MOTS-c
Also called MOTSc, Mitochondrial open reading frame of the 12S rRNA type-c
Educational only, not medical advice. Dosaly reports what has been studied; it isn't a recommendation to use MOTS-c or any amount of it. Talk to a clinician.
News · October 30, 2026
Draft HHS policy on compounding
On Oct 30, 2026, HHS said it won't act against licensed pharmacies that compound certain peptides while the FDA reviews them. News reports say the list includes BPC-157, KPV, TB-500, MOTS-c, Epitalon and Semax. It's a draft, not FDA approval.
Not approved as a medicine by the FDA or EMA (as of October 2026).
Research applications
- Insulin resistance and diet-induced weight gain (mouse studies)
- Physical capacity in older animals (mouse studies)
- The AMPK energy-sensing pathway (animal and cell studies)
- Levels in blood and muscle during exercise (human measurements)
- Gene activity under cell stress (cell studies)
What studies have looked at, not proven uses.
What it is
MOTS-c is a small peptide made inside mitochondria, the energy centers of cells. Research is mostly in mice, looking at metabolism and exercise. It hasn't been tested in controlled human trials.
More detail
MOTS-c is a 16-amino-acid peptide encoded in mitochondrial DNA, inside the gene for a mitochondrial ribosomal RNA. It was first described in 2015 as one of a small group of mitochondrial-derived peptides. Mouse studies have linked it to the AMPK energy-sensing pathway and examined insulin resistance, diet-induced weight gain and physical capacity in older animals; human blood and muscle levels have been measured and reported to rise with exercise. Cell studies suggest it moves into the nucleus under stress and influences gene activity. Published evidence is almost entirely from animals and cells, and controlled human trials of MOTS-c itself have not been reported.
Evidence listed here
- 1 review
- 2 animal studies
Results from cells and animals often don't carry over to people. How to read peptide research
Molecular info
- Class
- Mitochondrial-derived peptide
- Length
- 16 amino acids
- Sequence
- H-Met-Arg-Trp-Gln-Glu-Met-Gly-Tyr-Ile-Phe-Tyr-Pro-Arg-Lys-Leu-Arg-OH
- Research areas
- Metabolic, Longevity
Encoded in mitochondrial DNA (the 12S rRNA gene).
Research
- ReviewFront Endocrinol (Lausanne) · 2023MOTS-c: A promising mitochondrial-derived peptide for therapeutic exploitation.
Review of MOTS-c biology and research directions.
- Animal studyNat Commun · 2021MOTS-c is an exercise-induced mitochondrial-encoded regulator of age-dependent physical decline and muscle homeostasis.
Mouse aging and exercise studies, with exercise-related levels measured in humans.
- Animal studyCell Metab · 2015The mitochondrial-derived peptide MOTS-c promotes metabolic homeostasis and reduces obesity and insulin resistance.
Discovery paper; mouse models of diet-induced obesity and insulin resistance.