Can peptides cause kidney problems?

Each answer says whether kidney problems was reported, and how often where that’s known. “Not reported” means the label or trials didn’t list it, not that it can’t happen. Talk to a doctor or pharmacist about any symptom that worries you.

From a product label 35

What the prescribing information says, with rates against placebo where the label gives them.

AbaloparatideApproved drug

LabelHigh urine calcium 11% vs 9% and kidney stones 2.1% vs 1.7% in women. Exposure doubled in severe kidney impairment, and the EU label rules it out then.

CalcitoninApproved drug

LabelAbnormal urine sediment appeared in volunteers on bed rest and cleared after stopping, so the labels suggest periodic urine checks. Passing more urine is listed as uncommon.

CerebrolysinApproved drug

LabelThe EU label says no data suggest it harms the kidneys, but both labels rule it out in severe kidney failure.

DulaglutideApproved drug

LabelKidney injury, sometimes needing dialysis, has been reported, mostly after vomiting or diarrhea. In REWIND, new heavy urine protein was less common than on placebo.

ExenatideApproved drug

LabelKidney injury, sometimes needing dialysis, has been reported, mostly after vomiting or diarrhea. Not recommended when kidney function is severely reduced (creatinine clearance under 30).

L-CarnitineApproved drug

LabelKidney failure: 6% vs 5% on placebo in dialysis patients. The label warns that high oral doses in severe kidney disease can build up potentially toxic TMA and TMAO.

LeuprolideApproved drug

LabelThe early surge in prostate cancer can block urine flow. BUN and creatinine rose in at least 5% of men on the monthly depot; the label calls the link unclear.

LiraglutideApproved drug

LabelKidney injury from dehydration has been reported, sometimes needing dialysis. In LEADER, diabetic kidney disease began or worsened in 5.7% vs 7.2% on placebo.

LixisenatideApproved drug

LabelKidney injury, sometimes needing dialysis, has been reported, mostly after vomiting or diarrhea. Not recommended in end-stage kidney disease; exposure more than doubled in severe impairment.

MecaserminApproved drug

LabelKidney and spleen size grew quickly in the first years, but kidney function stayed normal in all patients. Not studied in kidney impairment.

OctreotideApproved drug

LabelKidney failure appears among post-approval reports, where a link wasn’t established. On dialysis, octreotide clears more slowly, so lower starting doses are used.

OrforglipronApproved drug

LabelAcute kidney injury: 0.2% vs 0.05% on placebo; most reported cases followed dehydration from vomiting or diarrhea. Kidney disease, even kidney failure, didn’t change drug levels.

SemaglutideApproved drug

LabelKidney injury from dehydration has been reported, sometimes needing dialysis; in weight trials it occurred at 0.4 vs 0.2 cases per 100 patient-years. In diabetic kidney disease, Ozempic slowed decline.

TirzepatideApproved drug

LabelKidney injury from dehydration has been reported, sometimes needing dialysis; in the weight trials it hit 0.5% vs 0.2% on placebo. Kidney disease doesn’t change drug levels.

TriptorelinApproved drug

LabelBUN, a kidney marker, rose in at least 10% of men by day 253 on 11.25 mg. In prostate cancer, the early testosterone surge can block urine flow.

ZiconotideApproved drug

LabelUrinary retention 9% vs 0% on placebo. Rarely, kidney failure followed severe muscle breakdown with very high CK.

CetrorelixApproved drug

LabelNo kidney harm is listed, but both labels rule it out with severe kidney impairment, and milder impairment hasn’t been studied.

CosyntropinApproved drug

LabelNot listed as a side effect. UK labels urge weighing risks in kidney failure, and repeated depot use can lower potassium.

DesmopressinApproved drug

LabelKidney damage isn’t listed, but it builds up when kidneys are weak and is ruled out below a creatinine clearance of 50 mL/min. Urinary retention has been reported.

EnlicitideApproved drug

LabelNot a listed side effect. The kidneys clear most of it, but even dialysis raised levels too little to need a dose change, per the label.

