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Metabolic Peptides

Editorial position

How we distinguish licensed medicines from research compounds

The five regulatory categories we use and how each is treated editorially: licensed UK prescription medicine, licensed elsewhere but not UK, investigational compound, research-only compound, preclinical compound, and non-peptide comparator.

By Metabolic Peptides Editorial TeamReviewed by Scientific Review PanelLast updated

The five categories

  1. Licensed UK prescription medicine. MHRA-authorised for a specific UK indication. Mounjaro, Wegovy, Ozempic, Rybelsus, Saxenda, Victoza, Trulicity.
  2. Licensed elsewhere, not in the UK. Authorised in another jurisdiction (often US FDA) but not currently MHRA-licensed. Zepbound (US tirzepatide brand), Egrifta (US tesamorelin).
  3. Investigational compound. Active human clinical trials under regulator oversight; not licensed for therapeutic use anywhere. Retatrutide, cagrilintide, CagriSema, survodutide, pemvidutide, mazdutide, cotadutide, orforglipron, danuglipron, MariTide.
  4. Research-only compound. Used in laboratory research, with limited or older human data, not advanced to a regulator-licensed human therapeutic indication. AOD-9604, HGH Fragment 176-191, CJC-1295, ipamorelin.
  5. Preclinical compound or non-peptide comparator. Mentioned for context only.

How each category is treated editorially

  • Licensed UK medicines. Educational, evidence-led coverage; UK SmPC / EPAR / FDA label as primary regulatory references; trial data front and centre; no advertising, no supplier links.
  • Licensed elsewhere, not UK. Treated as informational; explicit that UK access is jurisdiction-specific; not framed as alternatives to UK-licensed options.
  • Investigational compounds. Discussed at their actual evidence stage (phase 2, phase 3, topline-only) with explicit "not licensed for human therapeutic use in the UK" framing.
  • Research-only compounds. Discussed as research molecules with limited human evidence; explicit "not for human therapeutic use" framing; no dosing, sourcing or use guidance.
  • Preclinical compounds and non-peptide comparators. Mentioned only where they materially illuminate the wider context.

Why this matters

Conflating the categories is the most common failure mode in popular metabolic-peptide writing. A reader who walks away with the impression that a phase 2 result is licensed-medicine evidence, or that a research-only fragment is interchangeable with a UK-licensed POM, has been misled. The system above exists to prevent that.

How this shows up in the site

  • Every peptide profile, brand page, trial page and comparison page carries a compliance status panel that names the category.
  • The evidence matrix filters by category.
  • The regulatory status checker returns category-aware status flags.
  • Every regulatory page repeats the relevant category-specific human-use warning.
Last reviewed 20 May 2026 · licensed vs research categories · Metabolic Peptides editorial team