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PeptideLimited humanNot FDA approved

DSIP

Delta sleep inducing peptide

Last reviewed October 27, 2026 · 19 sources · Written for general readers · Compare with another compound →

The bottom line

Despite its name, DSIP has never been shown to reliably cause sleep. The human trials are tiny and decades old: one research group reported big improvements, while independent controlled trials found little or no benefit. FDA advisers voted in July 2026 against letting pharmacies compound it.

Where the evidence stands

What it is

DSIP, short for delta sleep inducing peptide, is a chain of nine amino acids: Trp-Ala-Gly-Gly-Asp-Ala-Ser-Gly-Glu.[1] The name emideltide is not an official US drug name, and FDA warns it is used for different salt forms, which can cause mix ups.[1]

Researchers studied DSIP in the 1980s for insomnia, pain and drug withdrawal.[2] As of a 2006 review, scientists still had not found the gene that makes it or a receptor it acts on.[3] FDA found it is not registered as a drug in any country it searched.[1]

Name
DSIP (Delta sleep inducing peptide)
Other names
emideltide, emideltide acetate, Trp-Ala-Gly-Gly-Asp-Ala-Ser-Gly-Glu
Type
Peptide
Sequence
WAGGDASGE
CAS number
62568-57-4
Formula
C35H48N10O15
Molecular weight
About 848.8 g/mol

How it works

No one knows how DSIP works, or even whether the body uses it as a natural sleep signal.[3]

  • Researchers have never isolated a DSIP gene, a parent protein or a receptor.[3]
  • A 1986 review said its mechanism was still unknown and might involve adrenaline type signals in the brain.[2]
  • In animal tests, effects often followed a bell shaped pattern: more was not always stronger, which makes results hard to repeat.[4]

Even the basic idea that DSIP is a natural sleep factor has weak support.

What the research shows

We keep animal and human evidence apart. A result in animals is a reason to study something in people, not proof that it works in people.

Animal and lab studies

Mixed results, even for sleep

  • In rats, DSIP itself did not increase sleep, though some modified versions did.[8]
  • A 2006 review called DSIP a still unresolved riddle and noted that DSIP did not promote deep sleep in the authors' early studies.[3]
  • In rabbits it increased light sleep and blocked sleep loss after stress, and in cats it mainly increased dream (REM) sleep.[4]
  • In mice dependent on morphine, it reduced withdrawal behavior.[4]
  • In female mice treated for life, the longest lived 10% lived about 17% longer and tumors were 2.6 times less common, but average lifespan did not change.[12]

Limit: Animal results are inconsistent across species and labs, and the lifespan work comes from one group.

Human studies

Small, old trials with mostly weak results

  • Early 1980s studies from one Swiss research group reported better sleep after DSIP was given into a vein. One of them included only 6 people.[1][13]
  • The same group gave 18 people with insomnia, aged 29 to 83, a week of IV treatment. Sleep was reported as normal by the end of follow up. The report does not describe a placebo group.[14]
  • In that group's 1987 placebo controlled study, 14 middle aged people with severe insomnia got injections for 7 nights. Night sleep improved after the first injection, and daytime alertness and performance rose.[5]
  • In a 1984 open study, 7 people with severe insomnia got a series of 10 injections. Sleep became normal in 6, with follow up of 3 to 7 months. There was no comparison group.[9]
  • In an independent 1992 double blind trial, 16 people with long term insomnia got an IV drip of DSIP or sugar water on three afternoons. DSIP slightly improved sleep efficiency and time to fall asleep, but patients did not rate their sleep better, and the authors judged it unlikely to help much.[6]
  • A 1987 double blind crossover trial gave DSIP or placebo by IV for 4 nights. Light sleep rose a little, deep and dream sleep did not change, and the authors called the effect of little clinical importance.[7]
  • In a 1984 pain pilot, 7 people with chronic headaches, tinnitus or other pain got IV injections, and pain fell in 6. There was no placebo group.[10]
  • In a 1984 withdrawal study, 107 inpatients got DSIP by IV for alcohol or opioid withdrawal. Most improved, but there was no comparison group, and a few people reported headaches.[11]
  • All human studies gave DSIP by injection into a vein. FDA found no data for injection under the skin, the route proposed for compounding.[1]

Limit: The trials are tiny and decades old, the most positive ones come from one group, and the independent controlled trials found little or no benefit.

