SNAP-8

SNAP-8 in the research literature

SNAP-8 is a Lipotec extension of Argireline, so its literature starts with Blanes-Mira and colleagues, 2002, who reported the hexapeptide Ac-EEMQRR-NH2 from a rational design programme. That paper describes a peptide that interferes with the formation or stability of the SNARE complex driving calcium-dependent exocytosis, measured as inhibition of neurotransmitter release in vitro and compared with botulinum neurotoxin A. The octapeptide copies the same SNAP-25 N-terminal motif with Ala-Asp added, and SNARE assembly assays remain the mechanistic model.

Work on the octapeptide itself is thin. Only two PubMed records name acetyl octapeptide-3: Avcil and colleagues, 2020, and Shin and colleagues, 2024, both tests of hyaluronic acid microneedle patches in which it is one ingredient among several, so neither isolates its own contribution. Lupo and colleagues, 2007, reviewing cosmeceutical peptides by class, said plainly that their evidence is not as rigorously tested as regulated drugs. Most of what is written about SNAP-8 is extrapolated from the hexapeptide.

SNAP-8 vs Argireline: which to order

Argireline is acetyl hexapeptide-8, listed in PubChem under its older name acetyl hexapeptide-3: six residues ending at the second arginine. SNAP-8 is acetyl octapeptide-3, the same acetylated core plus alanine and aspartate, 1,075.2 Da, CAS 868844-74-0. Both are cosmetic ingredients with no medicine licence anywhere, and neither is named by WADA. One thing to check: a PubChem name search for SNAP-8 returns a mis-drawn record at 1,073.2 Da, so the lab report, once published on this page, will show the measured mass, which for the correct structure is 1,075.2 Da. The label states the peptide mass, not the salt. SNAP-8 comes in one 10mg size, so a first order to buy SNAP-8 UK is a single vial, and packs of two, three or five take 10, 20 and 30% off. Same-day dispatch from Manchester, free UK delivery over £40.