DSIP was isolated in 1974 from the blood of rabbits in induced sleep, and named for what it was assumed to do. That name has done more work than the evidence ever has.
Fifty years later, whether DSIP induces sleep in humans remains unestablished. Small studies through the 1980s produced inconsistent results, some suggesting an effect on sleep onset in insomniacs and others finding nothing. It has never been developed as a treatment, and no modern trial has settled the question.
It is a useful compound to think carefully about, because the name is doing the persuading. 'Delta sleep-inducing peptide' sounds like a description of an established function and is in fact a fifty-year-old hypothesis that nobody confirmed.
How it works
DSIP is a nonapeptide found in mammalian brain and blood. Its endogenous function is genuinely unknown, and no receptor has been definitively identified for it.
That is unusual and worth stating plainly: for most peptides on this site the receptor is known even where the clinical effect is not. Here the target itself is unresolved after five decades.
Proposed mechanisms include modulation of GABA and opioid signalling and effects on ACTH release, none established.
It crosses the blood–brain barrier, which is at least consistent with a central effect, and does not establish one.
Regulatory status — United States
Not approved anywhere. Studied in small human trials in the 1980s without a treatment being developed. Sold as a research chemical.
Last reviewed 18 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.
Sleep
Published reviewWhat it is named for.
EvidenceSmall studies from the 1980s produced inconsistent results. No modern trial has established a sleep effect in humans, and it was never developed as a treatment.
Stress, pain and withdrawal
Published reviewOther directions the older literature explored.
EvidenceReported in small early studies, including in opioid withdrawal. None replicated or developed.
Identity and clearance
Molecule
- Class
- Naturally occurring nonapeptide, function unresolved
- Molecular weight
- 848.8 Da
- Length
- 9 amino acids
Sequence
Trp-Ala-Gly-Gly-Asp-Ala-Ser-Gly-Glu
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, 5 mg vial | Source | Start this protocol |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Commonly described community protocol | 100 mcg – 500 mcg | Before bed, on the nights it is used | SubcutaneousThe pattern in community sources. Note that the early human studies used intravenous administration at different doses, so these figures are not derived from them. | 10–50 u | Community practice | 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.
CheckRows marked community practice describe what people commonly do, drawn from public discussion. They are not derived from any trial and are not evidence that a dose is safe or effective.
Calculator
Work out what to draw
Pre-filled with a 5 mg vial as a worked example. These are not recommended values — change them to match the vial in front of you.
Draw to 8 units on a 1 mL U-100 syringe. That is 0.08 mL, containing 200 mcg of DSIP.
8 units sits exactly on a printed line.
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
- Generally described as well toleratedPublished review
In the small early studies
Those studies were small and not designed to detect adverse events reliably.
- Headache and grogginessCommunity practice
Occasionally reported
- Everything over any length of timePublished review
Unknown
No modern trial exists, and the older work was short.
When to stop
- Daytime grogginess that interferes with driving or work.
- Worsening sleep rather than improvement.
- Any allergic response: rash, hives, facial swelling or difficulty breathing. Seek urgent care.
Interactions and situations that need care
- Pregnancy and breastfeedingAvoid
No reproductive or developmental safety data, for a peptide whose endogenous function is not even established.
- Sedatives, alcohol or other sleep medicationUse caution
The mechanism is unresolved, which means the interaction is unpredictable rather than absent. Combining an uncharacterised compound with a known sedative is not a risk anyone can size.
- Treating insomnia without assessmentUse caution
Persistent insomnia usually has a cause: sleep apnoea, a mood disorder, a medication. All of those are findable. Reaching for a compound named after an effect it has never demonstrated is unlikely to be the shortest route to sleeping.
What to expect
HonestlyThere is no human efficacy data for this compound, so there is no evidence-based timeline to give. Any site publishing a week-by-week schedule of expected effects has invented it.
- The name is a hypothesis from 1974, not a finding. Fifty years on, the sleep effect in humans is still unestablished.
- No receptor has been definitively identified. For most peptides here the target is known even when the effect is not; here neither is.
- The human studies were small, inconsistent, and from the 1980s. Nobody has run a modern one.
- Community dose figures do not derive from those studies, which used a different route.
Storage and handling
- Freeze-dried powder
- Refrigerated at 2–8 °C, protected from light.
- After mixing
- Refrigerated at 2–8 °C. Do not freeze once mixed.
- Long-term, frozen
- Unopened powder is stable at −20 °C or colder.
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.
White cake, clear solution
Standard for a lyophilised peptide.
Collapsed cake or cloudy solution
Heat damage or degradation. Do not use it.
Questions
- Does it actually help you sleep?
- That has never been established. Small studies in the 1980s were inconsistent, no modern trial has been run, and the compound was never developed as a treatment. The name reflects where it was found in 1974, not a confirmed function.
- What does it bind to?
- Nobody has definitively identified a receptor for it. That is unusual: for most peptides the target is known even where the clinical effect is not.
References
Delta sleep-inducing peptide: fifty years without an established function
Sleep and neuropeptide research literature, 2011 · Review of small human studies and animal work
Humans and animals
Reports inconsistent effects on sleep across small human studies, with no receptor definitively identified and no treatment developed. The compound's endogenous function remains unresolved.
Commonly reported community protocols
Bioalmanac editorial summary of public community sources, 2026 · Not a study
Records dose and route patterns described in public discussion. Carries no evidential weight about safety or effect.
Related compounds
GHK-Cu
A naturally occurring copper-binding tripeptide with a long history in topical skincare research. Injected use is not what the research studied.
Ipamorelin
A selective growth hormone secretagogue that prompts a short pulse of GH release. Widely used, and supported almost entirely by early pharmacology rather than outcome trials.
CJC-1295
A GHRH analogue that raises growth hormone by amplifying the body's own release signal. Sold in two forms whose durations differ by two orders of magnitude.
Tesamorelin
A GHRH analogue approved by the FDA for reducing excess visceral fat in HIV-associated lipodystrophy. The only compound in this category with completed phase 3 trials.
Next
What to do with DSIP
- Keep a record of itTurn a dose and a schedule into a protocol, then log what you actually take. DSIP 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 DSIP 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 18 Aug 2026