about its biological activity rest on a relatively small number of studies, and independent replication remains limited.
In its supplied form epitalon is a white to off-white powder, usually lyophilized and often hygroscopic. It dissolves readily in water and in aqueous buffers, and it is commonly handled as the acetate or trifluoroacetate salt to improve stability during purification and drying. The amide backbone is labile in aqueous media, so solutions are less durable than the dry solid. Handling notes in the chemical literature therefore emphasize keeping the powder dry, cool and shielded from light until it is dissolved.
Identity testing for epitalon relies on reversed-phase high-performance liquid chromatography for purity and mass spectrometry for mass confirmation. Because the sequence contains no tryptophan or tyrosine, ultraviolet detection at 280 nanometres is insensitive, so chromatographic methods usually monitor absorbance near 214 nanometres, where the peptide backbone absorbs. Electrospray ionisation or matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionisation then checks the intact mass against the expected value near 390 daltons. Peptide mapping or amino acid analysis after acid hydrolysis can supplement these measurements, although such confirmatory work is seldom reported on commercial certificates of analysis.
Stability of the tetrapeptide follows ordinary peptide chemistry rather than any unusual structural feature. The aspartate-glycine pair is prone to aspartimide formation under mildly basic or neutral conditions, and deamidation can follow, altering both mass and chromatographic retention. Dry lyophilised powder kept at or below minus twenty degrees Celsius is the usual handling recommendation, with repeated freeze-thaw cycles avoided. Once dissolved in neutral aqueous buffer, degradation proceeds over days to weeks depending on pH and temperature, while acidic conditions generally slow the aspartimide route. A formal stability-indicating study has not been published in the indexed literature.
Epitalon is a synthetic linear tetrapeptide with the sequence alanine–glutamate–aspartate–glycine, abbreviated AEDG. Its molecular formula is C14H22N4O9 and the calculated mass is approximately 390.35 g/mol. The compound is made by solid-phase peptide synthesis rather than extracted from tissue, although early work described it as a short fragment of a peptide fraction obtained from bovine pineal extract. In the research literature the spelling epitalon and the variant epithalone both appear, while AEDG is the standard code used in peptide nomenclature.
Several names circulate for the same molecule, including epitalon, epithalone, epithalamin tetrapeptide, and the sequence code AEDG. A CAS registry number, 307297-39-8, is commonly cited for it, though catalogue entries should be checked against supplier documentation because mislabelled records occur. In its usual form the peptide carries free amino and carboxyl termini and is neither glycosylated nor lipidated. Researchers distinguish the defined tetrapeptide from epithalamin itself, a crude pineal preparation containing many peptides that is not chemically characterised.
Material supplied for laboratory use is normally a lyophilised white to off-white powder that dissolves readily in water and in isotonic saline. Lyophilised cakes are hygroscopic and should be equilibrated to room temperature before opening to limit condensation on the solid. Solutions are typically prepared at milligram-per-millilitre concentrations and divided into single-use aliquots, because repeated freeze–thaw cycles degrade short peptides. Aqueous solutions are far less stable than the dry powder, and identity is usually verified by mass spectrometry alongside purity estimation from reversed-phase high-performance liquid chromatography.
== Awards and honors == Fulbright fellowship for research in pediatric hematology Honorary Doctorate of Science from William Woods College (1972) Honorary service award from the Ohio State University Home Economics Alumni Association Honorary member of the Turkish Society of Hematology Selected as a "Woman of Achievement" by the Group Action Council of Metropolitan St. Louis (1947)
MHC class I molecules are one of two primary classes of major histocompatibility complex (MHC) molecules (the other being MHC class II) and are found on the cell surface of all nucleated cells in the bodies of vertebrates. They also occur on platelets, but not on red blood cells. Their function is to display peptide fragments of proteins from within the cell to cytotoxic T cells; this will trigger an immediate response from the immune system against a particular non-self antigen displayed with the help of an MHC class I protein. Because MHC class I molecules present peptides derived from cytosolic proteins, the pathway of MHC class I presentation is often called cytosolic or endogenous pathway. In humans, the HLAs corresponding to MHC class I are HLA-A, HLA-B, and HLA-C.
Naphthols, xylenes, and cis- and trans- fatty acids are compounds that are prohibitively difficult to distinguish according to their electron ionization mass spectral profiles. Xylenes present the additional challenge of natural co-elution that makes separating their isoforms problematic. Figure 2 shows the distinct VUV spectra of m-, p-, and o-xylene. These compounds can be differentiated despite their only difference being the position of two methyl groups around a benzene ring. The spectral differences of these isomers enable their co-elution to be resolved through spectral deconvolution. Fatty acid screening and profiling is an application that commonly requires the use of multiple detectors to achieve quantitative and qualitative results. FID is a quantitative detector that is suitable for routine screening when guided by retention index information. GC-MS has traditionally been used for qualitative compound profiling, but falls short where isobaric analytes are prevalent. It especially struggles with differentiating cis and trans fatty acid isomers. Electron impact ionization can also cause double bond migration and lead to ambiguous fatty acid structural data. Determining cis and trans fatty acid distribution in oils and fats is important in assessing their potential health impacts. VUV spectra of trans-containing fatty acid methyl ester (FAME) isomers typically found in butter and vegetable oils are shown in Figure 3.
