MOTS-c dose range
The amounts people commonly use, from the low end to the high end, with syringe units, schedule and half-life. The 7 published studies are one click away.
Animal studies only Mitochondrial
Common use ranges
From user guides and clinic write-ups. No drug label exists, and no study has tested these amounts in people. Good agreement on 5 mg two to three times weekly for 4 to 8 weeks. The loading and maintenance tiers come from one source.
- Half-life
- Not measured in any published study
- How it is taken
- Subcutaneous injection, usually in the belly, sometimes timed around exercise
- How long people use it
- Usually 4 to 8 weeks on, then about 4 weeks off. One clinic guide says 8 to 12 weeks.
- Mixing used for the units
- 40 mg vial + 2 mL water. 1 unit on a U-100 insulin syringe = 200 mcg.
Pick your vial size and how much water you add. The units below change to match.
40 mg vial + 2 mL water: 1 unit = 200 mcg
| Tier | Each dose | Syringe units40 mg vial + 2 mL water | How often | Schedule | Vial lastsat this tier |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Starting [1] | 5 mg | 25 units 0.25 mL | 2x a week | 5 mg twice a week for about 4 weeks | about 4 weeks |
| Typical [2] | 5 mg | 25 units 0.25 mL | 3x a week | 5 mg three times a week | 18 days |
| Loading [3] | 10 mg | 50 units 0.50 mL | once a day | Some start with 10 mg a day for 5 to 7 days, then drop to 5 mg three times a week | 4 days |
| Maintenance [4] | 5 mg | 25 units 0.25 mL | 2x a week | 5 mg once or twice a week after the main block | about 4 weeks |
Good to know
- A higher tier of 10 mg two to three times a week is also listed by community guides.
- A smaller group uses 1 to 2 mg every day instead of larger shots a few times a week.
- Sources say the on and off cycling is a precaution, not something proven.
- No human trial has set a dose. Everything here is practice and community use.
Sources for these amounts
- Starting: Peptide Dosing Protocols, MOTS-c (lower starting tier)
- Typical: Pure Peptide Clinic, MOTS-c Guide (standard 5 mg 3x a week) · Peptide Dosing Protocols, MOTS-c (standard tier) · Outliyr, MOTS-c Report (community 5 to 10 mg 3x a week)
- Loading: Pure Peptide Clinic, MOTS-c Guide
- Maintenance: Pure Peptide Clinic, MOTS-c Guide
How long people use it: Peptide Dosing Protocols · Outliyr · Pure Peptide Clinic
Take the MOTS-c chart with you
Get a one-page printable chart for MOTS-c, with the syringe units for each vial and water mix. We can also email you when a new MOTS-c study is published.
This page shows what labels, clinics and users report, and what studies gave. It is not medical advice and not a recommendation for anyone. Many of these compounds are not approved for human use. Check your own medicines and lab work with a licensed clinician before using anything.
See the science: 7 published studies
No human dose data. No published human study of MOTS-c states an amount given. Every figure on this page comes from animal studies.
Amounts given to animals in studies
Every study used for this page
Proof grade: Animal studies only. No human dose data has been published. Amounts are quoted as each study reported them. Where the abstract does not state an amount, the row says so.
| Study | Who was studied | Amount given, as reported | Route | How often | How long | What the authors reported |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| PMID 257384592015 | Mouse, CD-1 and C57BL/6 male (n=6-8 per group in clamps; body wt not stated, ~0.025 kg assumed) | 5 mg/kg/day (acute arm: BID, 4 days) | IP | daily (BID in acute arm) | 4 days acute, 7 days (clamp/GTT), 3 weeks (HFD) | Prevented HFD-induced obesity and insulin resistance; AMPK activation (Lee, Cell Metab). Abstract itself gives no dose, figure is from PMC4350682 full text |
| PMID 334731092021 | Mouse, CD-1 and C57BL/6N, young/middle/old (n=5-10; wt not stated, ~0.025 kg assumed) | 5 and 15 mg/kg/day | IP | daily; 3x/week (intermittent lifelong arm, 15 mg/kg) | 2 weeks daily; intermittent from 13.5 or 23.5 months to death | Improved treadmill performance in young, middle-aged, old mice; 3x/week late-life dosing raised physical capacity. Humans: endogenous MOTS-c rises with exercise (no dosing) |
| PMID 417063832026 | Rat, Sprague-Dawley juvenile offspring, valproate autism model (n=7-9 per group; body wt not stated) | 0.5 mg/kg/day (LOWEST) | IP | daily | PND21 to PND46 (26 days) | Attenuated autism-like behaviour and BDNF/BH4 changes |
| PMID 387165402024 | Mouse C57BL/6 male, 6-10 wk, 20-25 g (n=10 per group), cancer bone pain model | 0.5, 1 and 2 mg/kg | IP | single doses for dose-response; repeated on post-op days 7, 10, 14, 21 | dose-response at 30 min, then 21 days | Dose-dependent reversal of mechanical allodynia; 1 mg/kg comparable to morphine 5 mg/kg |
| PMID 387907182024 | Mouse (strain/wt not stated in text I read, ~0.025 kg assumed), radiation pneumonitis | 10 mg/kg | IP | daily | 14 days | Reduced radiation lung injury, Nrf2-dependent |
| PMID 406616672025 | Rat, Wistar male, 150-200 g at 6-7 wk (n=11 treated), HFD plus STZ diabetic | 15 mg/kg/day | IP | daily | 3 weeks (weeks 12-15) | Restored heart mitochondrial respiration. Paper notes literature range 0.5 to 50 mg/kg, low doses long term (8-12 wk), 10-15 mg/kg for 2-4 wk |
| PMID 407534942026 | Mouse, LPS sepsis (n and wt not in abstract, ~0.025 kg assumed) | 20 mg/kg (HIGHEST verified) | route not in abstract | single dose, 4 h before LPS | single | Higher survival, less brain injury and BBB leak |
How to read the study numbers
- One study, one group. Each figure is what one team chose for its own participants or animals.
- Route matters. An amount given into a vein (IV) is not the same as the same amount under the skin, in the nose or by mouth.
- Animals are not small people. An animal amount is shown as the study gave it. It is not a human amount.
- Short studies. Many studies ran days or weeks. They do not show what happens over longer use.
Common questions
Is there a human dose for MOTS-c?
No published human study of MOTS-c states an amount given. The figures on this page come from animal studies only.
Where do these MOTS-c numbers come from?
From 7 published studies, each linked to its PubMed or ClinicalTrials.gov record. Every figure was checked against the study abstract or its open full text. Proof grade: Animal studies only.
How long does MOTS-c stay in the body?
No published study has measured the half-life of MOTS-c, so nobody knows exactly how long one dose stays in the blood.
Is this a recommendation for how much MOTS-c to use?
No. This page shows the amounts reported by drug labels, clinics and users, next to what researchers gave in studies. It is not medical advice and not a recommendation for anyone. Talk to a licensed clinician before using any of it.