PDRN (polydeoxyribonucleotide) is a mixture of purified, low-molecular-weight DNA fragments, conventionally 50-1,500 kDa, extracted from salmon or trout gonadal tissue and processed to remove protein and antigenic material. Like hyaluronic acid, it is not a peptide; it is stocked as a comparator and co-formulant in skin and repair research.
Proposed mechanisms
Two are usually cited. First, agonism at the adenosine A2A receptor, which in cell and rodent work has been associated with changes in VEGF expression and inflammatory signalling. Second, the salvage pathway: enzymatic breakdown supplies nucleosides and nucleotides that cells can reuse for DNA synthesis rather than paying the cost of de novo synthesis. Both are mechanistic hypotheses supported mainly by in vitro and rodent studies plus a body of small clinical trials, many conducted in Italy and South Korea where PDRN-containing products are registered.
Specification matters more than for a synthetic peptide: source species, fragment size distribution, protein and endotoxin residue are the meaningful quality attributes, and identity cannot be confirmed by mass spectrometry the way a defined sequence can. Ask for fragment-size data and endotoxin results on the COA.
Related terms and material
tissue repair · angiogenesis · research use only. Reference material: PDRN (2 mL and 5 mL, 2%), cosmetic peptides. Further reading: PDRN: hype and data.