The carbonyl groups of reducing sugars react with the amino groups of amino acids in the Maillard reaction, a complex series of reactions that occurs when cooking food. Maillard reaction products (MRPs) are diverse; some are beneficial to human health, while others are toxic. However, the overall effect of the Maillard reaction is to decrease the nutritional value of food. One example of a toxic product of the Maillard reaction is acrylamide, a neurotoxin and possible carcinogen that is formed from free asparagine and reducing sugars when cooking starchy foods at high temperatures (above 120 °C). However, evidence from epidemiological studies suggest that dietary acrylamide is unlikely to raise the risk of people developing cancer.
In March 1917, the abdication of Tsar Nicholas II led to the Russian Provisional Government (March–July 1917), who then proclaimed the Russian Republic (September–November 1917). Later in the October Revolution, the Bolshevik's seizure of power against the Provisional Government resulted in their establishment of the Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic (1917–1991), yet parts of Russia remained occupied by the counter-revolutionary White Movement of anti-communists who had united to form the White Army to fight the Russian Civil War (1917–1922) against the Bolshevik government. Moreover, despite the White–Red civil war, Russia remained a combatant in the Great War that the Bolsheviks had quit with the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk which then provoked the Allied Intervention to the Russian Civil War by the armies of seventeen countries, featuring Great Britain, France, Italy, the United States and Imperial Japan.
Sources: en.wikipedia.org
Around the 1930s plant nutritionists investigated diseases of certain plants, and thereby, observed symptoms related to existing soil conditions such as salinity or nutrient deficiency. In this context, water culture experiments were undertaken with the hope of delivering similar symptoms under controlled laboratory conditions. This approach forced by Dennis Robert Hoagland led to innovative model systems (e.g., green algae Nitella) and standardized nutrient recipes playing an increasingly important role in modern plant physiology. In 1929, William Frederick Gericke of the University of California at Berkeley began publicly promoting that the principles of solution culture be used for agricultural crop production. He first termed this cultivation method "aquiculture" created in analogy to "agriculture" but later found that the cognate term aquaculture was already applied to culture of aquatic organisms. Gericke created a sensation by growing tomato vines twenty-five feet (7.6 metres) high in his backyard in mineral nutrient solutions rather than soil. He then introduced the term Hydroponics, water culture, in 1937, proposed to him by W. A. Setchell, a phycologist with an extensive education in the classics. Hydroponics is derived from neologism υδρωπονικά (derived from Greek ύδωρ=water and πονέω=cultivate), constructed in analogy to γεωπονικά (derived from Greek γαία=earth and πονέω=cultivate), geoponica, that which concerns agriculture, replacing, γεω-, earth, with ὑδρο-, water.
=== Classification === MSUD has five clinical phenotypes that are very distinct from one another. The most common and severe is the classical type with low residual activity from 0–2% of normal. Milder types include intermediate and intermittent with higher residual activities from 3–30% of the normal. Most unique is the thiamine-responsive type, where patients respond to high doses of thiamine administered, although this method is controversial. Lastly, the E-3 deficient type is correlated to combined enzyme deficiencies in pyruvate dehydrogenase, BCKD complexes, and alpha-ketoglutarate dehydrogenase, since E3 is common within mitochondrial alpha-ketoacid dehydrogenase complexes. NBS (newborn screening) detects most individuals with intermediate MSUD, but those who were not screened as newborns can be later diagnosed with MSUD. In these individuals, plasma BCAA concentrations are similar to those who have classic MSUD. However, they have better Lucine tolerance, and during acute metabolic decompensation episodes, they do not require intensive nutritional support. Severe metabolic intoxication with significant encephalopathy and leucinosis can occur if subjected to serious catabolic stress.
Venous thrombosis is the formation of a thrombus (blood clot) in a vein. This most commonly affects a deep vein known as deep vein thrombosis (DVT), but can also affect a superficial vein known as superficial vein thrombosis (SVT).
=== Farming === About 70% of lotus for human consumption is produced in China. In 2005, the cultivation area in China was estimated at 300,000 hectares (740,000 acres). A majority of lotus production takes place in managed farming systems in ponds or flooded fields like rice. There three main ways of producing these flowers:
Sources: en.wikipedia.org
It is a four-amino-acid peptide built from alanine, glutamate, aspartate and glycine in that order. Its formula is C14H22N4O9, and it is made by chemical synthesis rather than extracted from tissue. The synthetic peptide is a single defined molecule, unlike the pineal extracts it is often compared with.
No. The two spellings refer to the same tetrapeptide, and the difference reflects transliteration from Russian. Laboratories and catalogues use both forms interchangeably. The material is also indexed as AEDG, taken from the one-letter codes of its residues.
Epithalamin is a mixed preparation derived from animal pineal tissue and contains many peptides. Epitalon is one synthetic sequence chosen for study from that broader mixture. Statements about one do not transfer directly to the other.
Reversed-phase high-performance liquid chromatography is run alongside mass spectrometry. The chromatogram separates components and gives a purity figure, while the mass spectrum confirms that the measured molecular mass matches the expected sequence. Neither measurement on its own is treated as sufficient.