LL-37
Animal studies onlyAlmost all the research is in animals. We do not know if the same thing happens in people.
Also called hCAP18 / Cathelicidin antimicrobial peptide
A natural germ-fighting peptide the immune system makes. Studied for infections and wound healing.
Can a doctor prescribe this?
No. It sits on a restricted list, so pharmacies are not allowed to make it.
The FDA has not approved this as a medicine.
Still restricted. The FDA has said it plans to review this one by February 2027.
Official status: Category 2 – restricted from compounding. Checked 2026-04-15.
Lab suppliers we list: 9
Doses used in research
Taken word for word from the studies and trials listed on this page. This is not a recommendation and not a dose for anyone to take.
In human trials
0.5 mg/mL
on the skin · twice a week · for 4 weeks
Efficacy of LL-37 Cream on Bacteria Colonization, Inflammation Response and Healing Rate of Diabetic Foot UlcersPHASE2 · NCT04098562
“0.5 mg/mL LL-37 cream, administered twice a week for 4 weeks.”
In animal studies
5 mcg/mL
mice ·
LL-37-derived peptide shows promising antimicrobial potential against multidrug-resistance pathogens.European journal of medicinal chemistry · 2026
“Among these peptides, KF-22 displayed potent antibacterial activity against a panel of Gram-negative and Gram-positive pathogens with MICs less than 5 μg/mL, with demonstrating low toxicity.”
- Effects of Botulinum Toxin A on Rosacea-Like Inflammation in an LL-37-Induced Rosacea Mouse Model.
Animal study, rats or mice
Annals of dermatology · 2026
- Immunomodulatory Effects of Poly-D,L-Lactic Acid on LL-37-Driven Rosacea-like Inflammation via Suppression of mTORC1 Signaling.
Animal study, rats or mice
International journal of molecular sciences · 2026
- Combined nonoxynol-9 and antimicrobial peptide LL-37 for barrier contraception.
Animal study, rats or mice
Reproduction & fertility · 2026
- Serine protease HtrA promotes <i>Campylobacter jejuni</i> intestinal colonization through degrading antimicrobial peptide LL-37.
Animal study, rats or mice
Science advances · 2026
- LL-37-derived peptide shows promising antimicrobial potential against multidrug-resistance pathogens.
Animal study, rats or mice
European journal of medicinal chemistry · 2026
- Injectable self-healing hydrogel loaded with a self-assembling LL-37 derivative for treating infected skin wounds.
Animal study, rats or mice
International journal of pharmaceutics · 2026
- LL-37 and citrullinated-LL-37 modulate IL-17A/F-mediated responses and selectively suppress Lipocalin-2 in bronchial epithelial cells.
Animal study, rats or mice
Journal of inflammation (London, England) · 2025
- Cancer cell migration under control of human cathelicidin LL-37.
Lab dish study
Biomedicine & pharmacotherapy = Biomedecine & pharmacotherapie · 2026
- A degradable hydrogel scaffold incorporating the LL-37 for gingival soft tissue regeneration.
Lab dish study
Regenerative biomaterials · 2026
- LL-37 selectively targets Plasmodium-infected erythrocytes and exhibits antimalarial activity.
Lab dish study
PLoS pathogens · 2026
- LL-37 inhibits osteosarcoma progression by suppressing SQLE-mediated cholesterol synthesis via the PTEN/AKT/mTOR pathway.
Lab dish study
Journal of bone oncology · 2026
- Dermofunctional Vehicle Downregulates LL-37 and MMPs and Upregulates IGFBP-3.
Lab dish study
Current issues in molecular biology · 2025
- The antibacterial effect of human adipose-derived stem cells on LL-37-resistant bacteria.
Lab dish study
PloS one · 2025
- <i>Legionella pneumophila</i>-Induced NETs Do Not Bear LL-37 Peptides.
Lab dish study
Microorganisms · 2025
- β-Amyloid (Aβ) and Human Cathelicidin LL-37: Two Sides of the Same Coin?
International journal of molecular sciences · 2026
- LL-37: Biological Mechanisms and Emerging Therapeutic Applications in Intestinal Disease.
Immunity, inflammation and disease · 2026
- LL-37 and citrullinated-LL-37 enhances oxylipins: citrullination attenuates LL-37-mediated COX-2-dependent chemokine response in human bronchial epithelial cells.
Respiratory research · 2026
- Exploring the role of cathelicidin LL-37 and ceragenins in wound healing processes.
European journal of pharmacology · 2026
- How cholesterol modulates LL-37 function: A biophysical study in eukaryotic-like membrane systems.
Biophysical chemistry · 2026
- DAPEG-Modified Analogs of Human Cathelicidin LL-37: Enhanced Proteolytic Stability and Selective Modulation of Neutrophil Degranulation
Journal not recorded · 2026
- Human cathelicidin peptide LL-37 compacts nucleic acids and alters neutrophil extracellular trap structure.
