Do copper peptides = copper, or are they something else entirely?

February 7, 2008 4:30 PM

Can copper peptide use cause copper accumulation in the body? I'm using a product called Folligen on my hair daily. Its ingredients include cupric sulfate and soy protein, which apparently combine to become copper peptides. The manufacturer claims that the way the product is formulated, any free copper molecules are unlikely. I'm not so sure. Am I essentially bathing my head in copper every night, or is the resulting "copper peptide" something completely different and safe?
posted by specialfriend to health & fitness (6 comments total)

I doubt copper sulfate or the copper-peptide complex crosses skin very readily. I wouldn't worry about it, but I'm just speculating here. I also doubt that copper + soy protein does much for your hair.
posted by pombe at 4:59 PM on February 7, 2008

Free copper ions (Cu2+) cause biological damage, not copper sulfate (CuSO4). For example, antifouling paint for the boats is designed to slowly release these ions in order to prevent barnacles and the like from living on the bottom of the boat.

However, even in seawater, only about 1-2% of total copper is free ions since copper like to react with organic particles. It's VERY unlikely that there are any free ions on your head, and even more unlikely that anything is making it through your skin. As long as you don't eat your product, you're fine. If you're really concerned, don't use it when you are going to sweat a lot.
posted by ilyanassa at 5:18 PM on February 7, 2008

Interesting... what if a person were goofy enough to also be using some sort of needled-rolling device like this that broke the epidermis?
posted by specialfriend at 6:53 PM on February 7, 2008

This question caught my attention because metal-ion peptide interactions are an area of active research for me.

The webpage you linked for Folligen made me suspect quackery, but a pubmed search for Lauren Pickart, the "biochemist who invented" the product being hawked does actually show a peer reviewed publication record. It looks like Pickart has done substantial research into a gly-his-lys peptide which chelates copper and has some real biological effects, which are modulated by the presence of copper. He's published in good journals, too, but the work is all 15+ years old.

In short, I suspect that this product is formulated with equimolar amounts of copper and peptide, so there is probably no "free"copper. Free copper is corrosive, so you'd notice a burning sensation on your scalp if it was present.

It's hard to come to a real conclusion here, with regard to your question, since there's no mention of how much copper is present in the formulation. The publication record means that it's difficult to dismiss as outright quackery, and the cellular studies in the publications imply that the formulators of this product would likely not include harmful doses. The LD50 for Copper is around 30mg/kg in rats, which is surprisingly low.

I guess, however, that I would give qualified agreement with the manufacturers claim that free Cu(II) is unlikely in this formulation.
posted by u2604ab at 9:26 PM on February 7, 2008

Thanks to all of you! I am always amazed by the Metafilter.
posted by specialfriend at 9:48 AM on February 8, 2008

Huh, interesting to know that there is actually peer reviewed publication record for this.
posted by pombe at 11:48 AM on February 8, 2008