Claims check

The most common claims about this compound, and what studies actually found. Verdicts rate the evidence, not whether you should use it.

Helps you fall asleep and sleep better

Mixed results

The original Swiss group reported that 14 people with severe insomnia slept better and felt more alert during the day after a week of nightly injections, in a placebo controlled study.[5] But an independent double blind trial in 16 people with long term insomnia found only weak changes, with no better sleep quality reported by patients.[6] Another placebo controlled trial found changes of little clinical importance.[7]

Increases deep sleep

Mixed results

Despite the name, a placebo controlled crossover trial in people with insomnia found deep (slow wave) sleep and dream (REM) sleep did not change, only light sleep rose a little.[7] In rats, DSIP itself did not increase sleep, though in rabbits it raised light sleep.[8][4]

Improves mood and daytime alertness

Mixed results

In the Swiss group's 14 person study, daytime alertness and performance rose.[5] An open study of 7 people with severe insomnia also reported better daytime mood, with no comparison group.[9] An independent trial found one tiredness measure improved and nothing else.[6]

Eases chronic pain

Mixed results

In a 1984 pilot with no placebo group, 7 people with migraines, tinnitus or other chronic pain got a series of IV injections, and pain dropped significantly in 6 of them.[10] No controlled trial has tested this.

Helps with drug and alcohol withdrawal

Mixed results

A 1984 study gave DSIP into a vein to 107 inpatients in alcohol or opioid withdrawal, and symptoms improved in most of those evaluated. There was no comparison group, and some patients were left out of the results.[11] FDA noted these studies were small and uncontrolled, and in one only 2 of 7 people finished treatment.[1]

Slows aging and extends lifespan

Only in animals

In a Russian study of 54 female mice per group given monthly courses of a DSIP product for life, average lifespan did not change, but the longest lived mice lived longer and fewer tumors appeared.[12] No human study has tested this.

Known risks and side effects

  • Unknown product quality. Products sold online are not tested to drug standards. The ingredient records FDA reviewed had no testing for bacterial toxins or impurity limits.[1]
  • Immune reactions. FDA says compounded DSIP may pose a risk of immune reactions because of impurities, depending on how it is given.[15]
  • Little side effect data. The old trials barely reported side effects. The largest, with 107 withdrawal patients, noted a few headaches.[11]
  • Name confusion. The same names are used for different forms of the peptide, which FDA sees as a safety risk.[16]
  • Delaying real treatment. Insomnia and opioid withdrawal are serious conditions that already have FDA approved treatments.[1]

Regulatory status

Today: DSIP is not FDA approved. On July 24, 2026, FDA's compounding advisers voted 7 to 6, with 1 abstaining, against adding it to the list of ingredients pharmacies may use.[17][18] FDA staff had also recommended against it.[16]

  1. The 2026 WADA list took effect. Its S0 rule bans drugs with no government approval for human use, which appears to cover DSIP.[19]
  2. FDA listed emideltide (DSIP) among substances once held in Category 2, its list of compounding safety risks, whose nominations were withdrawn.[15]
  3. FDA staff found the evidence weighs against adding DSIP to the compounding list.[1]
  4. The Pharmacy Compounding Advisory Committee voted against DSIP. It was the only one of the seven peptides the panel rejected.[18]

