MOTS-c
A mitochondrial-derived peptide with promising exercise-mimetic signalling work in animals.
General profile
- Class
- Mitochondrial and metabolic
- Evidence
- Early or preclinical only
- Studied dose range
- 5–10 mg
- Frequency in protocols
- 2–3× weekly
- Route
- Subcutaneous
- Half life
- ~3 hours
- Reconstitution
- 2 mL bacteriostatic water per 10 mg vial
- Storage
- Refrigerated, ~30 days
Timing and cycling in the literature
Usually dosed in the morning window, fasted
Two to three times weekly
Acts as an exercise-mimetic on metabolic signalling, so trial protocols pair it with the fasted, pre-activity window.
Reported cycle: 4 weeks on, 4 weeks off
Mitochondrial signalling protocols are described in four week blocks paired with training, then an equal break.
Watch for: Blood glucose behaviour if you already track it, and unexpected fatigue.
What it conflicts with
Three separate questions, kept separate. A hard stop means the mechanisms must not run together at all and timing does not fix it. A syringe rule means the same day is fine but one barrel is not. Redundancy is not dangerous, it is paying twice to hit one target.
No named pair conflicts are on file for this compound. That is missing data, not clearance: with no compatibility data the default is separate syringes, and you still introduce one new compound at a time.
Most syringe compatibility claims here are practice and expert consensus, not peer reviewed mixing studies. A clear liquid after mixing does not prove the compounds are still active, and cloudiness, particles or gelling means discard. Active cancer, pregnancy, major cardiac care and heavy immunosuppression override every stack preference on this page.
See how MOTS-c fits your week
The injection scheduler spaces doses using the clinical timing data, flags the pairs above before you draw them, and tells you why.
Model this in the injection schedulerThe studies
Human trials: Observational human association studies, no efficacy trials.
Open questions: Everything about human dosing is extrapolated.
Published papers
Indexed from Europe PMC and refreshed weekly. Each link opens the paper itself.
- Mitophagy-mediated immune evasion: Shared strategies of pathogens
Redox Biol · 2026 · Review. Li J, Li W, Wang D, Liu Y.
- MOTS-c attenuates hyperoxia-induced neonatal cardiac injury by inhibiting oxeiptosis via maintaining the KEAP1-PGAM5 interaction
Life Sci · 2026. Li SH, Chen SQ, Lu T, Wang JH, Wang JX, Wu YX, Pang QF, Chen D.
- LAT1-mediated delivery of engineered R13A-MOTS-c attenuates radiation-induced lung injury via Nrf2 activation and mitochondrial protection
Redox Biol · 2026. Zhang YL, Huang G, Li SP, Zhang WL, Chen D, Jin LG, Pang QF, Wu YX, Huang JF.
- Mitochondrial-derived peptide MOTS-c targets SLC7A11 to preserve spermatogenesis by suppressing ferroptosis
Free Radic Biol Med · 2026. Liu S, Ru K, Shen YJ, Yan Y, Zhu C, Wang H, Xu Y, Wang X, Yang H, Zhao S, Gong Y, Tian Y, Qian A, Yang H, Chen Z.
- Energetic metabolism-regulatory glycopeptide hydrogel accelerates pressure ulcer wound repair
Bioact Mater · 2026. Sun M, Guo F, Wang P, Jia L, Liu X, Jiang H, Liu W.
- Circulating mitochondrial-derived microproteins at rest and in response to an acute bout of endurance exercise in individuals with cerebral palsy
Exp Physiol · 2026. Horwath O, Corell L, Wan J, Hjalmarsson E, Starck J, Reitzner SM, Norrbom J, Fernandez-Gonzalo R, Kvist O, Cohen P, von Walden F, Edman S.
- Mitochondrial-derived peptide MOTS-c activates metabolic signaling but blunts reparative function in human mesenchymal stromal cells
Inflamm Regen · 2026. Xing L, Lu B, Zhu X, Al Saeedi M, Lerman A, Eirin A, Cohen P, Lerman LO.
- Mitochondrial peptide MOTS-c suppresses systemic and cardiac inflammasome activation in a diabetic rat model
Exp Physiol · 2026. Mills AR, de Souza A, Pham T, Mugisho OO.
- Modelling 16/8 intermittent fasting and breakfast-skipping in mouse adipocytes 3T3-L1 in vitro: a transcriptomics study
J Genet Eng Biotechnol · 2026. Er PH, Chye JY, Letchumanan G, Say YH.
- MOTS-c: How a secreted mitochondrial microprotein may become a potential treatment for inflammatory lung diseases
J Transl Med · 2026 · Review. Amado CA, Agüero J, García-Unzueta M, Berja A, Lavín BA, Martín-Audera P.
Search the full literature
- PubMed: all indexed papers
Every indexed paper, newest first. Filter to Clinical Trial or Review in the sidebar.
- PubMed: human clinical trials only
The honest test of an evidence claim. An empty result is itself an answer.
- ClinicalTrials.gov registrations
Registered, ongoing and completed trials, including ones that never published.
- Europe PMC full text
Often surfaces open-access full text that PubMed only abstracts.