Tissue Repair & Regeneration
Argireline (Acetyl Hexapeptide-3)
Argireline is a six-amino-acid chain, listed on labels as acetyl hexapeptide-3 or acetyl hexapeptide-8, and it is the ingredient most often sold as a topical alternative to botulinum toxin injections. The mechanism is precise: it competes with SNAP-25, a protein a nerve ending needs in order to release the signal that tells a facial muscle to contract, and destabilises the complex that release depends on. It has more human data behind it than most cosmetic peptides — a randomised placebo-controlled trial in 60 people, plus two registered clinical trials. The one controlled study that tested Argireline by itself, split-face in 19 women over four weeks, found no significant wrinkle reduction.
Last updated
Mechanism
Competes with SNAP-25 to destabilise the SNARE complex, reducing neurotransmitter release and muscle contraction.
Reported effects
What sources associate with this compound. Reported categories, not outcomes we have graded — each would need its own citation and rung.
- Expression line research
- Skin elasticity research
- Hydration support
Manufacturer’s claim vendor marketing
For a proprietary cosmetic ingredient the manufacturer is the originator — there is no upstream to defer to, and this is often the only description that exists. It is reproduced as an attributed claim, with the label its source gave it. It is not graded and it is not evidence — the graded studies are under Literature.
Vendor claim (ci.guide): "Botox-like" effect; smoothing action; humectant properties; relaxes facial muscles by destabilizing SNARE complex formation, reducing muscle contraction and attenuating wrinkle formation. No n= or study duration given on fetched page.
- Manufacturer
- Lipotec SA (now part of Lubrizol)
- Sold as
- Argireline
Source page — nofollow, because a vendor link is a reference here, not an endorsement.
Dosing on file unverified
10% solution, 2x/day (30 days); 5-10% in serums
Carried from a source that labels it unverified, and reproduced with that label attached. A record of what is reported, not a recommendation. No citation on this page establishes it.
Literature on file 4
-
human observational
NCT01750346: Placebo Controlled Double Blind Study of Acetyl Hexapeptide-8 in Treatment of Blepharospasm graded on: a registered clinical study — “clinicaltrials.gov”
-
human observational
A synthetic hexapeptide (Argireline) with antiwrinkle activity (International Journal of Cosmetic Science 2002, cited 154x) graded on: open application in healthy women volunteers, 30-day within-subject change — read from the abstract — “abstract review”
-
human RCT
The Anti-Wrinkle Efficacy of Argireline, a Synthetic Hexapeptide, in Chinese Subjects (American Journal of Clinical Dermatology 2013, cited 59x) graded on: names a randomised controlled trial — the indexed publication type — “Randomized Controlled”
Not graded
1 citation whose study design could not be read from the title. Left ungraded rather than guessed at.
-
not graded
NCT01381484: Efficacy and Safety of Topical Argireline in the Treatment of Periorbital Wrinkles graded on: NCT01381484 is completed and has posted no results - a registration, not a reported outcome — “NCT01381484”
What is circulated not evidence 3
Claims passed around in community guides and vendor copy, recorded because they circulate — not because they are true. Each is shown with the page it was read from and what this record actually holds. Checked 2026-08-24.
-
Argireline is circulated across retail skincare copy as an alternative to botulinum toxin injections.
touted as an alternative to Botox due to its ability to minimize expression lines and dramatically improve the look of wrinkles
On the record The corpus mechanism row describes SNARE-complex interference reducing neurotransmitter release — the mechanistic analogy is on file. The equivalence to injected botulinum toxin is not: the record's evidence is a small blepharospasm trial (NCT01750346) and cosmetic studies, and the page itself concedes it is "not as dramatic as botox".
-
A figure of up to 30% wrinkle-depth reduction, restated on hundreds of retail pages, traces to the supplier's own small studies and is circulated with the qualifications stripped off.
reduce wrinkles by as much as 30 percent
On the record The corpus holds the compound as a topical studied for expression lines, human evidence "Yes — verified trial", but carries no wrinkle-depth percentage. The 30% figure originates in the manufacturer-linked 2002 International Journal of Cosmetic Science study (10% concentration, small sample) and is restated at lower retail concentrations without the concentration or sample-size qualifiers — the supplier-brochure-to-retail chain in one line.