GanirelixApproved drug

LabelNot listed as a side effect. The EU label rules it out with moderate or severe kidney impairment, which wasn’t studied.

GlucagonApproved drug

LabelKidney problems aren’t listed. Glucagon is broken down in the liver, kidneys and blood; the labels give no dose change for kidney disease.

GlutathioneApproved drug

LabelNo kidney harm is listed in the label, which credits it with protecting the kidneys during cisplatin chemotherapy; a 151-patient trial reported less toxicity with it.

hCGApproved drug

LabelNo kidney harm is listed, but the labels urge caution with kidney disease because of fluid retention. Severe ovarian overstimulation can sharply cut urine output.

IcotrokinraApproved drug

LabelNo kidney harm is listed. Blood levels rose about 2.5–2.8-fold in moderate or severe kidney impairment, so the US label advises watching for side effects.

LinaclotideApproved drug

LabelKidney problems aren’t listed. Severe diarrhea has caused dehydration and low potassium or sodium needing IV fluids; kidney disease needs no dose change.

Melanotan 1Approved drug

LabelNot a listed side effect, though blood in urine is uncommon in the EU label. The EU and Canadian labels rule it out with kidney impairment.

OxytocinApproved drug

LabelNo kidney damage is listed, but it makes the body hold water. The UK label urges caution in severe kidney impairment because of water retention and drug buildup.

PramlintideApproved drug

LabelKidney problems aren’t a listed side effect. No dose change down to severe impairment (creatinine clearance 15–29 mL/min); not studied in kidney failure.

PT-141Approved drug

LabelNo kidney harm is listed. With severe kidney impairment, drug levels double, which may worsen nausea and vomiting, so the label advises caution.

SetmelanotideApproved drug

LabelNot a listed side effect, but the kidneys help clear it: severe impairment nearly doubles exposure, so doses are cut or it isn’t used.

Somatropin (HGH)Approved drug

LabelKidney problems aren’t listed. It is cleared more slowly in chronic kidney failure, though no dose studies exist there, and it can raise calcium in the urine.

SS-31Approved drug

LabelNot a listed side effect, but it leaves through the kidneys: exposure rises 125% with severe kidney impairment, so the label halves the dose.

TeduglutideApproved drug

LabelNo direct kidney harm is listed, but short bowel syndrome brings dehydration that can injure the kidneys, especially as IV fluids are cut or the drug stops (EU label).

TeriparatideApproved drug

LabelNo important kidney effects in the trials. Urine calcium rises slightly and existing stones may worsen; kidney failure or impairment is listed as rare in the EU label.

From human studies 14

What published trials and case reports found.

PalopegteriparatideApproved drug

TrialIn an uncontrolled 2-year analysis, urine calcium normalized and eGFR, a kidney filtering measure, rose about 9 points. Getting up at night to urinate is uncommon (EU label).

ARA-290Human studies

TrialOne person with borderline kidney function had a creatinine rise and stopped at day 15 in the diabetes trial. In the 78-person Phase 2b, kidney failure occurred only on placebo.

LL-37Human studies

TrialIn the 148-person leg-ulcer trial, one person on LL-37 had a serious creatinine rise and one on placebo had acute kidney injury; neither was judged related.

Melanotan 2Human studies

TrialCase reports describe kidney injury with muscle breakdown and a kidney infarction. FDA’s database adds a kidney artery clot reported in a 51-year-old man also on testosterone.

RetatrutideHuman studies

TrialOne serious acute kidney injury occurred among 338 adults in phase 2. As with related drugs, heavy vomiting or diarrhea can dehydrate and injure the kidneys.

SurvodutideHuman studies

TrialSerious kidney events occurred in phase 2 (about 3 of 523 people) but not on placebo; in SYNCHRONIZE-MASLD, kidney injury hit none on survodutide vs 3 of 70 on placebo.

Thymosin Beta-4Human studies

TrialOne report of kidney failure among 55 people on the gel in a leg-ulcer trial, vs none of 17 on placebo; its cause wasn’t given.

