Study Shows New Peptide Helps Muscle Healing During Steroid Treatment
The researchers tested if a peptide called BPC 157 could help muscles heal, even when steroid medications slow down healing.
They studied this in rats by:
- Injuring the rats’ calf muscles
- Giving some rats steroids, which slows healing
- Treating some rats with BPC 157 (either as an injection or a cream)
- Looking at how the muscles healed over 14 days
They found:
- Rats given only steroids had poor muscle healing
- Rats given BPC 157 healed better
- BPC 157 helped muscles heal even when the rats were on steroids
- This worked whether BPC 157 was injected or applied as a cream
The results suggest BPC 157 might help people’s muscles heal when they need to take steroids. This could matter because steroids, while often needed for medical treatment, can make it harder for injuries to heal.
The study was done at the University of Zagreb Medical School in Croatia and published in 2010.
Study Details
Title: Impact of pentadecapeptide BPC 157 on muscle healing impaired by systemic corticosteroid application
Researchers: Primary authors from Department of Pharmacology and Institute of Pathology, University of Zagreb Medical School, Zagreb, Croatia:
- Danira Pevec
- Tomislav Novinscak
- Luka Brcic
- Predrag Sikiric (corresponding author)
Publication: Medical Science Monitor (Med Sci Monit)
Publication Date: March 1, 2010
PMID: 20190676