Cerluten, read without the marketing.
An independent reference for the brain peptide bioregulator Cerluten (Cytomax A-5): what it is, what the Khavinson research programme actually reported, how it is dosed, and where the evidence runs out. No shop. No affiliate links.
What Cerluten
is
A natural peptide bioregulator — a purified extract, not a synthesised molecule.
Cerluten (Cytomax A-5) is a complex of low-molecular-weight peptides extracted from the cerebral cortex of young calves, developed within Vladimir Khavinson’s bioregulator programme at the St Petersburg Institute of Bioregulation and Gerontology. It is sold as a dietary supplement intended to support brain-cell metabolism and central nervous system function.
- Classification
- Cytomax A-5 — first-generation natural peptide extract (a “cytamin”), as distinct from the synthetic Cytogen short peptides
- Source tissue
- Cerebral cortex of calves no older than twelve months
- Composition
- A mixture of peptides up to roughly 10,000 Da — the individual active constituents remain uncharacterised
- Typical dose
- 10 mg of peptide complex per capsule, taken as a defined course
- Relatives
- Cortexin (injectable cortex extract, a registered medicine in Russia), Cortagen (AEDP) and Pinealon (EDR) — the synthetic analogues of cortex peptides
The proposed mechanism
As described in the published bioregulator literature. “Proposed” is doing real work in that sentence.
Short peptides, small enough to enter
Unlike peptide hormones that bind a surface receptor, these very short sequences are described as entering the cell and reaching the nucleus, where they associate with promoter regions of DNA.
Gene expression, not stimulation
The claimed effect is epigenetic: switching transcription of tissue-specific genes up or down. Cell-culture work reports changes in gene expression and protein synthesis consistent with that model.
Tissue-specific by origin
Each bioregulator is matched to the organ it was extracted from. A-5 is the cortex peptide, so the reported effects are on neuronal metabolism, neurotransmitter balance and cortical bioelectrical activity.
What the research reports
Grouped by how strong the evidence is — preclinical first, because that is where most of it lives.
Neuronal differentiation and plasticity markers
Short peptides structurally related to cortex extracts (KE, AED, KED, AEDG) increase expression of GAP-43, a marker of axonal growth and synaptic plasticity, and of nestin, indicating neural stem-cell activation. Cultured neurons show more primary dendrites and greater total dendritic length.
AEDG and gene expression during neurogenesis
Khavinson and colleagues (Molecules, 2020) reported that the AEDG peptide stimulates gene expression and protein synthesis during neurogenesis, proposing an epigenetic mechanism. A related 2021 paper examines the EDR peptide in the context of Alzheimer’s-disease pathogenesis.
Decades of Russian clinical use, by injection
Cortexin — the injectable cortex polypeptide complex — is a registered medicine in Russia, used in stroke recovery, traumatic brain injury and age-related cognitive decline, typically 10 mg daily for ten days, repeated every three to six months.
What sellers and reviews claim for A-5
- Normalising brain-cell metabolic processes
- Memory and concentration support
- Antioxidant protection of neural tissue
- Microcirculation and neurotransmitter balance
- Emotional stability and fatigue resistance
A citation is a reference, not an endorsement.
Almost everything written about Cerluten is written by someone selling it. This page collects the same material with the sales layer removed: the composition, the mechanism as its authors describe it, the studies that exist, and the gaps between them. Read it, then decide with a clinician.
How it is dosed
Bioregulators are traditionally taken as short, defined courses with time off between them, rather than continuously.
Reference pattern only — not a recommendation, and not a substitute for the label or your clinician’s instructions.
- Form
- Oral capsule, 10 mg peptide complex
- Course length
- 20–30 consecutive days
- Frequency
- 1–2 capsules daily with food
- Cycling
- Repeated 2–3 times per year, with off-periods
- Often paired with
- Pineal (Endoluten / Epitalon) and vascular (Ventfort) bioregulators
- Storage
- Cool, dry, away from light; sealed
Sources
Primary literature and reference material. Listed so you can check this page against them.
Khavinson V. et al. — Peptide bioregulation of aging: results and prospects. PubMed 24003726
ReviewAEDG peptide (Epitalon) stimulates gene expression and protein synthesis during neurogenesis. Molecules, 2020 — 10.3390/molecules25030609
In vitroKhavinson V., Linkova N., Kozhevnikova E., Trofimova S. — EDR peptide: gene expression and protein synthesis in the pathogenesis of Alzheimer’s disease. Molecules, 2021
MechanismPubMed — the full body of indexed Khavinson bioregulator literature, including the clinical-efficacy reviews of Thymalin, Cortexin and Retinalamin
IndexProduct labelling and composition figures as published by retailers of Cytomax A-5, cross-checked against the institute’s own descriptions
SecondaryCommon questions
Is Cerluten the same as Cortexin?
No. Both are cerebral cortex peptide preparations from the same research lineage, but Cortexin is an injectable registered medicine in Russia and Cerluten is an oral supplement extract. Their evidence bases are not interchangeable.
Is it a drug?
Not in the United States. It is sold as a dietary supplement, is not FDA-approved, and is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure or prevent any disease.
Natural extract or synthetic peptide — which is better studied?
The synthetic short peptides (Cortagen, Pinealon, Epitalon) have cleaner mechanistic data because they are defined molecules. The extracts have the longer clinical history, mostly by injection. Neither has strong modern oral trial data.
Does this site sell anything?
No. There is no store, no cart and no affiliate link. If you choose to buy, ask the seller for a batch certificate of analysis and check it against the lot number on the box.