Somatropin - Dong-A ST

Growtropin hGH 10x5,34mg (160 i.u) Dong-A ST

Alternative Names:

DA-3002; Growtropin; Growtropin II; Growtropin-AQ; hGH - Dong-A ST; Human growth hormone - Dong-A ST

Human growth hormone (GH or hGH), also known as somatotropin or somatropin, is a 191-amino acid protein secreted by somatotropic cells of the anterior pituitary gland. Between 1957 and 1985, GH isolated from human cadaveric pituitaries was administered to children suffering from hormone deficiency. Due to the scarcity of resources, developing a synthesized form was imperative, but all attempts failed until 1979 when a recombinant hGH was developed, enabling large-scale commercial and research use.

Growth hormone is mainly used in medicine to treat children’s growth disorders and adult growth hormone deficiency (GHD), with treatment beginning at a low dose and gradually titrated to obtain optimal efficacy while minimizing side effects. It is also approved for Turner syndrome, Prader–Willi syndrome, chronic renal insufficiency, idiopathic short stature in children, AIDS-related wasting, and fat accumulation associated with lipodystrophy in adults. In recent years in the United States, some doctors have prescribed growth hormone in GH-deficient older patients (but not healthy people) to increase vitality. Currently, recombinant human growth hormone (rhGH) is becoming prevalent for antiaging and body building, which raises concerns about abuse. However, rhGH is considered a very complex hormone, and many of its functions are still unknown.

Though it has been used for GH-deficiency patients for decades, hGH is not without drawbacks. One of the predominant drawbacks of hGH is its short plasma half-life, 3.4 hours after subcutaneous (SC) injection and 0.36 hours after intravenous (IV) injection. Generally, the administration of rhGH consists of daily SC injections or thrice-weekly intramuscular (IM) injections, which can be inconvenient and painful to patients.

Noncompliance with daily injection may cause withdrawal of treatment, especially in children. Reports have suggested that inconsistency in growth hormone treatment is associated with reduced efficacy outcomes and increased health care costs, which occurs most in teenagers, with up to 23% of teenagers missing at least two injections per week. To address these problems, researchers have conducted numerous studies, which can be roughly divided into three directions: (i) develop long-acting preparations to lower the injection frequency, including new dosage forms, and modify the structure of rhGH to achieve a longer half-life; (ii) develop alternative delivery methods to avoid injections, including intranasal delivery, pulmonary delivery, and transdermal delivery; and (iii) novel injection devices.

Serum insulin-like growth factor-1 (IGF-1) is a good biochemical marker of rhGH action, and is used to evaluate the efficacy of rhGH preparations, with some limitations. Other biomarkers and parameters, such as insulin-like growth factor binding protein-3 level, body fat percentage, lipid profile, insulin sensitivity by homeostasis model assessment, quantitative insulin check index, and thyroid function, are alternatives used in more comprehensive pharmacological experiments.

rhGH is a blockbuster drug, holding a market of several billions of dollars, so it is imperative to develop a better preparation to address the aforementioned problems.