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MOTS-c
No human evidence exists either way yet. What's real is the mouse biology: MOTS-c prevented diet-induced obesity and reversed age-related muscle insulin resistance in mice. That is not the same as a finding in people, and none currently exists.
In brief
Should you care? This is a genuinely interesting piece of biology with zero human evidence yet — worth distinguishing from compounds whose animal data is itself weak.The short version
- A real, novel discovery: a peptide encoded in mitochondrial DNA, not the nuclear genome.
- Real mouse data: prevented diet-induced obesity and reversed age-related insulin resistance.
- No human trial located for any indication.
What it is
MOTS-c is a 16-amino-acid peptide encoded within the mitochondrial 12S rRNA gene — notably, the mitochondrial genome rather than the nuclear one — one of a small class of "mitochondrial-derived peptides" discovered by the Cohen lab.
What the evidence shows
The foundational paper found MOTS-c prevented diet-induced obesity and reversed age-dependent muscle insulin resistance — entirely in mice (Lee et al., "The Mitochondrial-Derived Peptide MOTS-c Promotes Metabolic Homeostasis and Reduces Obesity and Insulin Resistance," Cell Metab 2015;21(3):443-454, PMID 25738959). A follow-up mechanistic paper further characterized its nuclear-translocation, AMPK-activation pathway, again in cell and animal models. We were not able to locate a published human clinical trial of MOTS-c for any indication.
Regulatory status
Investigational only; not lawful for human sale in the US. Reviewed alongside BPC-157 and TB-500 at FDA's 23-24 July 2026 Pharmacy Compounding Advisory Committee meeting, and recommended — not approved — for potential Category 1 status.
What's marketed vs. what's shown
Sold for fat loss, exercise mimicry and longevity in humans — claims that, as of this review, rest entirely on rodent data.
References
- Lee et al., "The Mitochondrial-Derived Peptide MOTS-c Promotes Metabolic Homeostasis and Reduces Obesity and Insulin Resistance," Cell Metab 2015;21(3):443-454, PMID 25738959.