Scientific reports · 2026
- Heteroaggregation of Antimicrobial Peptides LL-37 and HNP‑1 Drives Cooperative Neutralization of Cytotoxicity.
JACS Au · 2026
- [Evaluation of Serum LL-37 Levels in Patients with Brucellosis and Their Relationship with Clinical Course].
Mikrobiyoloji bulteni · 2026
- LL-37 IgG levels are associated with clinical characteristics and T follicular cell response in acute coronary syndrome in adults.
Physiological reports · 2026
- Aggregation-State Dynamics Drive Double Cooperativity Between Antimicrobial Peptides LL-37 and HNP1.
Angewandte Chemie (International ed. in English) · 2026
- Exposure to the antimicrobial peptides LL-37 and ATRA-1 induces a lipidome response in Staphylococcus aureus that alters membrane biophysical properties.
Biochimica et biophysica acta. Biomembranes · 2026
- Molecular interaction modes of the host-defense peptide cathelicidin LL-37 and its mutants dictate diverse antimicrobial activities.
Nanoscale · 2026
- LL-37 Inhibits EV71 Infection by Upregulating STAC via the EGFR-ERK Signaling Pathway.
Viruses · 2026
- Comparing the genetic and serum expression of LL-37 Antimicrobial Peptide in pemphigus vulgaris and pemphigus foliaceus patients.
Anais brasileiros de dermatologia · 2026
- Structural determinants of glycosaminoglycan oligosaccharides as LL-37 inhibitors in breast cancer.
Glycobiology · 2026
- Evaluation of the relationship between salivary levels of Streptococcus mutans, statherin, and cathelicidin LL-37 and early childhood caries.
BMC oral health · 2026
- Influence of N- and O-glycosylation on structural properties and biological activity of a C-terminal LL-37 fragment.
Carbohydrate research · 2026
- Adaptive immune response to the autoantigen LL-37 differentiates atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease phenotypes.
Clinical & translational immunology · 2026
- RNA selectively modulates activity of virulent amyloid PSMα3 and host-defense LL-37 via phase separation and aggregation dynamics.
eLife · 2026
- Exposure to the antimicrobial peptides LL-37 and ATRA-1 induces a lipidome response in <i>Staphylococcus aureus</i> that alters membrane biophysical properties
Journal not recorded · 2026
- Interaction between vitamin D insufficiency and periodontitis, GCF vitamin D and LL-37 levels in well-controlled diabetes patients with periodontitis.
European oral research · 2026
- Investigation of Regulation and Binding Patterns of the Human Cathelicidin Peptide LL-37 in Complexation with Nucleic Acids, and its Impact on Neutrophil Extracellular Traps
Journal not recorded · 2026
- Single Amino Acid Modulates Antimicrobial Peptide Cooperativity between LL-37 and HNP1.
Langmuir : the ACS journal of surfaces and colloids · 2026
- LL-37 and citrullinated-LL-37 enhance disparate oxylipins: LL-37-mediated chemokine response is dependent on COX-2 and the P2X <sub>7</sub> receptor in human bronchial epithelial cells
Journal not recorded · 2025
- Decoding LL-37: Structure and antimicrobial mechanisms against microbial threats.
Infection, genetics and evolution : journal of molecular epidemiology and evolutionary genetics in infectious diseases · 2025
- Increased cathelicidin LL-37 colonic expression is associated with tumor progression in colorectal cancer.
Journal of physiology and pharmacology : an official journal of the Polish Physiological Society · 2025
- Human cathelicidin peptide LL-37 induces endothelial-to-mesenchymal transition.
Bioscience, biotechnology, and biochemistry · 2025
- <i>LL-37</i> as a biomarker for therapeutic response to scaling and root planing.
Journal of Indian Society of Periodontology · 2025
- LL-37 antimicrobial peptide: Molecular characterisation and its role in oral health and disease-A narrative review.
Review of earlier work
Archives of oral biology · 2026
- Division-arrest induced filamentation protects uropathogenic <i>Escherichia coli</i> from killing by the cathelicidin antimicrobial peptide LL-37
Review of earlier work
Journal not recorded · 2026
- LL-37-ApoB-100 Complex Serves as a Biomarker of Coronary Artery Disease.
Review of earlier work
Arteriosclerosis, thrombosis, and vascular biology · 2026
- Overcoming LPS-mediated resistance in gram-negative pathogens: a review of LL-37 analogs and computational design strategies.
Review of earlier work
Archives of microbiology · 2026
- Antimicrobial Peptides of the Cathelicidin Family: Focus on LL-37 and Its Modifications.
Review of earlier work
International journal of molecular sciences · 2025