How Much Bacteriostatic Water for AOD-9604? 10 mg, 5 mg and 2 mg Vials

A 10 mg vial of AOD-9604 reconstituted with 2 mL of bacteriostatic water gives a concentration of 5 mg/mL (5,000 mcg/mL); with 1 mL it gives 10 mg/mL (10,000 mcg/mL). Vistara Labs stocks AOD-9604 as a 10 mg vial, so that size leads this page. The calculation depends only on the quantity in the vial and the volume of water added, so the figures below apply to any vial of these sizes, including the 2 mg and 5 mg vials found in other research catalogues.

Peptide reconstitution calculator

Set to this vial below. Change the vial size, water volume, amount or syringe and it recalculates the concentration and the syringe units. For laboratory research use only.

Desired dose

0.5 mg 1 mg 1.5 mg 2 mg 2.5 mg 3 mg 3.5 mg 4 mg 4.5 mg 5 mg Custom… Milligrams (mg) Micrograms (mcg)

1 mg = 1000 mcg

Research peptide in vial (mg) 5 mg 10 mg 20 mg 30 mg Custom… As printed on the vial

Bacteriostatic water added (ml) 1 mL 2 mL 3 mL Custom… Total volume you put in the vial

Syringe size 0.3 ml — 30 units 0.5 ml — 50 units 1.0 ml — 100 units Custom…

Draw to 5.0units

Concentration—

Volume per dose—

Doses per vial—

All products are sold strictly for laboratory research use only and are not for human or veterinary consumption. This calculator is provided as a general reference tool.

How much bacteriostatic water for 10 mg AOD-9604?

Add 2 mL of bacteriostatic water to a 10 mg AOD-9604 vial for 5 mg/mL, so 0.1 mL (10 units) holds 0.5 mg (500 mcg); 1 mL gives 10 mg/mL, 3 mL gives 3.33 mg/mL and 5 mL gives 2 mg/mL. The vial holds 10 mg whichever volume you choose, and only the concentration moves.

Water added	Concentration	Amount in 0.1 mL (10 units on a U-100 syringe)
1 mL	10 mg/mL	1 mg (1,000 mcg)
2 mL	5 mg/mL	0.5 mg (500 mcg)
3 mL	3.33 mg/mL	0.33 mg (333 mcg)
5 mL	2 mg/mL	0.2 mg (200 mcg)

The 2 mL volume gives round numbers on a U-100 syringe: every 10 units holds 0.5 mg (500 mcg). At 3 mL the figures are rounded, because 10 mg divided by 3 mL is 3.333 mg/mL; write the concentration on the vial to the precision you work to.

How much bacteriostatic water for 2 mg AOD-9604?

Add 2 mL of bacteriostatic water to a 2 mg AOD-9604 vial for 1 mg/mL, so 0.1 mL (10 units) holds 0.1 mg (100 mcg); 1 mL gives 2 mg/mL and 4 mL gives 0.5 mg/mL. The vial holds 2 mg whichever volume you choose, and only the concentration moves.

Water added	Concentration	Amount in 0.1 mL (10 units on a U-100 syringe)
0.5 mL	4 mg/mL	0.4 mg (400 mcg)
1 mL	2 mg/mL	0.2 mg (200 mcg)
2 mL	1 mg/mL	0.1 mg (100 mcg)
4 mL	0.5 mg/mL	0.05 mg (50 mcg)

How much bacteriostatic water for 5 mg AOD-9604?

Add 2 mL of bacteriostatic water to a 5 mg AOD-9604 vial for 2.5 mg/mL, so 0.1 mL (10 units) holds 0.25 mg (250 mcg); 1 mL gives 5 mg/mL, 2.5 mL gives 2 mg/mL and 5 mL gives 1 mg/mL.

Water added	Concentration	Amount in 0.1 mL (10 units on a U-100 syringe)
1 mL	5 mg/mL	0.5 mg (500 mcg)
2 mL	2.5 mg/mL	0.25 mg (250 mcg)
2.5 mL	2 mg/mL	0.2 mg (200 mcg)
5 mL	1 mg/mL	0.1 mg (100 mcg)

Small vials have limited headspace, so check that the vial can take the volume before choosing a larger one. One multi-dose vial of bacteriostatic water covers several research vials.

