Copper Peptide: the anchor of the system
THE FOUNDATION
Copper Peptide is a naturally occurring peptide. Your body already produces it. Bound to a copper ion, it has been studied continuously in skin science for decades, longer than any other active in this formula.
It signals the skin to build collagen and elastin, and it supplies the copper itself, the cofactor that helps structure what gets built. Two jobs in one molecule.
Put simply: this isn't an ingredient chosen for a single visible effect. It's the foundation the other three peptides build on top of.
Replexium™
The accelerator, visibly firmer-looking skin, fast
Copper Peptide
The foundation, firmness, smoothness, tone, the longevity anchor
Matrixyl® 3000
The builder, structural firmness and fewer-looking lines over time
Argireline®
The smoother, softens the look of the expression lines you make every day
THE BUILDER
Matrixyl® 3000: structure, over time.
Matrixyl® 3000 is a patented two-peptide complex: Palmitoyl Tripeptide-1 and Palmitoyl Tetrapeptide-7. Palmitoyl Tripeptide-1 mimics collagen fragments the skin reads as a signal to rebuild. Palmitoyl Tetrapeptide-7 works on the inflammatory side of the same process. Together they target the skin's structural matrix through a route that runs alongside Copper Peptide, not on top of it.
45%
REDUCTION IN DEEP-WRINKLE AREA, SUPPLIER-REPORTED, OVER 2 MONTHS
20%
GAIN IN SKIN TONICITY, SUPPLIER-REPORTED, SAME STUDY PERIOD
Supplier-reported data indicates these reductions after two months of consistent twice-daily use.
Source: Sederma / Croda, manufacturer technical literature.
One detail worth knowing: the strongest independent, peer-reviewed trial in the "Matrixyl" family was run on original Matrixyl (Palmitoyl Pentapeptide-4), a related but different peptide, not the Pal-GHK blend used in Matrixyl® 3000 specifically. The 45% figure above comes from the manufacturer, and we say so.
THE SMOOTHER
Argireline®: for the lines you make every day.
Copper Peptide and Matrixyl® 3000 work on structure. Argireline® addresses something neither of them touches: expression lines, the ones formed by repeated movement rather than structural decline. Its INCI name is Acetyl Hexapeptide-8.
30%
WRINKLE-DEPTH REDUCTION RANGE
10%
TYPICAL USE CONCENTRATION IN FINISHED FORMULAS
30%
WRINKLE-DEPTH REDUCTION AT 30 DAYS, FOUNDATIONAL STUDY, N=10
Argireline® has a genuine independent research base, unusual for a branded peptide complex. This includes a foundational published study and an independent randomised, placebo-controlled trial in a separate patient population.
Sources: Blanes-Mira et al., International Journal of Cosmetic Science, 2002. Wang et al., American Journal of Clinical Dermatology, 2013.
Put simply: this ingredient softens the look of movement-driven lines. It does not act on muscle contraction, and we don't describe it that way.
THE ACCELERATOR
Replexium™: built for speed
Replexium™ pairs Acetyl Tetrapeptide-9 and Acetyl Tetrapeptide-11, targeting the structural boundary where the skin's layers meet, a junction that weakens with age and that none of the other three peptides address directly.
2%
TYPICAL USE CONCENTRATION
49%
IMPROVEMENT IN FIRMNESS APPEARANCE
34%
REDUCTION IN WRINKLE APPEARANCE
Efficacy data for Replexium™ is attributed to its manufacturer, BASF. Independent, peer-reviewed research on this specific blend is limited, so we position it plainly on its own supplier data rather than borrowing credibility from the other three peptides.
WHY THIS COMBINATION
Four mechanisms. No overlap.
Peptides fall into functional classes, and the useful ones don't repeat each other. Copper Peptide signals collagen production and supplies the copper cofactor that structures it. Matrixyl® 3000 signals through an independent pathway. Argireline® handles movement-driven lines that neither of them touches. Replexium™ works on the junction between skin layers.
Four peptide mechanisms. Four different aspects of how skin changes over time. Nothing chosen twice.
ONE PEPTIDE FAMILY, TWO ROUTES IN
The connection most labels don't mention
Copper Peptide and the tripeptide inside Matrixyl® 3000 share the same three-amino-acid backbone: glycine, histidine, lysine. They are not the same molecule. Copper Peptide carries a copper ion. Matrixyl® 3000's version carries a fatty acid tail instead, built for a different kind of delivery.
Put simply: one proven peptide backbone, formulated two different ways, both included in the same serum.
THE EVIDENCE
Where the science actually stands with YUTH
Not every ingredient in this formula carries the same weight of evidence, and we'd rather say so than let a number travel without its source.
Copper Peptide. The best-evidenced active in the formula. Independent, peer-reviewed literature spans decades.
Argireline®. Genuine independent primary research, including a placebo-controlled study and an independent randomised trial.
Matrixyl® 3000. A well-studied peptide family. The specific figures for this exact blend come from the manufacturer.
Replexium™. The fast-firmness specialist in the system, positioned on its manufacturer's own published data.
Every figure on this page is attributed to where it came from. "In manufacturer studies" means manufacturer studies. Independent and peer-reviewed means independent and peer-reviewed. That distinction is the whole point of reading past the marketing.