Ovagen

Glu-Asp-Leu, EDL, "liver tripeptide"

Immune & bioregulators

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Summary

Class: Synthetic tripeptide (3 amino acids: glutamate-aspartate-leucine) from the Khavinson "cytogen" family
Mechanism: Proposed to regulate gene expression in hepatocytes and gut epithelium — proliferation, antioxidant and detoxification genes — via DNA binding; evidence from one group, cell and rodent
Routes studied: Injection (rodents); oral capsules (marketed form in Russia)
Dose range reported: In vitro: ~20 ng/ml typical. Rodent: microgram/kg. Community-reported: 1–2 capsules/day for 10–30 days. No validated human dose
Half-life: Not characterised; expected to be minutes in plasma
Storage: Lyophilised: refrigerate, protect from light. Capsules: room temperature, dry
Regulatory status: Not approved as a medicine anywhere. Sold in Russia as a food supplement †

Doses are as reported in studies or by the community — never recommendations.

1What it is

Ovagen is the Khavinson group's liver-and-digestive-tract tripeptide, Glu-Asp-Leu. Despite the name suggesting "ova" (eggs), it is marketed for liver and gut, not for the ovaries; the naming reflects the group's product conventions rather than biology. It is a synthetic compound and sold in Russia as a supplement.

The evidence base follows the family pattern: almost entirely from the originating group, largely Russian-language, no independent replication to our knowledge, no human trial. Of the short Khavinson peptides, Ovagen is among the least documented in English-language literature; most of what is said about it online is extrapolated from the group's general claims about the family.

2How it's thought to work

Gene-expression model. cell penetration, nuclear entry, sequence-preferential DNA binding at promoter regions (Khavinson 2014; Fedoreyeva 2011 for the general method).

Liver. the group reports that EDL increases proliferation and reduces apoptosis markers in hepatocyte cultures and in ageing liver tissue, and shifts expression of antioxidant and detoxification-related genes.

Gut. the group's rodent work on the digestive tract is mostly described in reviews; the proposed effect is epithelial protection and repair similar to that claimed for Chonluten.

Nothing has been measured in humans.

Proposed: a tripeptide directed at liver and ovarian tissue, reported to influence gene expression in cell culture. No human evidence.Schematic — not to scale

3What the research shows

Graded D/C

Hepatocyte and liver-tissue biology

Culture and rodent studies from the originating group report improved hepatocyte proliferation and reduced age-associated changes in liver histology and enzyme profiles after EDL courses, summarised in the group's reviews (Khavinson & Malinin 2005; Anisimov & Khavinson 2010; Khavinson 2020, Stem Cell Rev Rep). Primary data difficult to appraise; no independent replication. [1][2][5]

Gut epithelium

Rodent findings on intestinal and gastric epithelium are described in the group's reviews with little detail available in English †.

Liver disease, fatty liver, digestive symptoms in humans

No controlled trials. Uncontrolled Russian clinical observations exist for the product family. Community reports are anecdotal, and few. The literature here is thin; we have said so rather than padding.

4Reported side effects and interactions

Literature-reported

No adverse effects reported in the group's work; no peer-reviewed human safety data.

Community-reported

Almost none; the few reports describe no noticeable effect.

Theoretical. Promoting hepatocyte proliferation deserves caution in anyone with liver nodules, a history of hepatocellular carcinoma, or chronic viral hepatitis — unmeasured, but the rationale is obvious. No data on liver-enzyme effects in humans.

Interactions. None established. If the compound did alter detoxification-enzyme expression as claimed, it could in principle change the metabolism of other drugs; this has never been tested.

Markers researchers commonly monitor

No compound-specific markers are established. Commonly discussed:

Marker	Why it's watched
Liver panel (ALT, AST, GGT, ALP, bilirubin, albumin)	the claimed target organ; a baseline and follow-up is the obvious and inexpensive check.
Liver ultrasound or FibroScan, where already clinically indicated	not something to order because of this compound, but the only objective measure of fatty liver if that is the reason for interest.
Lipid panel and fasting glucose	metabolic context for liver claims.
CBC and CMP	general baseline.

Free for everyone. Safety information is never behind a paywall.

5Reconstitution and handling

Marketed in Russia as oral capsules; injectable vials (10–20 mg) circulate. For vials, with , swirl gently, refrigerate, protect from light.

Open in calculator, pre-loaded →

6Commonly studied alongside

Livagen (Lys-Glu-Asp-Ala, the group's other liver peptide) and Chonluten (#82) for gut; Epitalon (#13); Vilon. No combination has been studied in humans. In community "liver support" discussion it sits alongside non-peptide compounds such as glutathione and TUDCA, with no interaction data.

Informational cross-links. Not stack recommendations.

7Regulatory status by region

Region	Status (checked —)
United States	Not FDA-approved; not a permitted supplement ingredient. Not on the 2023 Category 2 list to our knowledge †
European Union	Not authorised
United Kingdom	Not licensed
Australia	Not approved †
South Africa	Not registered
Sport (WADA)	Not specifically named; S0 as a non-approved substance †

8Open questions

Any pharmacokinetic evidence that oral EDL reaches the liver intact.
Independent replication of hepatocyte findings.
Whether any liver marker moves in humans under control.

9References

1Khavinson VKh, Malinin VV (2005). Gerontological Aspects of Genome Peptide Regulation. Karger, Basel. DOI
2Anisimov VN, Khavinson VKh (2010). Peptide bioregulation of aging: results and prospects. Biogerontology. PubMed · DOI
3Fedoreyeva LI, Kireev II, Khavinson VKh, Vanyushin BF (2011). Penetration of short fluorescence-labeled peptides into the nucleus in HeLa cells and in vitro specific interaction of the peptides with deoxyribooligonucleotides and DNA. Biochemistry (Moscow). PubMed · DOI
4Khavinson VKh, Solov'ev AYu, Tarnovskaya SI, Linkova NS (2014). Mechanism of biological activity of short peptides: cell penetration and epigenetic regulation of gene expression. Biology Bulletin Reviews. DOI
5Khavinson V, Linkova N, Diatlova A, Trofimova S (2020). Peptide regulation of cell differentiation. Stem Cell Rev Rep. PubMed · DOI
6Khavinson VKh, Popovich IG, Linkova NS, Mironova ES, Ilina AR (2021). Peptide regulation of gene expression: a systematic review. Molecules. PubMed · DOI

† Being confirmed by our reviewers against current sources.

10Community

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community protocols include this →

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Self-reported side effects Phase 2

Not enough data yet. 0 of the 50 members needed have logged this compound for 4+ weeks. We don't show anything below 50, so no one can be identified.

11Page history

26 Oct 2026Profile published — awaiting medical review

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