| Dimension | Scoring Notes | Score |
|---|---|---|
| Study Design | Extensively studied in rats and mice — gastric ulcer, tendon, ligament, nerve, and muscle repair models. No published human RCTs. One old Croatian human safety case series (not a trial). Animal only. |
5 / 25 |
| Sample Size | No human efficacy participants. Rat studies typically 8-12 animals per group. |
0 / 20 |
| Replication | Animal findings replicated extensively in Sikiric group (Zagreb) and some independent labs. However, the majority of animal research comes from a single research group — limiting independent replication score. |
5 / 20 |
| Journal Impact Factor | Most publications in Current Pharmaceutical Design (IF ~2), Journal of Physiology-Paris (IF ~2-3), and lower-tier journals. Not published in high-impact journals. |
4 / 15 |
| Funding Independence | Originally scored 7/10 citing Croatian academic/government funding. Updated June 2026 following Undark investigation (February 2026): Predrag Sikiric is named on BPC-157 patent applications dating to at least 1989, and Croatian government records list him as owner of PharmaCotherapia (which sponsored the Tijuana trial). Sikiric is also listed as CEO of Diagen, which holds a patent for a "special stable version" of BPC-157 currently for sale. None of these conflicts were disclosed in published papers reviewed by Undark. This is undisclosed commercial interest, not independent academic funding. Score revised to 1/10. |
1 / 10 |
| Population Diversity | Animal only. Not applicable. |
0 / 5 |
| Researcher h-Index | Sikiric group (Zagreb) — Predrag Sikiric has a substantial h-Index (~30+) in peptide/GI research and is the defining researcher for this compound. |
5 / 5 |