Cartalax is a synthetic tripeptide (Ala-Glu-Asp, also called “AED” or “T-31”) from the Khavinson “bioregulator” family developed in St. Petersburg, Russia. It is sold as an oral capsule or research powder marketed for cartilage, bone, and connective-tissue support. The evidence behind it consists almost entirely of cell-culture and animal work from one Russian research group; there is no published human clinical trial, and it is not an approved drug anywhere.
Research snapshot
| Category | Current information |
|---|---|
| Peptide category | Khavinson-family short synthetic bioregulator (tripeptide) |
| Primary research interest | Cellular senescence and gene-expression modulation (laboratory stage) |
| Highest available evidence | Tier 4 — laboratory / cell-culture only |
| Human research available | No |
| Development status | Unapproved research chemical / oral supplement product |
| Regulatory status | Not approved as a drug in the United States, European Union, or Russia |
| Last reviewed | September 2026 |
Technical identity
| Technical property | Information |
|---|---|
| Primary name | Cartalax |
| Alternative names | AED, T-31, Ala-Glu-Asp |
| Peptide sequence | Ala-Glu-Asp (A-E-D) |
| Amino-acid length | 3 |
| Molecular formula | Not independently verified in this review |
| Molecular weight | Not independently verified in this review |
| CAS Registry Number | Not identified |
| PubChem CID | Not identified |
| Peptide class | Khavinson-family short bioregulator peptide |
| Primary biological target | Proposed DNA minor-groove binding and transcriptional modulation (laboratory evidence only) |
| Developer / originator | Vladimir Khavinson, Saint Petersburg Institute of Bioregulation and Gerontology |
| Development status | Unapproved research chemical / supplement, not in a recognized clinical pipeline |
What it is
Cartalax is one of dozens of very short synthetic peptides (2-4 amino acids) produced by Vladimir Khavinson’s laboratory at the Saint Petersburg Institute of Bioregulation and Gerontology, part of a family often marketed under names like “Cytomax” or “Cytogens.” The underlying idea, sometimes called “peptide bioregulation,” is that short peptides derived from or modeled on tissue-specific regulatory signals can help restore normal gene expression patterns in aging cells of a corresponding organ or tissue type — in this case, cartilage and bone-related connective tissue.
The tripeptide alanine-glutamate-aspartate (AED) has been studied by the Khavinson group and academic collaborators (including a University of Chieti-Pescara stem-cell laboratory) in cultured human cells — skin fibroblasts, kidney cells, bone-marrow mesenchymal stem cells, and periodontal ligament stem cells — where it was examined alongside sister peptides KED (Lys-Glu-Asp), KE (Lys-Glu), and AEDG (Ala-Glu-Asp-Gly). Cartalax is the vendor-marketed capsule/powder product built around the AED sequence and promoted specifically for cartilage and joint applications, though none of the published laboratory work used cartilage or chondrocyte cell lines specifically.
No developer, patent holder, or regulatory body outside Russia has published an independent review of Cartalax. Its current status is that of an unapproved research chemical and over-the-counter “bioregulator” supplement sold by longevity and peptide vendors, not a drug in development in any recognized clinical pipeline.
How does it work?
Plain-English explanation
The proposed idea is that this tiny peptide can enter a cell and interact with DNA in ways that nudge aging cells to behave a bit more like younger ones — for example, dividing a little more readily and expressing fewer “I am old and stressed” signals. This has been shown in lab dishes using several human cell types, but not in cartilage cells specifically, and not in any published human trial.
Technical explanation
AED and related short Khavinson peptides are proposed to bind in the minor groove of AT-rich DNA sequences and modulate transcription of genes involved in cellular senescence and proliferation. In human bone-marrow mesenchymal stem cell aging models, AED (alongside KED and KE) was reported to increase IGF1 expression several-fold and to stimulate NF-κB gene expression (Ashapkin et al., 2020, Mol Biol Rep, PMID 32399807, DOI 10.1007/s11033-020-05506-3). In aging renal cell cultures, the related tripeptide AED (studied together with a different tripeptide, EDL) was reported to increase proliferation and reduce expression of the senescence markers p16, p21, and p53, and to increase SIRT-6 expression (Khavinson et al., 2014, Adv Gerontol, PMID 25946838). No mechanistic work specific to chondrocytes, cartilage matrix, or bone-marrow niche cells under the Cartalax name was identified in PubMed.
Potential benefits and research applications
Cellular aging markers in laboratory cell cultures
What is being investigated: whether AED can shift gene-expression patterns associated with cell aging (senescence markers, growth-factor signaling) toward a younger profile. How the effect might occur: proposed DNA-binding and transcriptional modulation. Evidence: laboratory (in vitro) studies in human mesenchymal stem cells, kidney cells, and periodontal stem cell lines — not cartilage-specific. Strength: preliminary, mechanistic/laboratory tier only, from a small number of affiliated research groups. Limitation: no animal model of joint or cartilage disease, and no human data, have been published under the Cartalax name.
Cartilage and joint support (as marketed)
What is being investigated: vendor marketing associates Cartalax with cartilage and connective-tissue “regulation” and joint health. How the effect might occur: not established for cartilage tissue specifically — the mechanism is extrapolated from unrelated cell types. Evidence: none identified in PubMed for chondrocytes, joint tissue, or osteoarthritis models. Strength: has not been established. This application appears to be a marketing extrapolation from the peptide’s organ-bioregulator naming convention rather than a tested cartilage-specific research finding.
