Question 1

What testing does every lot go through before release?

Accepted Answer

Purity by reverse-phase HPLC at 220 nm using area normalisation; identity by electrospray mass spectrometry against the theoretical monoisotopic mass; water content by Karl Fischer titration; acetate counter-ion content by ion chromatography; peptide content by amino acid analysis; and bacterial endotoxin by LAL kinetic chromogenic assay. A lot that fails any parameter is not assigned a released lot number and is not shipped.

Question 2

Why do you publish the chromatogram and not just the purity figure?

Accepted Answer

Because a percentage on its own cannot be checked. Area normalisation at 220 nm can be presented honestly or selectively — integration windows can be narrowed, early-eluting solvent peaks can be excluded, and a gradient can be run too fast to resolve close-eluting impurities. Showing the trace lets you judge peak shape, baseline and resolution for yourself. It is the difference between evidence and an assertion.

Question 3

Can I get the certificate before I order?

Accepted Answer

Yes. Every released lot is published in the certificate library with no account, email capture or request form in front of it. Each product page shows the lot currently shipping, and you can look up any lot number directly.

Question 4

Will I receive the exact lot shown on the product page?

Accepted Answer

In almost all cases, yes — the product page shows the lot currently being picked. If stock rotates between your order being placed and picked, the certificate for the lot you actually received is linked from your order in the account area.

Question 5

What purity should I expect?

Accepted Answer

Most catalogue lines are specified at ≥98%, with several at ≥99%. The specification is stated on every product page and the actual released figure is on the certificate. Where a compound is intrinsically harder to synthesise — long sequences, multiple disulfide bridges — the specification reflects that rather than being quietly rounded up.

Question 6

Do you use a third-party laboratory?

Accepted Answer

Some lots are released against our own analytical data and some against an independent laboratory's. The certificate names which laboratory performed the analysis in every case, so you always know which you are looking at.

Question 7

What does “research use only” mean?

Accepted Answer

It means these materials are supplied as laboratory reagents for in-vitro research by suitably qualified personnel, and for nothing else. They are not medicines, foods, cosmetics or medical devices. They are not supplied for human or veterinary use, nor for any therapeutic, prophylactic, diagnostic or clinical purpose. This is not a disclaimer bolted onto a consumer product — it is the actual and only basis on which we supply.

Question 8

Will you tell me how to use these on myself?

Accepted Answer

No. We do not provide doses, routes, schedules, injection guidance or reconstitution volumes intended for administration to a person or an animal, and we will not do so on request through any channel — email, telephone, social media or otherwise. Requests of that nature are not answered. Supplying that information would make these products medicinal by presentation under the Human Medicines Regulations 2012 regardless of any label, and it would be the wrong thing to do besides.

Question 9

Are these products legal to buy in the UK?

Accepted Answer

Laboratory reagents supplied for in-vitro research are lawful to supply in the UK provided they are not presented or promoted as medicines. The line is drawn by intent and presentation, not by a label: a product marketed with therapeutic claims or administration guidance is treated as an unlicensed medicinal product whatever the packaging says. We stay on the correct side of that line deliberately, and we expect purchasers to as well. You remain responsible for compliance with the laws that apply to you.

Question 10

Why don't you stock some compounds I've seen elsewhere?

Accepted Answer

Two rules cost us catalogue lines and both are deliberate. We do not list anything holding a UK marketing authorisation — supplying an authorised medicine without a wholesale dealer's licence is a criminal offence, not a grey area. And we do not list anything we cannot release against a full certificate of analysis. If a compound you need is missing for the second reason rather than the first, ask — we take custom synthesis enquiries.

Question 11

Do you sell to individuals?

Accepted Answer

We supply researchers and research organisations, and we ask for an institution and a research context at registration and at checkout. We are not able to verify every declaration, but the declaration is a contractual condition of supply, and orders that make clear their intended use is human administration are cancelled and refunded.

Question 12

What are my rights if something is wrong with an order?

Accepted Answer

Where the Consumer Contracts Regulations 2013 apply you have 14 days from receipt to cancel. Beyond that, any lot that does not meet its stated specification is replaced or refunded in full — see our shipping and returns policy for the detail, including the limited circumstances in which temperature-sensitive goods cannot be returned once the cold chain is broken.

Question 13

How should lyophilised material be stored?

Accepted Answer

Sealed at −20 °C, protected from light and moisture. Most lines carry a 24 to 36 month shelf life under those conditions, stated per product and on the certificate as a retest date. Allow a vial to reach room temperature before opening — opening a cold vial draws in moist air and condenses water onto hygroscopic powder.

Question 14

Why does my peptide look like there is nothing in the vial?

Accepted Answer

A few milligrams of lyophilised peptide forms a very thin film or a small translucent plug, and at 2 mg it can be almost invisible against the glass. Material can also be thrown onto the vial walls in transit. Centrifuge briefly or tap the vial down before reconstituting. The peptide content figure on the certificate is what confirms mass, not visual inspection.

Question 15

Which solvent should I use?

Accepted Answer

Each product page states a tested solubility for that compound. Sequences with poor solubility at neutral pH — typically hydrophobic or strongly aggregating ones — dissolve more readily in dilute acetic acid. Choice of solvent, concentration and buffer for your assay is a decision for your own laboratory protocol.

Question 16

How stable is material once in solution?

Accepted Answer

Considerably less stable than lyophilised. Degradation in solution is driven by hydrolysis, oxidation of methionine and cysteine residues, and freeze–thaw cycling. Aliquot on first reconstitution so you never thaw the same stock twice, and store aliquots at −80 °C where you can. Sequences containing methionine are flagged on their product pages.

Question 17

What arrives in the box?

Accepted Answer

The vials, an insulated pouch with a phase-change pack, and a packing note carrying the lot number for each line. Certificates are linked from your order rather than printed, so you always get the current signed version rather than a photocopy.

Question 18

When will my order be dispatched?

Accepted Answer

Orders placed before 15:00 Monday to Friday are dispatched the same working day. Orders after that cut-off, or at a weekend, go out the next working day.

Question 19

How much is delivery?

Accepted Answer

Tracked UK delivery is £4.95, free on orders over £100. International shipping is quoted at checkout by destination. The price on the product page is the price you pay, with nothing added at the basket.

Question 20

Do you ship internationally?

Accepted Answer

Yes, through tracked courier services. You are the importer of record and are responsible for any duties, taxes and — importantly — for confirming that the material may lawfully be imported into the destination country. Rules differ significantly between jurisdictions and we cannot advise on them.

Question 21

Do you offer quantity discounts?

Accepted Answer

Yes. Quantity breaks apply automatically at 5, 10 and 25 units of the same line and are shown as a table on every product page, so you can see the price before committing. For larger volumes or standing orders, contact us.

Question 22

Can I order on a purchase order or institutional account?

Accepted Answer

Contact us with your institution's details and purchase order, and we will discuss invoice terms for your account.

Question 23

Do I need an account to order?

Accepted Answer

No, you can check out without one. An account keeps the certificates for the exact lots you were shipped attached to your order history, which most laboratories find worth having when writing up.

Question 24

What do you do with my data?

Accepted Answer

We process your details to fulfil your order under UK GDPR, keep order records for six years as HMRC requires, and neither sell nor share customer data. Optional analytics cookies stay off unless you accept them.

Frequently asked questions

Quality & certificates

Legal & compliance

Handling & storage

Ordering & delivery

Account & payment

Still need an answer?