Tirzepatide Specs: Sequence, MW & CAS
Part of the full Tirzepatide guide - a unimolecular dual gip and glp-1 receptor agonist reference compound, identity-verified with a COA on every vial.
In brief
The physicochemical identifiers in this entry define what tirzepatide is at the molecular level and constrain how it is handled, calculated, and verified at the bench. The molecule is a synthetic 39-residue acylated peptide: a 39-residue GIP-based backbone carrying Aib substitutions at positions 2 and 13 and a C20 fatty-diacid moiety, with the full sequence reported per Coskun et al. 2018. Its molecular weight is 4813.5 g/mol, its molecular formula is C225H348N48O68, and its CAS registry number is 2023788-19-2. The sections below explain what each identifier means and how structure connects to assay-relevant function.
To the molecule
Molecular specifications
39-residue GIP-based backbone with Aib substitutions at positions 2 and 13 and a C20 fatty-diacid moiety (full sequence per Coskun et al. 2018)The detail
A closer look
01
Sequence and engineered substitutions: reading the 39-residue acylated backbone
Tirzepatide is built on a 39-residue backbone derived from glucose-dependent insulinotropic polypeptide (GIP), not glucagon-like peptide-1 - a structure-activity choice the entry makes explicit by calling it a 'GIP-based backbone,' even though the resulting molecule is a dual GIPR/GLP-1R agonist. Two engineered modifications define its character. The Aib (alpha-aminoisobutyric acid) substitutions at positions 2 and 13 are non-natural residues introduced to block dipeptidyl-peptidase-IV cleavage; position 2 sits in the N-terminal region DPP-IV targets in native incretins. The C20 fatty-diacid moiety is an acyl side chain that mediates reversible albumin binding. The full residue-by-residue sequence is not transcribed in the entry and is instead referenced to Coskun et al. 2018, so any sequence-level claim must be sourced there rather than reconstructed.
02
Molecular weight, formula, and what they constrain
The molecular weight of 4813.5 g/mol and molecular formula C225H348N48O68 together fix the molecule's mass and elemental composition. For bench work the molecular weight is the load-bearing constant: it is the conversion factor between a supplied peptide mass and the molar concentration required to hit the reported sub-nanomolar EC50 windows (0.042 nM at GIPR, 0.086 nM at GLP-1R). The large formula - 225 carbons, 348 hydrogens, 48 nitrogens, 68 oxygens, with notably no sulfur - reflects a sizable acylated peptide rather than a small linear oligopeptide, consistent with a 39-residue chain bearing a C20 fatty-diacid. The absence of sulfur in the formula indicates no cysteine-derived disulfide bridging is implied by the composition data provided.
03
Identifiers and traceability: CAS and source attribution
The CAS registry number 2023788-19-2 is the unique chemical identifier that ties this exact molecular entity to procurement, characterization, and recordkeeping, ensuring the material in an assay matches the molecule described in the source set. Physicochemical values (molecular weight, formula) are attributed to Selleck Chemicals as the reference vendor source, while the design, sequence, and potency characterization trace to Coskun et al. 2018 (Molecular Metabolism, DOI 10.1016/j.molmet.2018.09.009, PMID 30473097). Maintaining the CAS number alongside lot and reconstitution records is the practical traceability step that lets an investigator confirm identity and link bench results back to the cited characterization data. The entry asserts research-use framing only and makes no therapeutic or regulatory-approval claim.
The fine print: products are sold for laboratory research use only and are not for human or animal consumption. Bodily introduction into humans or animals is strictly prohibited by law. Tirzepatide is not a drug and is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease. These statements have not been evaluated by the FDA.