Why We Send Our Products to Janoshik (And What They Found)

Last week we got our first three independent test reports back from Janoshik Analytical. The results are now publicly available — and you can verify every number yourself.

Here is why we chose to invest in independent third-party testing, what the reports showed, and what it means for researchers ordering from us.

The Problem with In-House Testing

Every peptide supplier claims “third-party tested” or “HPLC verified.” But when you ask for the certificate, what you usually get is a document the vendor generated themselves. There is no way to independently verify that the test was actually performed, that the batch number matches, or that the purity number was not edited in Photoshop.

Product pages show a class-level specification where one is on record, and we send selected lots to Janoshik for independent testing. We recognize that asking you to trust a supplier’s own paperwork is asking a lot — especially when you are evaluating a new supplier.

In-house COAs from peptide suppliers are only as trustworthy as the supplier issuing them. Without independent verification, there is no way to distinguish a legitimate certificate from a fabricated one.

Why Janoshik?

Janoshik Analytical has been the go-to independent peptide testing lab in the research community for over a decade. Researchers use their public verification page to check suppliers’ reports. Each Janoshik report we publish carries a task number and a unique key that open the original on Janoshik’s own verification page, so a copy can be checked against it.

We chose them because we wanted our customers to be able to verify our claims without taking our word for it. The reports live on Janoshik’s website, not ours. We have zero control over what they find or what they publish.

Several features make Janoshik’s testing particularly credible for the research community:

• Public verification portal: Each Janoshik report we publish has its own URL on verify.janoshik.com. Anyone can check the report without contacting us.
• Verifiable originals: The task number and unique key on each Janoshik report we publish open the original on Janoshik’s verification page, so a copy can be compared with it.

Understanding the Testing Methods

For researchers evaluating COAs — whether ours or anyone else’s — it helps to understand what each test actually measures and what it does not.

HPLC Purity (High-Performance Liquid Chromatography): This is the primary quality metric for research peptides. HPLC separates the sample into its components based on their interaction with a stationary phase and a mobile phase gradient. The purity percentage represents the area of the main peak relative to the total integrated peak area. A result of 99.766% means the main peak accounts for 99.766% of the detected peak area; the report does not identify the other peaks.

What HPLC does not tell you: peptide content (how much of the total lyophilized mass is active peptide versus counterions and water), identity confirmation (HPLC alone cannot distinguish between peptides of similar hydrophobicity), or the presence of non-UV-absorbing contaminants.

Mass Spectrometry (MS): Confirms molecular identity by measuring the exact molecular weight of the peptide. For a correctly synthesized peptide, the observed mass should match the theoretical mass within instrument tolerance (typically +/- 1 Da for electrospray ionization). Mass spec catches problems that HPLC can miss — such as amino acid substitutions that happen to elute at the same retention time as the target peptide.

Gravimetric Analysis (Sample Weight): Measures the actual mass of lyophilized peptide in the vial. This is compared against the labeled fill weight. The tested Selank sample measured 11.56 mg against a 10 mg label, and the tested Epitalon sample 45.31 mg against a 50 mg label; each figure covers the sample tested.

What They Found

Product	Labeled	Actual Weight	HPLC Purity	Report
Selank	10mg	11.56mg	99.788%	View Report
Epitalon	50mg	45.31mg	98.005%	View Report

The Epitalon result at 98.005% is lower than the Selank result.

We are publishing the Epitalon result exactly as Janoshik reported it. Transparency means showing the less flattering numbers too.

What the numbers mean in context

For researchers evaluating these results against the broader market:

• Selank at 99.788%: The tested sample measured 11.56 mg, 15.6% above the 10 mg label; the report covers that sample, not every vial.
• Epitalon at 98.005%: Above the ≥98% class-level specification on record for Epitalon. The main peak accounts for 98.005% of the detected peak area; the report does not identify the other peaks. The tested sample measured 45.31 mg, 9.4% below the label; that figure covers the sample tested, not every vial.

