A practical reference on PPAR delta: what it is, how it behaves, what the literature reports, and where the honest uncertainties sit.
Reviewed 2026-03-28. Anything still debated is marked as such rather than presented as settled.
Published literature on cardarine includes in vitro assays, rodent experiments, and a small number of human studies. Reports describe effects on exercise capacity and lipid metabolism in animals, while human evidence is sparse. Many online descriptions present the compound as a proven endurance aid, a claim not supported by regulatory approval or large clinical trials. Analytical studies focus on identifying the parent compound and its metabolites in biological samples. Important uncertainties include species differences, dose-response relationships, and the relevance of rodent tumor findings to humans.
Cardarine is the common name for GW501516, a synthetic compound studied as a peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor delta agonist. Researchers developed it to explore treatments for lipid disorders and metabolic conditions. It is not an approved medicine in any country. Early clinical work examined changes in HDL cholesterol and triglycerides, but development was discontinued after animal studies raised concerns about cancer. The compound remains available as a research chemical and appears in discussions of performance enhancement.
At the molecular level, GW501516 binds and activates PPARδ, a nuclear receptor that regulates transcription. Activation shifts expression of genes involved in fatty acid oxidation, energy expenditure, and lipid transport in skeletal muscle and liver. Animal studies report increased endurance and altered lipid profiles after exposure. Human data are limited to small trials and do not establish long-term safety or efficacy. PPARδ also has roles in cell proliferation, so the relationship between activation and cancer risk remains an open question.
Anti-doping laboratories identify GW501516 and related metabolites using liquid chromatography coupled with tandem mass spectrometry. Urine is the most common matrix, though blood and dried blood spots may also be analyzed. The method targets the parent compound and phase I and phase II metabolites, which extend the detection window. Because the substance is prohibited at all times, athletes can be tested outside competition. Detection limits and windows depend on the assay, sample type, and individual metabolism.
Cardarine is frequently described as a fat-burning or endurance-enhancing supplement, but these claims exceed the available evidence. The compound is not a hormone, steroid, or selective androgen receptor modulator. Research articles discuss it as a tool compound for studying PPARδ biology, while anti-doping literature focuses on its abuse and detection. Quality of unapproved products is uncertain, and independent analyses have found impurities or incorrect labeling. Open questions include whether human cancer risk resembles that seen in rodents and how often non-athletes use the substance.
Cardarine has no approved therapeutic indication and is not marketed as a medicine. The World Anti-Doping Agency lists GW501516 as a prohibited substance at all times, covering both in-competition and out-of-competition periods. National laws vary: some countries treat it as an unapproved drug subject to import controls, while others have specific restrictions on sale for human consumption. It is often sold as a research chemical, a label that does not imply safety or legality. Enforcement actions have targeted online vendors and shipments.
| Property | Value | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Common name | Cardarine | Also called GW501516 and endurobol. |
| Chemical formula | C21H18F3NO3S2 | Molecular weight about 453.5 g/mol. |
| Appearance | White to off-white solid | Form depends on synthesis and purity. |
| Solubility | Soluble in DMSO and ethanol | Low solubility in water. |
| Typical storage | -20 °C, desiccated, protected from light | Common for research chemicals. |
Laboratory studies indicate that GW501516 activates PPARδ, a nuclear receptor involved in fatty acid oxidation and energy metabolism. In rodent experiments, treated animals often showed increased endurance and reduced fat mass. These effects were observed under controlled conditions and do not establish safe or effective use in humans. The exact dose-response relationship in humans remains poorly characterized. Species differences in metabolism can affect how results translate across animals and people.
Safety concerns emerged from long-term animal studies. In rodents given the compound for extended periods, researchers found an increased incidence of certain cancers, including liver and bladder tumors. These findings contributed to the discontinuation of clinical development. Whether similar risks apply to short-term or low-level exposure in humans is not established, and controlled human safety data are limited. The relevance of high-dose rodent carcinogenicity findings to human use remains a subject of debate.
Cardarine is a common name for GW501516, a synthetic compound first described in the 1990s as a selective agonist of the peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor delta. It was studied in preclinical models for metabolic and cardiovascular conditions, but it has not been approved as a medicine in the United States, Europe, or other major jurisdictions. Retail products labeled as cardarine are generally research chemicals or supplements, not pharmaceutical formulations. Because human safety and efficacy data remain limited, regulatory agencies treat it as an unapproved substance rather than a therapeutic product.