EcnoglutideApproved drug

TrialNo kidney injury was reported in the published trials. Protein in the urine was noted in 7.3% on ecnoglutide vs 0% on placebo in the 20-week phase 2 trial.

MazdutideApproved drug

TrialNo serious kidney injury occurred in the US phase 2 trial, though dehydration hit 3.1% vs none on placebo; heavy vomiting can injure the kidneys.

CagrilintideHuman studies

TrialNot a common side effect. In a single-dose study, kidney impairment, even severe, didn’t change cagrilintide levels or tolerability. Dehydration from vomiting can strain the kidneys.

IpamorelinHuman studies

TrialNot studied directly. Of two deaths on ipamorelin after bowel surgery, one involved kidney failure with sepsis following surgical complications; no link was established.

LarazotideHuman studies

TrialLab and urine tests didn’t change over 12 weeks (342 adults). In a 14-day trial, 5 of 60 people on larazotide had urinary infections, none on placebo, with no dose pattern.

MK-677Human studies

TrialNot a notable side effect; one child had a brief creatinine rise. In 22 people on hemodialysis for 3 months, no serious side effects were attributed to it.

BPC-157Preclinical

TrialKidney tests didn’t change in a 2-person IV pilot. Dogs given it daily for 28 days had lower creatinine, a kidney marker, for reasons that are unclear.

A precaution, not measured 1

A concern that follows from how it works or from a related drug.

NAD+Human studies

PrecautionNo kidney data. Infused NAD+ and its breakdown products leave in urine, and the one IV study excluded people with kidney failure.

Seen only in animals 5

Animal findings don’t show what happens in people.

AOD9604Human studies

AnimalRoutine blood and urine tests didn’t change in human trials. Rats on high oral doses for 6 months had higher urea and creatinine, kidney markers, at times.

FOXO4-DRIPreclinical

AnimalNo human data. In fast-aging and very old mice, it lowered urea and creatinine, blood markers that rise as kidney function declines.

IGF-1 DESPreclinical

AnimalNo human data. In rats with acute kidney injury it lowered blood urea and aided weight gain but didn’t improve kidney filtration; kidneys grew heavier in rats after gut surgery.

IGF-1 LR3Preclinical

AnimalNo human data. In rats recovering from acute kidney injury, LR3 deepened the early fall in kidney filtration and increased calcium deposits in kidney tubules.

SLU-PP-332Preclinical

AnimalNo human data. In aged mice, 8 weeks of treatment reduced protein in the urine, a sign of kidney strain.

Studied in people, not reported 21

Labels or trials covered enough people and didn’t report it. It can still happen.

CJC-1295 with DACHuman studies

Not reportedBlood and urine tests showed no consistent changes in the trials (63 healthy adults, up to 49 days). People with kidney disease weren’t studied.

GHRP-6Human studies

Not reportedLab tests showed no abnormalities after single IV doses in 18 healthy men. Kidney effects of repeated use haven’t been studied.

DasiglucagonApproved drug

Not reportedKidney problems aren’t listed in the label; it’s broken down in the blood, liver and kidneys, like glucagon.

DSIPApproved drug

Not reportedNot listed or reported. The Deltaran label says blood enzymes break it into amino acids and short fragments, and that it doesn’t build up.

GHRP-2Approved drug

Not reportedNot listed in the Japanese label. Seven people with kidney impairment had no reactions in a post-approval survey of 503 people given the single test dose.

GonadorelinApproved drug

Not reportedNot listed in the UK label; gonadorelin is broken down in the blood and cleared in urine.

MacimorelinApproved drug

Not reportedNot reported after a single dose in 154 adults; it hasn’t been studied in kidney impairment.

PlecanatideApproved drug

Not reportedKidney problems aren’t listed in the label. Severe diarrhea, seen in under 1%, can dehydrate; the label says to stop and rehydrate.

SelankApproved drug

Not reportedNot listed or reported in trials. The label says tissue enzymes break it down fast; neither the drug nor its breakdown products show up in urine.

SemaxApproved drug

Not reportedNot listed or reported in trials. The labels say Semax is broken down quickly in the blood and cleared in urine.

