A first-generation GHRP with notable appetite-stimulating and anabolic effects alongside GH release.
Stimulates GH release via the ghrelin receptor (GHSR-1a). GHRP-6 is distinguished by its pronounced orexigenic (appetite-stimulating) effect through hypothalamic NPY neuron activation — a property shared with natural ghrelin. This makes it relevant in hypophagia or catabolic state research.
GHRP-6 was one of the earliest synthetic GH secretagogues studied and helped establish the ghrelin receptor as a drug target. It produces reliable GH pulses but the appetite stimulation is more pronounced than with GHRP-2 or Ipamorelin.
Of historical importance in GH research, GHRP-6 remains used in models where appetite stimulation alongside GH elevation is a research goal, such as cachexia studies.