Cerebrolysin
FPF-1070 · Cerebrolysinum
Cerebrolysin is a mixture of low-molecular-weight peptides and amino acids produced by enzymatically breaking down purified pig brain protein. It has been manufactured in Austria since the 1950s and is registered as a medicine in around forty countries across central and eastern Europe, Asia and Latin America, for stroke, traumatic brain injury and dementia. It is not approved in the United States, the United Kingdom or the European Union's central procedure.
It is the most extensively trialled compound in this category, and the picture that emerges from those trials is genuinely unresolved rather than merely thin. Individual studies report benefits: a randomised trial of early cerebrolysin after stroke found better motor recovery, and trials in vascular dementia have reported cognitive improvements. Cochrane reviews assembling the same literature have repeatedly concluded there is no convincing evidence of benefit for acute stroke, and have flagged that a large share of the trials come from the manufacturer.
That gap is the honest content of this page. This is not a case of no evidence, and not a case of good evidence. It is a lot of evidence that does not resolve, which is a specific situation and a common one. Anyone reading a confident claim in either direction about cerebrolysin is reading past the reviews.
How it works
Cerebrolysin is described as having neurotrophic activity, mimicking what nerve growth factors do for neuron survival, differentiation and protection. Laboratory studies support these effects for the preparation as a whole.
Which components produce them is not established. Like thymalin, this is a mixture rather than a defined molecule, and it contains both peptide fragments and free amino acids in proportions that depend on the manufacturing process. That is a real limit on mechanistic understanding, not a technicality.
A structural objection often raised is that peptides do not readily cross the blood–brain barrier. The manufacturer's position is that the fragments are small enough to, and independent verification of how much reaches the brain in humans is limited. This is one of the more substantive open questions about the preparation.
It is given intravenously or intramuscularly, in volumes of 10 to 30 millilitres. That is closer to an infusion than an injection, and it is the practical reason this is a clinical product, not a self-administered one.
Regulatory status — Austria and United States
Approved as a prescription medicine in around forty countries for stroke, traumatic brain injury and dementia. Not approved in the United States — the United Kingdom — or through the European Union's central procedure. Because it is a biological hydrolysate rather than a synthesised compound, it cannot meaningfully be produced outside a pharmaceutical facility, and material from unofficial channels cannot be verified as the registered product.
Last reviewed 16 Aug 2026. Regulatory positions in this category change frequently; we date this line so you can see how current it is.
What it is studied for
Each entry states the evidence behind it. We do not rank indications by effectiveness — for most compounds here, that would be a claim nobody can support.
Recovery after ischaemic stroke
Published reviewThe most studied indication, and the least resolved.
EvidenceA randomised controlled trial found better motor recovery when started early. Cochrane reviews of the wider literature conclude there is no convincing evidence of benefit on death or dependency.
Vascular dementia and Alzheimer's disease
Published reviewA registered indication in several countries.
EvidenceRandomised trials report cognitive improvements. Reviews note small effect sizes, short follow-up and a heavy weighting toward manufacturer-sponsored studies.
Traumatic brain injury
Published reviewRegistered in some jurisdictions.
EvidenceTrials report improved outcome scores. The evidence base is smaller than for stroke and carries the same limitations.
Cognitive enhancement in healthy people
Community practiceWhy it appears in nootropic discussion.
EvidenceNo trial has studied cerebrolysin in healthy people for cognition. Every indication it is registered for involves existing brain injury or disease.
Identity and clearance
Molecule
- Class
- Enzymatic hydrolysate of purified porcine brain protein; peptides under 10 kDa plus free amino acids
No single molecular weight or sequence exists. Composition is defined by the manufacturing process rather than by a structure.
Dose protocols reported in sources
Displayed for reference only. Every row says where it came from, and a trial protocol and a community convention are not the same kind of information. None of this is fed into the calculator, and none of it is a recommendation.
| Goal | Dose | Frequency | Route | Units | Source | Start this protocol |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Acute stroke, as studied | 2152 mg – 6456 mg | Once daily for 10 to 21 days as a course | Intramuscular10 to 30 mL of the standard solution, given by slow intravenous infusion in the trial protocols, daily as a defined course. The milligram figures reflect the total mass of the hydrolysate — not any defined active substance — so dose comparisons across products mean nothing. | — | Clinical trial | Start this |
| Dementia, as studied | 1076 mg – 3228 mg | Daily for 4 weeks, in courses repeated over a year | Intramuscular5 to 15 mL daily in the dementia trials, delivered as periodic courses rather than continuously. | — | Clinical trial | Start this |
Start this copies a row into a protocol of your own, which you can then edit. Where a source gave a dose range or an ambiguous frequency, those fields arrive empty — we will not pick a number on your behalf.
Cycling
Clinical trial2 to 4 weeks on, Months between courses off.
Every trial protocol uses defined courses rather than continuous administration. This is a clinical dosing pattern, not a community convention.
Calculator
Work out what to draw
Pre-filled with a 215.2 mg vial as a worked example. These are not recommended values — change them to match the vial in front of you.
Draw to 100 units on a 1 mL U-100 syringe. That is 1 mL, containing 215.2 mg of Cerebrolysin.
CheckThis fills the syringe almost to the top, which leaves no room for error when drawing.
Check215.2 mg in 1 mL is unusually concentrated. Double-check the vial label and the amount of water you added.
Bioalmanac performs arithmetic on values you enter. It does not recommend doses, schedules or compounds, and nothing here is medical advice. Confirm every calculation against your vial and syringe before drawing, and speak with a licensed healthcare provider.
