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Not medical advice. The Atlas is not a substitute for a clinician who can examine you.

Palmitoyl Tetrapeptide-7

Rigin · GQPR Lipopeptide

Evidence grade 2 of 5, Thin. Read how the Atlas grades evidence.

Palmitoyl Tetrapeptide-7 (Pal-GQPR, Rigin) rests mainly on manufacturer in vitro work showing dose-dependent suppression of IL-6 secretion from cultured keratinocytes and reduced UVB-induced cytokine release, plus small industry-run split-face and combination trials. Most human efficacy data come from the Matrixyl 3000 blend (Pal-GQPR with palmitoyl tripeptide-1), not from isolated Pal-GQPR in independent RCTs, so the honest grade is preliminary human plus mechanistic, grade 2. The current grade 3 and rcts of 2 overstate the isolated-peptide evidence base.

FDA
Not FDA-approved; cosmetic ingredients require no FDA pre-market approval (only color additives do). It is a legally marketed topical cosmetic ingredient reviewed by the CIR Expert Panel (2018) as safe at typical use levels under 10 ppm, and permitted for cosmetic use in the EU under Regulation 1223/2009.
WADA
Not on the WADA Prohibited List (topical cosmetic peptide, no ergogenic classification).

Reference only. Not medical advice.

What can go wrong

Minimal topical risk at typical cosmetic use levels (under 10 ppm); efficacy evidence for the isolated peptide is preliminary and largely manufacturer-derived.

Talk to a clinician before taking this. The Atlas can tell you what has been studied about Palmitoyl Tetrapeptide-7. It cannot tell you how it would interact with your body, your history, or anything else you are taking, and nothing on this page is a reason to start.

A palmitoylated tetrapeptide that lowers pro-inflammatory cytokines (IL-6, IL-8) in skin, a complementary mechanism to collagen-stimulating peptides like Matrixyl.

What people take it for

These are the reasons people give for taking it. They are not effects it has been shown to have.

  • Anti-inflammatory skin aging
  • Combination cosmetic protocols

How it is supposed to work

Palmitoyl Tetrapeptide-7 is a small cosmetic peptide (a four-amino-acid sequence attached to a fatty palmitoyl chain that helps it penetrate skin) used in topical anti-aging products. It is thought to calm the low-grade inflammation that contributes to skin aging (sometimes called inflammaging) and to support a healthier extracellular matrix. It is frequently paired with a related peptide as the well-known cosmetic blend Matrixyl 3000.

Palmitoyl Tetrapeptide-7, originally called Rigin, is a four-amino-acid peptide, a fragment of an immune protein, attached to a fatty-acid chain for skin penetration, the same delivery trick used in the Matrixyl collagen peptides. It is most familiar as one half of the Matrixyl 3000 duo.

Type
Cosmetic peptide
Former name
Rigin
Target
Interleukin-6
Action
Anti-inflammatory
Role
Half of Matrixyl 3000
Status
Cosmetic

The Anti-Inflammatory Half Of Matrixyl 3000

Palmitoyl Tetrapeptide-7 occupies a useful and distinct niche among cosmetic peptides: it targets the inflammatory environment of aging skin rather than collagen synthesis directly. It suppresses interleukin-6, a pro-inflammatory signal that ramps up the collagen-degrading enzymes behind what dermatologists call inflammaging, so it protects collagen rather than producing it. That is exactly why it is paired with a collagen-stimulating peptide in the popular Matrixyl 3000 complex, which aims to build collagen and reduce its breakdown at the same time. It has a slightly richer standalone evidence base than its Matrixyl 3000 partner, including some independent and some combination human data, but it shares every cosmetic peptide’s caveats: modest effects, heavy industry funding, dependence on penetration, and cosmetic rather than drug status.

Safety in detail

Considered well tolerated as a leave-on cosmetic ingredient; CIR reviewed it as safe in current practices of use and concentration, and no EU CosIng Annex II or III restriction applies. Human efficacy data are associated with the Matrixyl 3000 combination rather than isolated Palmitoyl Tetrapeptide-7.

  • As a topical cosmetic ingredient it has a good safety profile, with irritation uncommon.
  • Benefits are modest and cosmetic, not medical.
  • It is regulated as a cosmetic ingredient, not a drug.
  • Marketing claims often outpace the strength of the evidence.