Sporting authorities added GW501516 to prohibited lists after it appeared in athlete samples and online markets. The World Anti-Doping Agency classifies it as a hormone and metabolic modulator, and its use can lead to an anti-doping rule violation. Some early laboratory work suggested effects on fatty acid oxidation and endurance-related metabolism in animals, but those findings do not establish safe or effective use in people. Reports of adverse events in humans are scarce and often anecdotal, which complicates risk assessment.
Legal status varies by country. In some places, cardarine is controlled under medicines or psychoactive substances laws; in others, it may be sold with minimal oversight as a research chemical. Customs agencies have intercepted shipments, and several national health agencies have issued warnings about products marketed for bodybuilding or performance enhancement. The lack of a standardized pharmaceutical supply means identity, purity, and contamination levels can differ widely between samples. These factors make cardarine a regulatory and public health concern rather than a conventional prescription drug.
Laboratory studies have examined GW501516 in cell cultures and rodents for conditions such as dyslipidemia, insulin resistance, and obesity. Some trials in humans were initiated, but development was discontinued after preclinical findings raised concerns about cancer in certain models. Those findings do not prove that the compound causes cancer in people, but they contributed to regulatory caution. Later reviews often describe the evidence as preliminary and insufficient for assessing long-term safety.
In the fitness and bodybuilding literature, cardarine is frequently discussed as an endurance agent or fat-loss compound, although such claims are not supported by robust clinical evidence. Online descriptions often mix animal data, user anecdotes, and marketing language. Researchers who study PPARδ agonists distinguish between receptor activation in controlled experiments and unsupervised use of unverified products. The latter introduces unknown purity, dose, and interactions, making reported experiences difficult to interpret scientifically.
Cardarine is a common name for GW501516, also GW-1516, a synthetic compound developed as a peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor delta (PPARδ) agonist. It belongs to a class of agents that modulate gene transcription related to lipid and energy metabolism. The compound was studied in preclinical and early clinical research for metabolic and cardiovascular conditions, but it did not progress to approved therapeutic use. Its name appears in fitness and sports contexts despite not being approved as a drug.
PPARδ is a nuclear receptor that influences transcription of genes involved in fatty acid oxidation, lipid transport, and energy homeostasis. GW501516 binds and activates this receptor with high selectivity relative to PPARα and PPARγ in laboratory assays. Activation alters expression of target genes in skeletal muscle, liver, and adipose tissue in animal models. The exact clinical consequences of these changes in humans remain incompletely characterized, and observed effects in animals do not establish therapeutic benefit or safety.
Published studies have examined GW501516 in animal models of obesity, insulin resistance, and exercise endurance. Early human trials reportedly ended, and development was discontinued after preclinical findings raised concerns about cancer in some rodent studies. Regulatory agencies have not approved cardarine for any medical use. Its availability through non-pharmaceutical channels raises questions about identity, purity, and legal status that are separate from its laboratory pharmacology. Those questions are often addressed through analytical testing rather than assumptions about product labels.
The important thing is not that scientists may disagree on where their responsibility to society lies, but that they are conscious that a responsibility exists, are vocal about it, and when they speak out they expect to affect policy. Otto Hahn, it would seem, was even more than just an example of this twentieth-century conceptual evolution; he was a leader in the process. He was one of the signatories of the agreement to convene a convention for drafting a world constitution. As a result, for the first time in human history, a World Constituent Assembly convened to draft and adopt a Constitution for the Federation of Earth.
Stuart Wright, Dancer's Guide to Injuries of the Lower Extremity (New York: Cornwall Books, 1985), p. 14. Swischuk, Leornard E. "Doing the Splits: Heard A Pop--Cannot Walk." Pediatric Emergency Care 23.11 (2007): 842-3. Web. 8 Sep. 2010. <http://ovidsp.tx.ovid.com>.
