MOTS-c: research, legal status and who sells it

What it is

MOTS-c is a 16-amino-acid peptide encoded by a short open reading frame in the mitochondrial 12S rRNA gene, first described in 2015 [10]. Its levels in plasma decrease with age [11].

Research status

In mice, MOTS-c treatment prevented diet-induced obesity and age-related insulin resistance; it acted mainly on skeletal muscle and activated AMPK, a cellular energy sensor [10]. Reviews describe potential roles in metabolism, aging, cardiovascular disease and inflammation, but note that MOTS-c has rarely been used in disease treatment and that no effective method of applying it clinically has been developed [11]. FDA has not identified any human exposure data for drug products containing MOTS-c, given by any route [12].

Regulatory status

MOTS-c is not FDA-approved [1]. FDA listed obesity and osteoporosis as the uses it reviewed [13]; its staff found no studies of MOTS-c given to people and concluded that the evaluation criteria weigh against adding it to the 503A compounding list [2]. In July 2026, FDA’s advisory committee voted 7–5, with two abstentions, to recommend adding it; the vote is not binding and FDA has not added it [13][3]. No MOTS-c medicine is authorized in the UK, the EU or Canada [4][5][6][7], and it is not named in Australia’s Poisons Standard [8]. WADA prohibits MOTS-c at all times as a metabolic modulator [9].

Quality and testing considerations

FDA has encountered multiple salts and derivatives sold under the MOTS-c name [2], and it flags potential immunogenicity and complexities with peptide-related impurities and characterization [12]. With no approved reference product and no human data, independent confirmation of identity and purity is the only check on what a vial contains.

Where it’s sold

MOTS-c is sold online as a “research use only” peptide; the tables below track listings.