Children and teenagers

Palmitoyl Tetrapeptide-7 is a cosmetic anti-aging ingredient with no pediatric relevance and no appropriate pediatric use.

What people get wrong

Nothing recorded here yet. There is almost certainly something people get wrong about this one, and the blank space means we have not written it down, not that the record is clean.

Who profits, and who pushes back

Nobody is named here yet, because we have not done that work on this entry. Read that as unfinished. Somebody almost certainly sells this, and somebody almost certainly disputes it. Assume both until we have checked.

Palmitoyl Tetrapeptide-7 reaches users through the over-the-counter cosmetic market, most prominently as part of the widely used Matrixyl 3000 complex in premium anti-aging products. It is an established cosmetic ingredient with both standalone and combination evidence behind its marketing.

How we got here

The molecule was developed by Sederma (a Croda company) and first catalogued under the INCI name Palmitoyl Tetrapeptide-3 before being reassigned to Palmitoyl Tetrapeptide-7, which is why the same active appears under both labels in older and newer sources. It is marketed as the trade active Rigin and is best known as one of the two peptides in Sederma's Matrixyl 3000 complex, paired with palmitoyl tripeptide-1 (Pal-GHK). The GQPR sequence derives from a fragment of the immunoglobulin G heavy chain, and the palmitoyl chain was added to improve skin penetration of an otherwise water-soluble tetrapeptide.

The anti-inflammatory sequence behind Palmitoyl Tetrapeptide-7 was identified and developed for cosmetic use as Rigin, and it later became the anti-inflammatory component of the Matrixyl 3000 complex introduced in the early 2000s, now one of the most widely used peptide actives in premium skincare.

The numbers behind the grade

Type
Cosmetic peptide
Form
Topical
Known as
Part of Matrixyl 3000
Evidence
Modest (cosmetic)
Regulation
Cosmetic
Approved drug
No

The people taking it

A common anti-aging cosmetic peptide, best known as part of the Matrixyl 3000 blend, widely used in serums and creams.

Its users are anti-aging skincare consumers, especially those using Matrixyl 3000 products, and people targeting inflammation-related skin aging or with sensitive skin.

Used topically worldwide in anti-aging skincare, often within the Matrixyl 3000 blend, for fine lines and skin quality. A legitimate cosmetic ingredient with modest benefits.

Set against the alternatives

Palmitoyl Tetrapeptide-7 is the collagen-protecting, anti-inflammatory counterpart to the collagen-building peptides like Matrixyl, which is why the two are paired in Matrixyl 3000. Against the neuromuscular peptides Argireline and SNAP-8, it works on a completely different mechanism, inflammation rather than muscle movement, and against copper peptides it offers a distinct anti-inflammatory angle. Its niche is protecting collagen rather than producing or relaxing.

What we do not know

  • How much measurable anti-aging benefit it provides on its own versus in blends.
  • How its effect compares with better-evidenced actives like retinoids or copper peptides.
  • Whether independent trials would confirm the cosmetic claims.

The market for this

What follows describes how this is bought and sold. It is not a buying guide and it is not an endorsement of any seller.

Available over the counter in skincare products; look for it (or Matrixyl 3000) on ingredient labels. It is a low-risk cosmetic with realistic, modest effects, not a dramatic anti-aging treatment.

It is inexpensive to moderately priced across over-the-counter products, often bundled within multi-peptide formulations.

Produced as a cosmetic raw material by ingredient suppliers and formulated into skincare worldwide; a normal, regulated cosmetic supply.

What this entry does not yet cover

What follows is unfinished work on our side, not a finding about Palmitoyl Tetrapeptide-7.

  • Timeline. We have not built the dated record of research and regulatory events.
  • Supply chain. We have not mapped where it is made.
  • What could change. No forward-looking summary yet.

Sources

The studies that matter

  • Cosmetic formulation studies2000s-2010s

    Manufacturer and cosmetic-science studies report reductions in signs of skin aging when palmitoyl peptides are applied topically, often in combination.

  • Matrixyl combination2000s-2010s

    Combined with Palmitoyl Oligopeptide as Matrixyl 3000, it is among the more studied cosmetic peptide blends for wrinkle appearance.

  • Independent evidencelimited

    As with most cosmetic peptides, large independent trials are limited and effects are modest.