FDA panel reviewing peptide drugs includes members with industry connections
The FDA announced a July advisory meeting to reassess the safety of several unapproved peptide injections, appointing a panel that features doctors and pharmacists who sell or promote the substances.
The Food and Drug Administration will hold a two-day advisory meeting in July to reevaluate the safety and efficacy of seven peptide compounds that are currently marketed as unapproved drugs. Unlike previous panels that were composed mainly of university researchers, the new group includes several clinicians and pharmacists who operate clinics, online businesses or compounding pharmacies that sell the peptides.
Panelists identified include Dr. Haleem Mohammed, who runs a chain of Florida clinics offering peptide, vitamin and hormone injections, and Dr. Gabriel Alizaidy, who charges for consultations on peptide sourcing and promotes products such as BPC-157 and GHK-Cu on social media. Tennessee state senator Bobby Harshbarger, a pharmacist at his family’s compounding pharmacy, also serves on the panel; his mother, Rep. Diana Harshbarger, previously urged Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. to relax FDA restrictions on the same substances.
The FDA has previously warned that injectable peptides like BPC-157 and TB-500 lack extensive human studies and are considered doping agents by international sports authorities. Earlier advisory panels, composed of academics from institutions such as Duke, Harvard and Johns Hopkins, voted against allowing these ingredients due to safety concerns.
Regulators note that experts with financial interests may serve on advisory committees provided that disclosures are made and the agency determines that the individuals’ expertise outweighs potential conflicts. Critics of the panel, including former FDA commissioner Marty Makary, have argued that such meetings are costly and vulnerable to industry influence.
"I am a big fan of peptides," Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. told podcast host Joe Rogan earlier this year, describing personal use for injury recovery.
The meeting will be conducted under the agency’s transparency rules, which require public disclosure of panel members’ financial relationships.