BPC-157 vs TB-500
Two different molecules from two different parent proteins, with two different proposed mechanisms and two very different sizes of published record. They are searched as a pair because they are commonly supplied as one.
They are not variants of each other
BPC-157 is a synthetic pentadecapeptide — fifteen residues, sequence GEPPPGKPADDAGLV, molecular weight around 1,419 Da. It is a partial sequence of a protein found in human gastric juice, which is where the name "body protection compound" comes from.
TB-500 is a synthetic fragment of thymosin beta-4, a naturally occurring actin-sequestering protein. It is also listed as TB4 frag and thymosin β4 fragment.
Different parent molecule, different sequence, different length, different proposed mechanism. The only thing they share is the kind of research they appear in.
Side by side
| BPC-157 | TB-500 | |
|---|---|---|
| What it is | Synthetic pentadecapeptide | Synthetic fragment of thymosin beta-4 |
| Sequence | GEPPPGKPADDAGLV (15 residues) | A fragment of the β4 sequence |
| Molecular weight | ≈1,419 Da | Fragment of a ≈4,900 Da protein |
| CAS | 137525-51-0 | Fragment; no single CAS in our file |
| Proposed mechanism in the literature | Vascular and nitric-oxide-system effects | Binding G-actin, regulating actin polymerisation |
| Human trial data | Yes — an IBD programme | None in our file; murine and in-vitro |
| Formats here | Vial and capsules | Vial |
| Supplied together as | Wolverine Stack · Recovery Stack · GLOW · KLOW | |
The mechanisms are in different categories
This is the part most comparisons skip, and it is the part that makes the two genuinely different rather than interchangeable.
The TB-500 literature is built on actin. Thymosin beta-4's characterised role is binding G-actin and regulating actin polymerisation, reviewed in Trends in Molecular Medicine (doi:10.1016/j.molmed.2005.07.004). That is a structural, cytoskeletal mechanism, and the tissue-repair work rests on it. A murine and in-vitro scratch-assay study reported increased keratinocyte migration and re-epithelialisation against controls (PMID 10469335).
The BPC-157 literature is built on the vascular and nitric-oxide systems, set out in a review of rodent models (PMID 29879879). Different system, different level of biology.
Two compounds proposed to act through unrelated mechanisms are not two versions of the same thing, whatever they are sold next to.
The evidence records are not the same size
BPC-157 has human clinical trial data; TB-500, in our file, does not.
BPC-157 ran a clinical-trial programme for inflammatory bowel disease under the development codes PL-10, PLD-116 and PL 14736 (PMID 17186181) — the same paper that reports its stability in human gastric juice. Beyond that the record includes a review of the musculoskeletal soft-tissue healing literature (PMID 30915550) and a rabbit segmental bone-defect study compared against bone marrow and autologous cortical bone implantation (PMID 10071911). Those animal studies are animal studies and we are not going to describe them as anything else.
TB-500's record, as we hold it, is the actin review and the murine keratinocyte work. That is a smaller body of evidence at an earlier stage, and the honest statement of the difference is that one of these two has been in human trials and the other has not.
Why they are searched as a pair
Because they are sold as a pair. The combination has a nickname — the Wolverine Stack — and that is how most people meet both compounds at once. We supply it as a single product, and the same two compounds appear in the Recovery Stack with KPV added, and in the GLOW and KLOW blends alongside GHK-Cu.
No literature exists on any of those combinations as combinations. Each component has its own published record and nothing in those records describes what happens when they are supplied together — see GLOW vs KLOW for how we handle that gap on the blends.
Formats differ, and only for BPC-157
TB-500 is stocked as a lyophilised vial. BPC-157 is stocked as a vial and as capsules, which is a real difference between the two and the reason BPC-157 capsules vs vials exists as its own page: the gastric-juice stability reported in the IBD paper is specific to BPC-157 and does not transfer to TB-500.
Supply note. Peptiq supplies research compounds for laboratory research use only. We are not a pharmacy and we do not supply licensed medicines. Where a licensed medicine is named on this page it is named to draw a distinction, not because we sell it, and nothing here is guidance on use.
Frequently asked questions
What is the difference between BPC-157 and TB-500?
They are different molecules. BPC-157 is a synthetic 15-residue peptide derived from a protein in gastric juice; TB-500 is a synthetic fragment of thymosin beta-4. Their proposed mechanisms in the literature are unrelated — vascular and nitric-oxide-system effects for BPC-157, actin binding for TB-500.
Which has more research behind it?
BPC-157. It has human clinical trial data from an inflammatory bowel disease programme, alongside a substantial animal literature. TB-500's published record, as we hold it, is a review of thymosin beta-4's actin role and murine and in-vitro work.
Are they supplied together?
Yes. The two together are stocked as the Wolverine Stack, and both appear in the Recovery Stack and in the GLOW and KLOW blends. No published literature exists on any of those combinations as combinations.