Sources

  1. U.S. Food and Drug Administration. FDA evaluation of emideltide and emideltide acetate for the 503A bulks list. Pharmacy Compounding Advisory Committee briefing document, meeting of July 24, 2026. FDA briefing document
  2. Graf MV, Kastin AJ. Delta-sleep-inducing peptide (DSIP): an update. Peptides. 1986;7(6):1165-1187. PMID 3550726
  3. Kovalzon VM, Strekalova TV. Delta sleep-inducing peptide (DSIP): a still unresolved riddle. J Neurochem. 2006;97(2):303-309. PMID 16539679
  4. Scherschlicht R, Aeppli L, Polc P, Haefely W. Some pharmacological effects of delta-sleep-inducing peptide (DSIP). Eur Neurol. 1984;23(5):346-352. PMID 6548967
  5. Schneider-Helmert D. Effects of delta-sleep-inducing peptide on 24-hour sleep-wake behaviour in severe chronic insomnia. Eur Neurol. 1987;27(2):120-129. PMID 3622582
  6. Bes F, Hofman W, Schuur J, Van Boxtel C. Effects of delta sleep-inducing peptide on sleep of chronic insomniac patients. A double-blind study. Neuropsychobiology. 1992;26(4):193-197. PMID 1299794
  7. Monti JM, Debellis J, Alterwain P, Pellejero T, Monti D. Study of delta sleep-inducing peptide efficacy in improving sleep on short-term administration to chronic insomniacs. Int J Clin Pharmacol Res. 1987;7(2):105-110. PMID 3583493
  8. Obal F Jr, Kovalzon VM, Kalikhevich VN, et al. Structure-activity relationship in the effects of delta-sleep-inducing peptide (DSIP) on rat sleep. Pharmacol Biochem Behav. 1986;24(4):889-894. PMID 3754970
  9. Kaeser HE. A clinical trial with DSIP. Eur Neurol. 1984;23(5):386-388. PMID 6391926
  10. Larbig W, Gerber WD, Kluck M, Schoenenberger GA. Therapeutic effects of delta-sleep-inducing peptide (DSIP) in patients with chronic, pronounced pain episodes. A clinical pilot study. Eur Neurol. 1984;23(5):372-385. PMID 6548970
  11. Dick P, Costa C, Fayolle K, Grandjean ME, Khoshbeen A, Tissot R. DSIP in the treatment of withdrawal syndromes from alcohol and opiates. Eur Neurol. 1984;23(5):364-371. PMID 6548969
  12. Popovich IG, Voitenkov BO, Anisimov VN, Ivanov VT, Mikhaleva II, Zabezhinski MA, et al. Effect of delta-sleep inducing peptide-containing preparation Deltaran on biomarkers of aging, life span and spontaneous tumor incidence in female SHR mice. Mech Ageing Dev. 2003;124(6):721-731. PMID 12782416
  13. Schneider-Helmert D, Graf M, Schoenenberger GA. Synthetic delta-sleep-inducing peptide improves sleep in insomniacs. Lancet. 1981;1(8232):1256-1257. PMID 6112579
  14. Schneider-Helmert D. Efficacy of DSIP to normalize sleep in middle-aged and elderly chronic insomniacs. Eur Neurol. 1986;25(6):448-453. PMID 3792404
  15. U.S. Food and Drug Administration. Certain bulk drug substances for use in compounding that may present significant safety risks. Content current as of April 22, 2026. FDA
  16. U.S. Food and Drug Administration. FDA presentations: emideltide, epitalon and semax. Pharmacy Compounding Advisory Committee meeting, July 24, 2026. FDA slides
  17. Fierce Pharma. Peptide adcomm Day 2: Emideltide voted down in panel's 1st peptide pushback. July 2026. News report
  18. Healio. FDA committee recommends looser restrictions for several peptides. July 24, 2026. News report
  19. World Anti-Doping Agency. World Anti-Doping Code International Standard: Prohibited List 2026. In force January 1, 2026. WADA 2026 List
Medical disclaimer

This page is educational information only. It is not medical advice and does not replace care from a licensed medical provider. Do not use this page to decide whether to take any substance. Talk to a licensed medical provider first.

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