Growth Hormones

The first treatment of HGH was completed in 1958, however, that was before recombinant DNA technology allowed for the synthetic production of the hormone. These preparations were made by extracting HGH from the pituitary glands of cadavers. In 1985 the FDA banned cadaver GH because they had been linked to the development of Creutzfeldt-Jakob’s disease (CJD). Fortunately, at the same time, the first synthetic HGH was approved. It was called somatrem, but not an exact clone of somatropin amino acid chain though, with the same biological properties as the natural hormone. The slight variation caused a higher incidence of anti-body creation thus making somatrem less effective in patients. In 1987, however, the first synthetic somatropin was produced with the exact amino acid sequence as that of endogenous growth hormone. Today the majority of HGH products are somatropin although somatrem is still available. HGH is suitable for subcutaneous or intramuscular administration. One milligram of somatropin is equivalent to approximately 3 International Units (3 IU). Dosages range from 0,03IU/kg body weight to 0,06IU/kg per 24 hours. It is usually taken as two injections per day, the total daily dosage being divided. After injecting it will be metabolized by the liver into IGF-1, the release of IGF-1 will stop the natural production of HGH through a negative feedback loop similar to the one we experience with testosterone production. This negative feedback loop can be reduced by having high levels of circulating testosterone and low levels of estrogen.