Reading the concentration on a U-100 syringe

A U-100 insulin syringe is graduated in units, and 100 units equal 1 mL. Units are therefore millilitres multiplied by 100: 0.1 mL is 10 units and 0.25 mL is 25 units. A 0.5 mL syringe carries 50 units and a 0.3 mL syringe carries 30 units on the same scale, with finer markings that make small volumes easier to read.

To find the volume that contains a given amount, divide the amount by the concentration. At 5 mg/mL (a 10 mg vial with 2 mL of water), the volume that contains 0.5 mg (500 mcg) is 0.5 divided by 5, which is 0.1 mL, or 10 units. The table below runs the same calculation for four arbitrary amounts. They illustrate the arithmetic and nothing else.

Amount (illustrative)	Volume at 5 mg/mL	U-100 units
0.25 mg (250 mcg)	0.05 mL	5 units
0.5 mg (500 mcg)	0.1 mL	10 units
1 mg	0.2 mL	20 units
2 mg	0.4 mL	40 units

At 2 mg/mL, which the same 10 mg vial gives with 5 mL of water, the same amounts need 2.5 times the volume: 0.5 mg (500 mcg) measures 25 units. For the other catalogue sizes, at 2.5 mg/mL (a 5 mg vial with 2 mL) 0.25 mg (250 mcg) measures 10 units, and at 1 mg/mL (a 2 mg vial with 2 mL) 0.1 mg (100 mcg) measures 10 units. Volumes below about 0.1 mL are hard to read accurately on a 1 mL syringe. Either move to a 0.3 mL or 0.5 mL syringe, or reconstitute with more water so that the same mass occupies a larger, more legible volume.

The AOD-9604 vial

Vistara Labs stocks AOD-9604 as a 10 mg lyophilised vial, shipped from within Canada, and the 10 mg figures at the top of this page are for that vial. Certificates of analysis for our catalogue are on our Lab Reports page. The calculator on this page works for any vial size. AOD-9604 is also supplied in 2 mg and 5 mg lyophilised vials in other research catalogues, and the 2 mg and 5 mg sections above follow from those two sizes. Related compounds we carry are listed in the peptide library.

What AOD-9604 is

AOD-9604 is a synthetic analogue of the lipolytic domain at the C-terminal end of human growth hormone (Ng 2000): the hormone’s residues 177–191 with an added tyrosine at the N-terminus, 16 amino acids in all. In six randomised, double-blind, placebo-controlled human trials with 893 adults, it showed a safety and tolerability profile indistinguishable from placebo, with no effect on serum IGF-1 and no negative effect on glucose tolerance (Stier 2013).

In a preclinical obesity model, AOD-9604 cut weight gain by more than half against controls over 19 days, increased lipolytic activity in adipose tissue, and, unlike intact growth hormone, showed no adverse effect on insulin sensitivity (Ng 2000). A follow-up preclinical study found that both growth hormone and AOD-9604 reduced weight and fat mass and raised expression of beta-3 adrenergic receptor RNA, the major lipolytic receptor in fat cells (Heffernan 2001). In a laboratory model of knee osteoarthritis, intra-articular AOD-9604 enhanced cartilage regeneration, and AOD-9604 combined with hyaluronic acid outperformed either alone (Kwon and Park 2015). The full research story is in What is AOD-9604?

Sources: Ng FM et al. Metabolic studies of a synthetic lipolytic domain (AOD9604) of human growth hormone. Horm Res. 2000. PMID 11146367. Heffernan M et al. Endocrinology. 2001. PMID 11713213. Stier H, Vos E, Kenley D. Safety and tolerability of the hexadecapeptide AOD9604 in humans. J Endocrinol Metab. 2013. doi:10.4021/jem157w. Kwon DR, Park GY. Ann Clin Lab Sci. 2015. PMID 26275694.