TesamorelinApproved drug

Not reportedKidney problems aren’t listed in the label’s trials (740 people with HIV, up to 52 weeks); its use in kidney disease hasn’t been studied.

ThymalinApproved drug

Not reportedNot listed in the Russian label, which has no dosing data for kidney impairment; published trials gave few safety details.

Thymosin Alpha-1Approved drug

Not reportedNot listed in either label; the Indonesian label cites use in over 2,000 people, with drug-related side effects in under 1%.

VIPApproved drug

Not reportedNot listed in Invicorp’s label. In a 196-person trial of 3-day IV infusions, no side effect type except diarrhea was more common than on placebo.

ArgirelineHuman studies

Not reportedNot reported in the small skin trials (up to 60 people, mostly 4–8 weeks); the most reliable lab tests found almost none reaches deeper skin.

HexarelinHuman studies

Not reportedNot reported in small studies of up to 16 weeks in 12 older adults; kidney tests weren’t described in the published summaries.

Kisspeptin-10Human studies

Not reportedNot reported in small, short human studies (about 300 people, single doses to 12 days), which often didn’t track side effects.

MatrixylHuman studies

Not reportedNot reported in the skin trials (93 women for 12 weeks; 196 using a mix for 8 weeks), where it was well tolerated.

SermorelinHuman studies

Not reportedKidney problems weren’t listed in the Geref trials (350 patients); the former US label had no data for people with kidney impairment.

SNAP-8Human studies

Not reportedNot reported in two small patch studies that mixed it with other actives (24 people for 28 days; another for 12 weeks); SNAP-8 alone hasn’t been studied.

TesofensineHuman studies

Not reportedNo kidney problems are reported in published summaries. Trials excluded severe kidney impairment, and reduced kidney function raised drug levels in modeling.

No human safety data 18

No one has been given it in a published study, so it can’t be ruled in or out.

DihexaHuman studies

No dataNo human data for dihexa itself. Kidney problems weren’t among common side effects of its injected prodrug, whose trial excluded moderate to severe kidney disease.

GHK-CuHuman studies

No dataNo human data: kidney function hasn’t been measured in any GHK-Cu study, topical or injected.

5-Amino-1MQPreclinical

No dataNo human safety data: no published study has given it to a person.

AdamaxPreclinical

No dataNo human or animal safety data; Adamax has never been studied.

AHK-CuPreclinical

No dataNo human safety data: AHK-Cu has never been tested in people, on the skin or by injection.

CartalaxPreclinical

No dataNo human data: no study of cartalax in people has been published, so side effects are unknown.

CJC-1295 (no DAC)Preclinical

No dataNo human safety data for this peptide.

EpithalonPreclinical

No dataNo human safety data, and FDA found no repeat-dose toxicity studies in animals that would show kidney effects.

Follistatin-344Preclinical

No dataNo human data for injected follistatin; kidney problems weren’t reported in the muscle gene-therapy trials.

HGH Fragment 176-191Preclinical

No dataNo human safety data for this peptide.

HumaninPreclinical

No dataNo human data: no one has been given humanin or its stronger version HNG in a published study, so side effects are unknown.

KPVPreclinical

No dataNo human data, and FDA found no repeat-dose or other toxicity studies that would show kidney effects.

MGFPreclinical

No dataNo human data, and no animal toxicity study of MGF has been published.

MOTS-cPreclinical

No dataNo human safety data for MOTS-c itself. In a 4-week trial of a modified version, CB4211, injection-site reactions were the only side effect in over 10% of the 11 treated.

PE-22-28Preclinical

No dataNo human data: PE-22-28 has never been given to a person in a study.

PEG-MGFPreclinical

No dataNo human or animal data of any kind, including toxicity studies.

PinealonPreclinical

No dataNo useful human safety data: the few small Russian reports on pinealon gave no details of side effects.

TB-500Preclinical

No dataNo human or animal toxicity data, per FDA’s 2026 review. In horses and rats, its fragments turn up in urine.

Sources

Each answer comes from the compound’s own page, under “Can it cause …?”, where its sources are listed.