Humanin vs SS-31
Humanin has never been through a randomized human trial; SS-31 has been through several and mostly missed their endpoints. Two different ways of not being proven.
Humanin
A genuine cytoprotective mitochondrial-derived peptide whose levels fall with age — but no randomized human trial shows that taking it does anything for people.
Full Humanin evidence reviewSS-31
Elamipretide
A cardiolipin-binding peptide with a mostly disappointing trial history; elamipretide won a narrow, confirmation-pending accelerated FDA approval for Barth syndrome — not for the anti-aging use it's sold for.
Full SS-31 evidence reviewSide by side
| Humanin | SS-31 | |
|---|---|---|
| Marketed for | Longevity, metabolic health | Mitochondrial function, longevity |
| Evidence grade | Preclinical / minimal | Clinical data |
| Family | Mitochondrial / longevity | Mitochondrial / longevity |
| Regulatory status | Not FDA-approved | FDA-approved |
| How it's obtained | Research-only | Rx product |
| Key human source | Hashimoto, PNAS 2001 | Elamipretide (Barth), Genet Med 2024 |
marks a row where the two differ. Evidence grades come from our evidence matrix, which grades each molecule on the human data for the use it is marketed for.
Our verdict
Humanin is preclinical, with cytoprotective and metabolic effects in animals and cell systems and human data that amount to levels declining with age. SS-31 (elamipretide) has the actual clinical record, and it is mostly a record of misses: the Phase 3 MMPOWER-3 in primary mitochondrial myopathy did not meet either primary endpoint, and the TAZPOWER crossover in Barth syndrome missed as well before its open-label extension supported a narrow, confirmation-pending accelerated FDA approval for muscle strength in Barth syndrome. There is no evidence that either benefits healthy people or slows aging, and humanin, along with anything sold as SS-31 outside that approval, is unapproved and investigational material.
Humanin fits if
Humanin suits the reader curious about the first mitochondrial-derived peptide and its cytoprotective biology, with no expectation of a human clinical result.
SS-31 fits if
SS-31 is the one to read if you want to see mitochondrial repair tested in real patients, remembering that its single approval covers Barth syndrome and nothing else.