Reconstitution technique

Let the vial reach room temperature, swab both stoppers, and run the measured water slowly down the inside wall of the vial rather than onto the powder. Swirl or tilt gently until the cake dissolves, never shake, and give any remaining powder a few minutes to settle into solution. Label the vial with the date and the concentration, then keep it refrigerated at 2 to 8 °C and protected from light. The full method, with the reason behind each step, is in how to reconstitute peptides with bacteriostatic water.

Why the solution should look clear

Properly reconstituted AOD-9604 forms a clear, colourless solution. Cloudiness, strands or a gel that will not disperse usually mean the water went in too fast or the vial was shaken; haze that appears later points to warm or bright storage. The causes are covered in why peptides gel or go cloudy.

Bacteriostatic water, not sterile water

Bacteriostatic water is sterile water with 0.9% benzyl alcohol, a preservative that allows a refrigerated vial to be accessed more than once; plain sterile water is intended for single access. The difference is explained in bacteriostatic water explained.

Frequently asked questions

How much bac water for a 10 mg AOD-9604 vial?

There is no single correct volume. With 2 mL of bacteriostatic water a 10 mg vial of AOD-9604 gives 5 mg/mL (5,000 mcg/mL), so 0.1 mL (10 units) holds 0.5 mg (500 mcg); with 1 mL it gives 10 mg/mL and with 5 mL it gives 2 mg/mL. Write the concentration you chose on the vial.

How much bac water for a 2 mg AOD-9604 vial?

There is no single correct volume. With 2 mL of bacteriostatic water a 2 mg vial of AOD-9604 gives 1 mg/mL (1,000 mcg/mL), so 0.1 mL (10 units) holds 0.1 mg (100 mcg); with 1 mL it gives 2 mg/mL. Write the concentration you chose on the vial.

How much bac water for a 5 mg AOD-9604 vial?

There is no single correct volume. With 2 mL of bacteriostatic water a 5 mg vial of AOD-9604 gives 2.5 mg/mL (2,500 mcg/mL), so 0.1 mL (10 units) holds 0.25 mg (250 mcg); with 5 mL it gives 1 mg/mL. Write the concentration you chose on the vial.

How many units on a U-100 syringe contain 500 mcg of AOD-9604 at 5 mg/mL?

At 5 mg/mL (a 10 mg vial with 2 mL of water), the volume that contains 0.5 mg (500 mcg) is 0.5 divided by 5, which is 0.1 mL, or 10 units. Units are millilitres multiplied by 100. The amounts on this page illustrate the arithmetic only.

What should reconstituted AOD-9604 look like?

Properly reconstituted AOD-9604 forms a clear, colourless solution. Cloudiness, strands or a gel that will not disperse usually mean the water went in too fast or the vial was shaken; haze that appears later points to warm or bright storage. More on the causes in why peptides gel or go cloudy.

Can I use sterile water instead of bacteriostatic water?

Only for a vial that will be accessed once. Bacteriostatic water is sterile water with 0.9% benzyl alcohol, a preservative that allows a refrigerated vial to be accessed more than once; plain sterile water is intended for single access. Details in bacteriostatic water explained.

How should a reconstituted AOD-9604 vial be stored?

Refrigerated at 2 to 8 °C, protected from light and labelled with the date and the concentration. Unopened lyophilised vials are kept cold and dark until they are needed. The full storage guide is how to store research peptides.

Work it out for a different vial or concentration

Our peptide calculator opens pre-set for a 10 mg vial with 2 mL of water and marks the 0.5 mg (500 mcg) draw of 10 units on a syringe diagram. For a 2 mg or 5 mg vial, set the vial size to match. Change the vial size, water volume, amount or syringe and it recalculates.

Vistara Labs supplies AOD-9604 10 mg for research use. For reconstitution supplies: bacteriostatic water.

Related reading. What is AOD-9604?, buying AOD-9604, peptide library, how to reconstitute peptides with bacteriostatic water and how to store research peptides.

More on this: What Is AOD-9604? The Human and Laboratory Research.