How Long Does IGF-1 Last? Shelf Life & Stability
"Stable" is meaningless without saying stable against what. IGF-1 has its own set of degradation routes, and they determine which storage precautions actually matter for it.
Overview
Fragile in a way peptides are not. Its folded shape can come undone, and once it does it cannot refold — and it looks and weighs exactly the same, so damage is invisible.
What IGF-1 actually is
The natural growth factor the body produces after growth hormone acts — a folded protein, not a simple peptide, studied for muscle and tissue signalling. This is the native form, different from the longer-acting LR3 version.
Supplied for laboratory research use only — not for human or animal use.
Third-party tested by HPLC and LC-MS, ≥99% purity, with a Certificate of Analysis on every order. Ships across Canada.
Technical detail below
Degradation routes specific to IGF-1
- Misfolding and irreversible denaturation — the dominant failure mode.
- Aggregation of unfolded protein.
- Adsorptive loss to surfaces without a carrier protein.
Damaged protein weighs the same and looks the same as intact protein. Chemical purity cannot tell you whether the fold survived — which is why a bioactivity or bioidentity assay is the meaningful COA figure for this molecule.
Freeze–thaw tolerance
Poorly tolerant. Repeated freeze-thaw denatures the folded structure permanently, so aliquot for single use rather than relying on any freeze tolerance.
How storage addresses these routes
Practical window once reconstituted: Short — days rather than weeks — and shorter still with repeated handling.
Full IGF-1 storage conditionsWhat IGF-1 is studied for
Studied as the native ligand for the IGF-1 receptor and its downstream proliferation and survival pathways.
Examined in muscle research models for its role in satellite-cell behaviour and anabolic signalling.
Compared with IGF-1 LR3, whose reduced binding-protein affinity gives a longer active window — a contrast studied directly in the literature.
Summarizes published preclinical literature. Provided for research reference only; not a claim of efficacy or a description of human use.
More IGF-1 reference
Lyophilized and reconstituted storage conditions, plus the practical working window.
Diluent selection, dissolution behaviour, and the calculator preset for this compound.
Which solvents work, why, and what abnormal dissolution behaviour indicates.
Which assays are informative for this molecule, and what to actually check on its COA.
Compound-specific bench practices, and the errors most often made with this molecule.
What to inspect on arrival, and which conditions actually warrant rejecting a vial.
Questions specific to this compound — structure, chemistry, and common misconceptions.
Stability reference for other compounds
IGF-1 is supplied strictly as a research chemical for in-vitro laboratory and research use only. It is not intended for human or animal consumption, diagnostic, or therapeutic use. This page is educational laboratory-handling reference information — not medical advice, not usage guidance, and not a protocol.