Cartalax

Cartalax is a synthetic tripeptide from the Khavinson bioregulator series with the sequence Ala-Glu-Asp, abbreviated AED in the research literature (formula C12H19N3O8, molecular weight 333.29 g/mol, CAS 85806-95-7). It is an unmodified linear peptide in which an N-terminal alanine is followed by two acidic residues, glutamic acid and aspartic acid. The AED sequence appears in cell-culture work on chondrogenic differentiation and chondrocytes, as well as in studies using dermal fibroblasts, renal cells and mesenchymal stem cells.

Cartalax in the research literature

In mesenchymal stem cell cultures, the AED tripeptide was reported to increase gene expression and protein synthesis of chondrogenic differentiation markers, including SOX9, aggrecan, type II collagen and COMP, in late-passage cultures. In chondrocyte cultures, AED was examined for its effects on a secretory phenotype characterized by increased p16, p21, p53, TNF-α and IL-1α and reduced Sirt1 synthesis.

In dermal fibroblast cultures, AED was reported to increase synthesis of sirtuin-1, sirtuin-6 and collagen I. Work in renal cell cultures described changes in p16, p21, p53 and SIRT-6 expression, and molecular docking studies have modeled AED binding to specific double-stranded DNA sequences.