How does cerebrolysin work?

Cerebrolysin is a standardized mixture of low-molecular-weight neuropeptides and amino acids from porcine brain. This site's profile says its fractions mimic neurotrophic factors such as BDNF and NGF and activate neuroprotective signaling. Half-life varies by fraction. There is no single molecular weight. A 2023 Cochrane review of seven randomized trials in 1,773 people with acute ischaemic stroke found no convincing benefit on mortality or function and rated the certainty low. CASTA, a 1,070-patient double-blind trial, showed no significant difference versus placebo on its confirmatory endpoint. It is used in more than 30 countries and is not FDA approved, not licensed in the UK, and not approved in Australia or Canada. A mixture plus a neurotrophic-factor story is not a counted stroke benefit in those two reviews. This FAQ does not invent a dose. Full record at /compounds/cerebrolysin.

Educational use only. This database summarizes published research and is not medical advice. Where a dose appears it is a record of what a trial or clinic ran, or what people describe doing, with its source attached. Nothing here is a recommendation for personal use.

Part of cognitive and mood peptides. Selank, semax, cerebrolysin, and other nootropic and CNS peptides.