Tissue Repair & Regeneration

Hexapeptide-9

Head-to-head trials against an ingredient that already works are rare among cosmetic peptides, and hexapeptide-9 has one. A randomised, double-blinded trial ran a 0.002 per cent cyclised hexapeptide-9 serum against a 0.002 per cent retinol serum and against vehicle for 56 days, measuring crow's feet and forehead wrinkle number, area and roughness, and the peptide came out ahead of retinol on every measure but one. The peptide itself is a six-amino-acid fragment copied from collagen, applied on the principle that a skin cell reading a collagen fragment will build more collagen. Two things qualify the result: the material tested was a cyclised variant, and the number enrolled was never reported.

Last updated 12 August 2026

Studied forWrinkle reduction research · Collagen synthesis research · Skin ageing context

Evidence on file2 randomised human trials · 1 human observational study · 1 human case report or series · 1 computational study

Strongest sourceNovel Cyclized Hexapeptide-9 Outperforms Retinol Against Skin Aging: A Randomized, Double-Blinded, Active- an… (randomised human trial)

Mechanism

A collagen-fragment mimetic that stimulates fibroblast collagen production; cyclisation improves its stability and skin permeability.

Reported effects

What sources associate with this compound. Reported categories, not outcomes we have graded — each would need its own citation and rung.

Wrinkle reduction research
Collagen synthesis research
Skin ageing context

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 (SpecialChem/Ashland datasheet): "Acts as an anti-wrinkle and skin repairing agent. It helps in reducing the length and depth of wrinkles. It enhances epidermal regeneration, protein synthesis and boosts dermal-epidermal junction key proteins." No n= or duration on fetched page.

Manufacturer: Ashland
Sold as: Collaxyl IS

Source page — nofollow, because a vendor link is a reference here, not an endorsement.

Dosing on file unverified

0.002% CHP-9 serum, 1-2x/day (56 days)

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 5

human RCT
Novel Cyclized Hexapeptide-9 Outperforms Retinol Against Skin Aging: A Randomized, Double-Blinded, Active- and Vehicle-Controlled Clinical Trial. graded on: names a randomised controlled trial — the indexed publication type — “Randomized Controlled”
human RCT
Efficacy and Tolerability of a Topical Peptide-Hyaluronic Acid Lip Treatment Using a Novel Delivery System in Subjects With and Without Prior Lip Augmentation. graded on: names a randomised controlled trial — the indexed publication type — “Randomized Controlled”
computational
A framework for the safety evaluation of peptides in cosmetics. graded on: in-silico safety framework applied through six bioinformatic tools — read from the abstract — “abstract review”
human observational
Efficacy of a Postbiotic Formulation Combined With Microneedling for Mild-to-Moderate Acne: A Self-Control Study. graded on: single-arm self-control study, 20 patients, 4-week follow-up — read from the abstract — “abstract review”
human case series
In Vivo and Ex Vivo Evaluation of a Novel Method for Topical Delivery of Macromolecules Through the Stratum Corneum for Cosmetic Applications. graded on: two open in-vivo studies in human skin, read out by punch biopsy; the paper reports its own findings as case studies, with no control arm — read from the abstract — “abstract review”

Identity

Space-filling 3D model of Hexapeptide-9, carbon grey, nitrogen blue, oxygen red — Built from the SMILES on this record — the atoms and bonds are exact. The shape is **one computed low-energy pose**, not a measured structure: a flexible peptide in solution has no single conformation, and where the SMILES leaves a stereocentre undefined the pose commits to one arbitrarily. The skeletal formula below claims connectivity and nothing more, which is what we actually know.

2D chemical structure of Hexapeptide-9 — Built from the SMILES on this record — the atoms and bonds are exact. The shape is **one computed low-energy pose**, not a measured structure: a flexible peptide in solution has no single conformation, and where the SMILES leaves a stereocentre undefined the pose commits to one arbitrarily. The skeletal formula below claims connectivity and nothing more, which is what we actually know.

Molecular weight: 582.6
Molecular formula: C24H38N8O9
CAS number: 885024-94-2
PubChem CID: 16129319
InChI key: OGNHOGPWQTWKGQ-VGWMRTNUSA-N
SMILES: C1C[C@H](N(C1)C(=O)CN)C(=O)N[C@@H](CCC(=O)N)C(=O)NCC(=O)N2CCC[C@H]2C(=O)N[C@@H](CCC(=O)N)C(=O)O
InChI: InChI=1S/C24H38N8O9/c25-11-19(35)31-9-1-3-15(31)22(38)29-13(5-7-17(26)33)21(37)28-12-20(36)32-10-2-4-16(32)23(39)30-14(24(40)41)6-8-18(27)34/h13-16H,1-12,25H2,(H2,26,33)(H2,27,34)(H,28,37)(H,29,38)(H,30,39)(H,40,41)/t13-,14-,15-,16-/m0/s1

Also called

Collaxyl IS
Hexapeptide-9

Notes unverified prose

2025 RCT: cyclized Hexapeptide-9 (CHP-9) outperformed retinol for skin aging at 56 days; 28-day study: improved elasticity & firmness; RCT: cyclized hexapeptide-9 (CHP-9) outperformed retinol

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.

At a glance

Strongest rung: human RCT
Citations: 5
Regulatory: Cosmetic ingredient
Route: Topical
Declared gaps: 2

Citations by rung

Strongest wins, never an average.