What dosage information circulates?
Figures in this section summarize amounts and schedules reported in published research or circulating online. Their inclusion documents what is reported and does not establish that a regimen is verified, safe, effective, or appropriate.
| Reported use | Route | Amount reported | Frequency | Duration | Evidence category |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Human research | — | Not established | — | — | No published human trial identified |
| Animal / in vivo research | — | Not established | — | — | No in vivo dosing data (cell-culture only) |
| Cartilage / joint support (as marketed) | Oral capsule | ~10–20 mg per day | Daily | 10–20 day course, sometimes repeated | Vendor / community reported — original source unverified |
Amounts studied in human research
No published human trial of Cartalax or AED tripeptide was identified. Not consistently reported.
Amounts studied in animal research
Published work is limited to cultured human cell lines (in vitro), not whole-animal dosing studies, so there is no in vivo amount, frequency, or route to report for AED under any name. Not consistently reported.
Practitioner and community-reported protocols
Vendor and biohacking sources selling “Cartalax” 20 mg vials or capsules commonly describe oral capsule use at roughly 10-20 mg per day for 10-20 day courses, sometimes repeated after a break, modeled on the general Khavinson-line oral “bioregulator” course pattern used across this peptide family. This pattern is widely repeated across vendor sites, but its original source could not be verified — it does not trace to a specific published clinical protocol for Cartalax, and appears to be a template applied uniformly across the whole Khavinson product line rather than a figure derived from dedicated dosing research on this compound.
Explanation of the reported figures
The 10-20 mg, 10-20 day oral course pattern appears on nearly every vendor page for this entire family of Khavinson peptides (Cartalax, Vesugen, Vilon, and others alike), which strongly suggests it is a generic marketing template rather than a figure specifically established for cartilage bioregulation. No laboratory study identified in PubMed used oral dosing or reported a capsule amount at all — the published work exclusively used cultured cells exposed to the peptide directly in solution at nanomolar concentrations, which cannot be converted into an oral human dose. There is no human clinical dosing data, no animal in vivo dosing data, and no way to verify where the commonly repeated capsule figure originated.
What circulates E5
Vendors and longevity/biohacking communities commonly describe oral Cartalax capsule or reconstituted-powder use at roughly 10-20 mg per day for a 10-20 day course, sometimes repeated after a break of several weeks to months. This figure is widely repeated online, but its original source could not be verified, and it does not correspond to any dosing amount used in the published laboratory research (which used nanomolar peptide concentrations applied directly to cell cultures, not an oral human dose). Treat any specific "X mg/day" figure for Cartalax as community/vendor-tier information only.
Recorded as an observation about what is published elsewhere. No figure here is a dose, a protocol, or a recommendation, and nothing in this section is evidence that any amount is safe or effective.
Side effects, risks, and limitations
No human trial exists to characterize side effects, so none can be honestly reported as established. General concerns applicable to unregulated peptide products include unverified purity, inaccurate labeled content, contamination, and incorrect concentration, since Cartalax is manufactured and sold outside any pharmaceutical quality-control framework. Because it has never been tested in cartilage-relevant animal models or in any human, its safety profile, appropriate dose, interactions, and long-term effects have not been established.
Regulatory and developmental status
Cartalax has no approval as a drug in the United States, the European Union, or Russia. It is sold in Russia and internationally as a dietary/bioregulator supplement and by peptide vendors as a “research chemical,” not as a registered pharmaceutical. It has not entered any registered clinical trial pipeline identified in this review. Status verified as of the date below; regulatory status can change and should be re-checked before republishing.
Frequently asked questions
What is Cartalax?
A short synthetic tripeptide (Ala-Glu-Asp) from the Khavinson bioregulator family, marketed for cartilage and connective-tissue support and sold as an oral supplement or research peptide.
Has Cartalax been tested in humans?
No published human clinical trial was identified for this compound under this name.
What dosage has actually been studied?
Only laboratory cell-culture concentrations have been published; no in vivo or human dose has been studied.
What dosage circulates online?
Vendors commonly describe 10-20 mg oral courses for 10-20 days, but this figure is widely repeated without an identifiable original source.
Is the peptide sequence certain?
The Ala-Glu-Asp (AED) sequence is consistent with the peer-reviewed literature that discusses this peptide, but marketing pages sometimes describe Cartalax loosely as a “tetrapeptide,” which does not match the tripeptide sequence reported in the science. This inconsistency should be treated as unresolved rather than assumed to favor either description.
Is Cartalax approved anywhere?
No. It is not an approved medicine in any jurisdiction identified in this review.
What remains unknown?
Whether AED has any effect on actual cartilage or joint tissue, what (if any) oral dose reaches active tissue concentrations, and whether the laboratory findings in unrelated cell types generalize to any clinical benefit.
Bottom line
Cartalax is a laboratory-stage short peptide with some legitimate, published cell-culture evidence for the AED tripeptide affecting aging-related gene expression in human stem cells, skin, and kidney cell lines — but none of that published work involved cartilage tissue, animals, or humans. The oral capsule dosing that circulates commercially is a marketing-level figure repeated across an entire product family, not a tested clinical protocol. Cartilage or joint benefit has not been established, and Cartalax remains an unapproved research/supplement product rather than a studied therapeutic.