How to Read a Peptide COA

Whether you are evaluating CertaPeptides or any other supplier, knowing how to critically read a Certificate of Analysis protects your research investment. Here is what to check:

1. Purity method: Look for “RP-HPLC” (reverse-phase HPLC). Some COAs report “TLC purity” (thin-layer chromatography), which is a less precise method unsuitable for quantitative peptide analysis.
2. Molecular weight confirmation: The COA should include an MS result confirming the expected molecular weight. Without this, you have no identity verification — just a purity percentage for an unidentified substance.
3. Batch number: Every COA should reference a specific batch. If you order the same product twice and receive COAs with identical batch numbers but different order dates, that is a red flag — the supplier may be recycling a single COA across multiple batches.
4. Appearance and solubility: Basic physical characterization records what the lab observed on the sample tested. A COA that lists only purity without appearance, solubility, or other physical properties may be template-generated rather than batch-specific.
5. Counterion: Check whether the peptide is supplied as TFA salt, acetate salt, or free base. This affects the net peptide content and can matter for sensitive assays.
6. Independent verification: The most credible COAs come from or are verifiable through independent labs like Janoshik. A certificate you can cross-reference against a public database is fundamentally more trustworthy than one you cannot.

How to verify these results yourself

Each Janoshik report we publish includes a task number and a unique key. Here is how to check:

1. Click any “View Report” link above — it opens on Janoshik’s website, not ours
2. Enter the report’s task number and unique key on Janoshik’s verification page (janoshik.com/verification) and compare the copy with the original there
3. Check the results the report gives, such as the purity percentage and the sample weight

If a vendor removes or obscures the task number or unique key on a Janoshik certificate, that is a red flag. The Janoshik reports we publish carry a task number and a unique key, which you can check on Janoshik’s own verification page.

Our Ongoing Testing Program

We plan to send additional batches to Janoshik on an ongoing basis, prioritizing our highest-volume products. The Janoshik reports we publish appear both on our verification page and on Janoshik’s public portal.

We have also applied for Janoshik’s Distinctive Branding program, which adds our logo to all reports on their public listings page, and Premium Top Page placement for maximum visibility.

Our testing priority list for upcoming batches includes:

• BPC-157 — our highest-volume research peptide
• Semaglutide and tirzepatide — incretin peptides
• GHK-Cu — copper peptide where metal chelation accuracy affects biological activity

If you want to see specific products tested next, let us know. We are building this verification program based on what matters to researchers.

Why Transparency Matters for Research Peptides

The research peptide market operates with minimal regulatory oversight compared to pharmaceutical-grade compounds. This creates an information asymmetry: suppliers know exactly what is in their products, but buyers have to take that information on trust. Independent testing inverts that dynamic — it gives researchers access to the same analytical data that suppliers have, verified by a neutral third party.

Our published Janoshik results include less flattering ones. If we only published flattering results, the exercise would be no more trustworthy than self-issued COAs. The Epitalon result demonstrates this principle: a 98% purity with underfill is not the number we wanted to publish, but it is the number Janoshik found, and publishing it is the only way to make the testing program credible.

For researchers evaluating any peptide supplier — including us — independent verification is the single most reliable quality signal available. We encourage you to check our Janoshik reports, compare them against other suppliers’ results on the same portal, and make sourcing decisions based on verifiable data rather than marketing claims.

References

1. Sikiric P, Seiwerth S, Rucman R, Turkovic B, et al. (2011). Stable gastric pentadecapeptide BPC 157: novel therapy in gastrointestinal tract. Current Pharmaceutical Design, 17(16), 1612-1632. PMID: 21548867.
2. Pickart L, Vasquez-Soltero JM, Margolina A. (2015). GHK Peptide as a Natural Modulator of Multiple Cellular Pathways in Skin Regeneration. BioMed Research International, 2015, 648108. PMID: 26236730.

All products mentioned are intended for research purposes only.