Promotes bone growth: A few animal studies have noted the bone growth stimulating effects of ipamorelin.
In one, researchers found that ipamorelin administration could counteract the skeletal muscle catabolism induced by glucocorticoids [4].
A similar study noted that ipamorelin administration in female rats resulted in increased bone mineral content, which is suggestive of stronger, denser bones [5].
Additionally, in one of the earliest studies done on ipamorelin (published in 1999), researchers found that ipamorelin administration actually appeared to increase the length of long bones in rats — particularly the tibia, a leg bone [6].
These findings are promising for future research in the fields of anti-aging, stunted growth, injury recovery, and women’s health — as women are at an increased risk of poor bone density as they age.
Stimulates muscle growth: One of the most widely reported effects of ipamorelin is that it can stimulate muscle growth. Considering ipamorelin and other growth hormone releasing peptides are banned from use in competitive sports, there may in fact be a connection between muscle growth and ipamorelin.
However, published scientific research has not yet shown this effect definitively.
Researchers have found that ipamorelin can stimulate the smooth muscle of the digestive lining to help food move more quickly through the digestive system [7].
Regardless, this is a far cry from the effects on skeletal muscle that have been reported by some independent researchers.
However, the same study mentioned above that noted ipamorelin could neutralize the negative effect of glucocorticoids on bone found similar results for skeletal muscle. Researchers found that muscle strength was significantly higher in rats who were injected with both ipamorelin and glucocorticoid in comparison to rats who were only injected with glucocorticoids [4].
Improves vasculature: Ipamorelin has a similar effect as ghrelin, a naturally occurring hormone in the body.
Ghrelin may stimulate angiogenesis, or the growth of new blood vessel networks. Researchers noted this when they found that ghrelin deficient mice had fewer blood vessels in their white fat tissue than other mice [8].
Because ipamorelin is a ghrelin mimetic, it may also have this effect — which would be of great interest to heart health and physical performance researchers. However, this effect has not been specifically noted as a result of ipamorelin administration to date.
Increases collagen synthesis. Some research suggests that ghrelin may help promote growth, regrowth, or repair of the cartilage, joints, and skin thanks to its potential effects on collagen, the springy protein matrix that forms the bulk of these tissues.
One study noted that ghrelin may upregulate cartilage-specific genes, and another noted that ghrelin may help mesenchymal stem cells (“universal” stem cells that can differentiate based on need) to target cartilage repair [9, 10].
Once again, however, this effect has been noted from ghrelin, but not from ipamorelin specifically.