# TB-500 References: Cited Studies on Thymosin Beta-4 and the Fragment

> TB-500 references: the full citation list behind this site — thymosin beta-4 actin-sequestration, wound, cardiac, stroke, angiogenesis, and Phase 1 studies, with DOIs and PubMed links.

Author, journal, year, and a resolvable link or identifier for each — plus the FDA pages behind the legal-status reading.

## How to read this list

Every quantitative claim on this site maps to a numbered entry below. Most are peer-reviewed studies on thymosin beta-4 or its fragment; where a finding used full-length thymosin beta-4 rather than the seven-mer, the body copy says so at the point of use. The regulatory entries are FDA pages, kept separate so the access facts behind the [TB-500 legal status and 503A access](/legal-status) page are traceable to authoritative sources. This is the **TB-500 references** register — a reading list, not a clinical document. Where a paper sits behind a paywall, the DOI and PubMed identifier still resolve to the abstract and the citation of record.

## References

[1] Irobi E, Aguda AH, Larsson M, et al. Structural basis of actin sequestration by thymosin-beta4: implications for WH2 proteins. EMBO J. 2004;23(18):3599-3608. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/15329672/
[2] Bock-Marquette I, Saxena A, White MD, et al. Thymosin beta4 activates integrin-linked kinase and promotes cardiac cell migration, survival and cardiac repair. Nature. 2004;432(7016):466-472. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/15565145/
[3] Malinda KM, Sidhu GS, Mani H, et al. Thymosin beta4 accelerates wound healing. J Invest Dermatol. 1999;113(3):364-368. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/10469335/
[4] Morris DC, Chopp M, Zhang L, et al. A dose-response study of thymosin β4 for the treatment of acute stroke. J Neurol Sci. 2014;345(1-2):61-67. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/25060418/
[5] Goldstein AL, Hannappel E, Sosne G, Kleinman HK. Thymosin β4: a multi-functional regenerative peptide. Basic properties and clinical applications. Expert Opin Biol Ther. 2012;12(1):37-51. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/22074294/
[6] Ruff D, Crockford D, Girardi G, Zhang Y. A randomized, placebo-controlled, single and multiple dose study of intravenous thymosin β4 in healthy volunteers. Ann N Y Acad Sci. 2010;1194:223-229. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/20536472/
[7] Grant DS, Kinsella JL, Kibbey MC, et al. Thymosin beta4 and angiogenesis: modes of action and therapeutic potential. Angiogenesis. 2007;10(2):137-145. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/17632766/
[8] Jo JO, Kang YJ, Ock MS, et al. Thymosin β4 induces the expression of vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) in a hypoxia-inducible factor (HIF)-1α-dependent manner. Biochim Biophys Acta. 2010;1803(11):1244-1251. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/20691219/
[9] Chen Y, Yang S, Yu W, et al. Thymosin β4 released from functionalized self-assembling peptide activates cardiac cells and promotes cardiac repair. Theranostics. 2021;11(9):4262-4280. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/33754060/
[10] Guarnera G, DeRosa A, Camerini R. Thymosin beta-4 and venous ulcers: clinical remarks on a European prospective, randomized study of safety, tolerability, and enhancement of healing. Ann N Y Acad Sci. 2007;1112:407-412. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/17495250/
[11] Kim S, Kwon J. Thymosin beta 4 improves dermal burn wound healing via downregulation of receptor for advanced glycation end products in db/db mice. Biochim Biophys Acta. 2014;1840(12):3452-3459. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/25230158/
[12] Goldstein AL, Kleinman HK. Thymosin beta4: actin-sequestering protein moonlights to repair injured tissues. Trends Mol Med. 2005;11(9):421-429. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/16099219/
[13] Mendias CL, Awan TM. Safety and Efficacy of Approved and Unapproved Peptide Therapies for Musculoskeletal Injuries and Athletic Performance. Sports Med. 2026. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/41966639/
[14] Zhang Y, et al. Tβ4-exosome-loaded hemostatic and antibacterial hydrogel to improve vascularized wound repair. Mater Today Bio. 2025;31:101585. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.mtbio.2025.101585
[9b] Stark C, Taimen P, Tarkia M, et al. Systemic Dosing of Thymosin Beta 4 before and after Ischemia Does Not Attenuate Global Myocardial Ischemia-Reperfusion Injury in Pigs. Front Pharmacol. 2016;7:115. https://doi.org/10.3389/fphar.2016.00115
[r1] U.S. Food and Drug Administration. Certain Bulk Drug Substances for Use in Compounding That May Present Significant Safety Risks. (List entry: 'Thymosin beta-4, fragment (LKKTETQ), also known as TB-500'; effective 2023-09-29.) https://www.fda.gov/drugs/human-drug-compounding/certain-bulk-drug-substances-use-compounding-may-present-significant-safety-risks
[r2] U.S. Food and Drug Administration. Bulk Drug Substances Used in Compounding Under Section 503A of the FD&C Act. https://www.fda.gov/drugs/human-drug-compounding/bulk-drug-substances-used-compounding-under-section-503a-fdc-act
[r3] U.S. Food and Drug Administration. July 23-24, 2026: Meeting of the Pharmacy Compounding Advisory Committee. (Published agenda listing 'TB-500 (free base)' / 'TB-500 acetate', BPC-157, KPV, and MOTs-C as bulk drug substances being considered for inclusion on the 503A Bulks List.) https://www.fda.gov/advisory-committees/advisory-committee-calendar/july-23-24-2026-meeting-pharmacy-compounding-advisory-committee-07232026
[reg-unc] Note on unconfirmed reports: commercial and clinic sources reporting an early-2026 reclassification of Category 2 peptides toward Category 1, or specific 2026 dates on which TB-500 was 'removed' from Category 2, could not be confirmed from an authoritative FDA source as of 2026-05-29 and are not treated here as completed FDA action. The current category is stated as Category 2, the last FDA action confirmable from FDA.gov. https://www.fda.gov/drugs/human-drug-compounding/bulk-drug-substances-used-compounding-under-section-503a-fdc-act

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A constructivist broadsheet of the TB-500 record — the Ac-LKKTETQ fragment typeset against the thymosin beta-4 protein where the data live, the angiogenesis lens set beside its tumor signal, and the FDA 503A and WADA standing composed before anything else; no clinic behind the masthead and nothing here dispensed or sold.