Open this calculation in the full calculator
Units, concentration, bacteriostatic water — the glossary defines the vocabulary, and a unit is not a fixed volume.
Safety
Reported effects
- Injection or infusion site reactionsPublished review
Common
- Dizziness, headache and agitationPublished review
Reported in trials
More frequent when infused rapidly. The protocols specify slow infusion partly for this reason.
- Anaphylactoid reactionsPublished review
Rare but documented
This is a porcine-derived biological product. Serious allergic reactions are the reason it is administered in a clinical setting.
- Non-serious adverse events more frequent than placeboPublished review
Found in Cochrane analysis
The systematic review found more non-serious adverse events on cerebrolysin than on placebo, alongside no convincing benefit for the stroke indication.
When to stop
- Any allergic response: rash, hives, facial swelling or difficulty breathing. Seek urgent care — this is an animal-derived biological product and anaphylactoid reactions are documented.
- Agitation, confusion or marked dizziness during or after an infusion.
- Fever, or an injection site that becomes hot, spreading or produces pus.
- Seizure activity, in anyone with a seizure history.
Interactions and situations that need care
- Epilepsy or a history of seizuresAvoid
The approved labelling lists status epilepticus and grand mal epilepsy as contraindications. A neurotrophic preparation acting on neuronal excitability in someone with a seizure disorder is a risk the manufacturer itself excludes.
- Severe kidney impairmentAvoid
Listed as a contraindication in the approved labelling, reflecting how the amino acid load is cleared.
- Known allergy to porcine proteinAvoid
This is a pig brain hydrolysate, and residual animal protein is intrinsic to what it is, not a contaminant better manufacturing would remove.
- Pregnancy and breastfeedingAvoid
No reproductive or developmental safety data.
- Self-administering itAvoid
Clinical use is a 10 to 30 mL slow intravenous infusion given by a clinician, in a setting equipped for the anaphylactoid reactions that are documented for it. Neither the volume nor the route is something to attempt alone.
What to expect
- There is a great deal of trial evidence and it does not resolve. Individual randomised trials report benefits; Cochrane reviews of the same literature find no convincing effect for stroke.
- A large share of the trials are manufacturer-sponsored, which the reviews note explicitly as a limitation.
- Every registered indication involves existing brain injury or disease. Nobody has studied it in healthy people for cognition.
- It is a porcine brain hydrolysate, not a defined molecule, and the allergy risk that comes with animal-derived material is real.
- Clinical use is an intravenous infusion given by a clinician. The route and volume are part of what makes it a medicine rather than something to order and inject.
Storage and handling
- Freeze-dried powder
- Supplied as a solution in ampoules rather than a powder. Store below 25 °C, protected from light.
- After mixing
- Use immediately once an ampoule is opened. It contains no preservative.
- Long-term, frozen
- Do not freeze.
Checking your vial
Research chemicals carry no manufacturing standard, so what the vial looks like is often the only quality signal available before you use it. More on assessing quality and COAs.
Clear, amber-coloured solution
Cerebrolysin is normally slightly yellow to amber. Unlike the peptides on this site, colour here is expected, not a warning.
Cloudy solution, visible particles, or a marked colour change
Do not use it.
Questions
- If it is approved in forty countries, does it work?
- Approval in a given country reflects that country's regulatory standard and the evidence available when it was granted. Cochrane reviews assembling the trials have repeatedly found no convincing benefit for acute stroke, while individual trials report positive results. Both of those things are true, and neither settles it.
- Would it help a healthy person's cognition?
- No study has looked. Every trial has been in people with stroke, brain injury or dementia, and effects on damaged tissue do not transfer to intact tissue.
- Why is it given by infusion rather than injection?
- Because the clinical dose is 10 to 30 mL, which is a volume no subcutaneous injection can take, and because anaphylactoid reactions to a porcine-derived product need a clinical setting to manage.
References
Cerebrolysin for acute ischaemic stroke: Cochrane systematic review
Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews, 2020 · Systematic review and meta-analysis of randomised trials
Adults with acute ischaemic stroke
Found no convincing evidence of benefit on death or dependency, and more non-serious adverse events than placebo. Noted that a substantial proportion of included trials were manufacturer-sponsored.
Cerebrolysin in vascular dementia and Alzheimer's disease: randomised trials and reviews
Dementia and cognitive disorders literature, 2017 · Randomised controlled trials with subsequent review
Adults with vascular dementia or Alzheimer's disease · 10 to 30 mL intravenous, daily in 4-week courses · Courses over up to a year
Reported improvements in cognitive and global outcome measures against placebo. Reviewers note small effect sizes, short follow-up and a predominance of manufacturer-sponsored studies.
Commonly reported community protocols
Bioalmanac editorial summary of public community sources, 2026 · Not a study
Records intramuscular course patterns described in nootropic discussion. No trial has studied use in healthy people, and these carry no evidential weight about safety or effect.
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Next
What to do with Cerebrolysin
- Keep a record of itTurn a dose and a schedule into a protocol, then log what you actually take. Cerebrolysin is filled in for you.
- See what it costsPer-milligram prices read from vendor sites and confirmed by a person, so vial sizes compare.
- Check a combinationWhat our profiles record about Cerebrolysin alongside each other compound — including the pairs where nothing is recorded.
Keep this page honest
If something here is wrong, out of date, or missing a source, tell us and we will fix it and say that we did.
This page is educational. It describes what published research reports, not what you should do. Peptides discussed here are largely not approved for human use, and nothing on Bioalmanac is medical advice. No clinician reviews these pages.
Page last updated 16 Aug 2026