-
A stronger figure — up to 48% improvement within four weeks of twice-daily use — also circulates in retail copy.
improves the look of fine lines and wrinkles up to 48% within four weeks when applied twice daily
On the record Nothing on file. The corpus holds no efficacy percentage for this compound at any concentration.
Identity
Skeletal formulathe canonical depiction
Drawn by PubChem from CID 71587772, the identifier on this record.
- Molecular weight
- 887.0
- Molecular formula
- C35H62N14O11S
- CAS number
- 616204-22-9
- PubChem CID
- 71587772
- InChI key
- AJLNZWYOJAWBCR-OOPVGHQCSA-N
- SMILES
- CC(=O)N[C@@H](CCC(=O)O)C(=C)N[C@@H](CCC(=O)O)C(=O)N[C@@H](CCSC)C(=O)N[C@@H](CCC(=O)N)C(=O)N[C@@H](CCCN=C(N)N)C(=O)N[C@@H](CCCN=C(N)N)C(=O)N
- InChI
- InChI=1S/C35H62N14O11S/c1-18(20(45-19(2)50)9-12-27(52)53)44-23(10-13-28(54)55)31(58)49-25(14-17-61-3)33(60)48-24(8-11-26(36)51)32(59)47-22(7-5-16-43-35(40)41)30(57)46-21(29(37)56)6-4-15-42-34(38)39/h20-25,44H,1,4-17H2,2-3H3,(H2,36,51)(H2,37,56)(H,45,50)(H,46,57)(H,47,59)(H,48,60)(H,49,58)(H,52,53)(H,54,55)(H4,38,39,42)(H4,40,41,43)/t20-,21-,22-,23-,24-,25-/m0/s1
Also called
- Acetyl Hexapeptide-8
- Argireline
Caveat on these identifiers
Registry record names acetyl hexapeptide-8 (an alternate INCI name for Argireline).
Notes unverified prose
2002 pivotal study: 30% wrinkle reduction (30 days, 10% solution); 17-30% wrinkle depth reduction; NCT01750346; NCT01381484; 2002 pivotal study (30% wrinkle reduction)
Not on file 2
1 of the 8 fields we track hold nothing on this record, and each says why. 1 further absence is named below. A blank field is a bug; a named absence is a finding.
- amino-acid sequencenothing we hold supplies it
- half-lifenothing we hold supplies it
Each field links to every other record missing the same thing. The full ledger holds 765 gaps across 163 records.
Listed prices 13
What 13 shops we track listed for Argireline (Acetyl Hexapeptide-3), read from their own public catalogues on 2026-09-14. We take no commission on these and they are not ranked by any payment — how vendors are scored.
Compare prices13 listings from 13 shops
| Vendor | Size | Price | Per mg |
|---|---|---|---|
| Verified Peptides | 200 mg | $99.00 USD | $0.49/mg |
| Peptides Warehouse | 100 mg | $92.93 USD | $0.93/mg |
| Raw Amino | 200 mg | $202.00 USD | $1.01/mg |
| Biotech Peptides | 200 mg | $210.00 USD | $1.05/mg |
| Behemoth Labz | 200 mg | $214.96 USD | $1.07/mg |
| PureRawz ships worldwide | 200 mg | $215.23 USD | $1.08/mg |
| USA Peptide Sciences | 200 mg | $220.00 USD | $1.10/mg |
| Core Peptides | 200 mg | $226.00 USD | $1.13/mg |
| Umbrella Labs | 10 mg | $39.99 USD | $4.00/mg |
| My GLP 1 Store | size not listed | $85.00 USD | — |
| atomiklabz | size not listed | $99.00 USD | — |
| Ion Peptide | size not listed | $129.00 USD | — |
| Vendor | Size | Price | Per mg |
|---|---|---|---|
| Core Peptides Canada | 200 mg | $278.66 CAD | $1.39/mg |
None of these shops lists your destination. Choose “Show all” to see every listing we hold.
Prices are the vendor's own listing, reproduced with the date we read it — never converted between currencies, and compared per milligram only where the vendor states the vial size.
Share this record