=== Liquid chromatography === DESI can be coupled to ultra-fast liquid chromatography using an LC eluent splitting strategy. It is a strategy through a tiny orifice on an LC capillary tube. There is negligible dead volume and back pressure that allows for almost real time mass spectrometry detection with a fast elution and purification. This coupling can be used to ionize a wide range of molecules, from small organics to high mass proteins. This is different from ESI (electrospray ionization) in that it can be used to directly analyze salt-containing sample solutions without requiring “make-up” solvents/ acids to be doped into the sample. This set up allows for a high flow rate without splitting. The high resolution that is accomplished by reverse-phase HPLC can be combined with this procedure to produce high throughput screening of natural products as well. The incorporation of the electrochemistry component helps with ionization efficiency via the electrochemical conversion. This method is proved better than ESI in the fact that you don't have to separate the small potential that is applied to the cell from the potential on the spray in DESI. DESI also shows a better tolerance to inorganic salt electrolytes and you can use traditional solvents used in electrolysis.
Nixon Gerrit Graham* (1970), film actor and songwriter Ed Harris* (1973), Academy Award-nominated actor and director, Apollo 13, The Truman Show, Pollock, Westworld Richard Thomas* (1973), star of The Waltons Robert Wisdom (1976), actor, Nashville, The Wire, Prison Break Mario Van Peebles (1978), star of Heartbreak Ridge and Sonny Spoon Jack Koenig (1981), actor Matt Salinger (1983), actor son of J.D. Salinger Robert Maschio (1988), actor on Scrubs Matthew Fox (1989), star of Party of Five and Lost Soterios Johnson (1990), radio journalist and WNYC host Schuyler Grant (1993), actress, great-niece of Katharine Hepburn Rachel DeWoskin (1994), actress and author, Foreign Babes in Beijing Jean Louisa Kelly (1994), star of Mr.
Sources: en.wikipedia.org
=== Crystal structure === In 2019, Chadeayne and colleagues solved the crystal structure of the fumarate salt of 4-HO-DPT. The authors describe the structure as follows: "The asymmetric unit contains one 4-HO-DPT cation, protonated at the dipropylamine N atom. There are also two independent water molecules, and half of a fumarate ion present."
=== Eukaryotic sex === Sex in eukaryotes is a composite process, consisting of meiosis and fertilisation, which can be coupled to reproduction. Dacks and Roger proposed on the basis of a phylogenetic analysis that facultative sex was likely present in the common ancestor of all eukaryotes. Early in eukaryotic evolution, about 2 billion years ago, organisms needed a solution to the major problem that oxidative metabolism releases reactive oxygen species that damage the genetic material, DNA. Eukaryotic sex provides a process, homologous recombination during meiosis, for using informational redundancy to repair such DNA damage.
Fission cross sections are a measurable property related to the probability that fission will occur in a nuclear reaction. Cross sections are a function of incident neutron energy, and those for 235U and 239Pu are a million times higher than 238U at lower neutron energy levels. Absorption of any neutron makes available to the nucleus binding energy of about 5.3 MeV. 238U needs a fast neutron to supply the additional 1 MeV needed to cross the critical energy barrier for fission. In the case of 235U however, that extra energy is provided when 235U adjusts from an odd to an even mass. In the words of Younes and Lovelace, "...the neutron absorption on a 235U target forms a 236U nucleus with excitation energy greater than the critical fission energy, whereas in the case of n + 238U, the resulting 239U nucleus has an excitation energy below the critical fission energy." About 6 MeV of the fission-input energy is supplied by the simple binding of an extra neutron to the heavy nucleus via the strong force; however, in many fissionable isotopes, this amount of energy is not enough for fission. Uranium-238, for example, has a near-zero fission cross section for neutrons of less than 1 MeV energy. If no additional energy is supplied by any other mechanism, the nucleus will not fission, but will merely absorb the neutron, as happens when 238U absorbs slow and even some fraction of fast neutrons, to become 239U.
Sources: en.wikipedia.org
Cardarine is a common name for the investigational compound GW501516. It acts as a PPARδ agonist and is not approved for human use. It is prohibited in sport.
It activates PPARδ, a nuclear receptor that influences gene expression related to lipid and energy metabolism. Animal studies show changes in endurance and lipid levels. Human effects and risks are not well established.
No, cardarine is not a steroid. It belongs to a different chemical class, the PPARδ agonists. It is also not a selective androgen receptor modulator.
Legal status varies by country. It is not approved as a medicine, and it is prohibited in sport. Some jurisdictions restrict import, sale, or possession.