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A BPC-157 Certificate of Analysis, Line by Line

Published October 30, 2026 · 8 min read

Most guides to reading a certificate of analysis (COA) stay abstract. This one walks through a single real report, field by field: a BPC-157 10 mg sample tested by Bioviridian and issued July 30, 2026 as COA7117. Along the way it points out what each field proves, what it does not, and which fields are easiest to misread.

1. The header: who tested it and how to look it up

The report names the testing lab (Bioviridian), a web verification code (here the same as the report number, COA7117), and two dates: sample received and COA issued. Both read July 30, 2026, so the lab received and reported on the sample the same day. A same-day turnaround is not a problem in itself, but it is worth noticing, because it tells you the dates describe when the lab tested a sample, not when the material was made or when it was packed into the vial you may be holding.

The verification code and the lab’s web address, printed at the bottom of the report, let you look the report up on the lab’s own site and confirm that the numbers there match the copy you were given. That check takes a minute and is the single best protection against an edited PDF. See our guide to checking that the lab on a COA is real for the rest of that process.

2. Product information and the lot number

The product block lists the vendor (DR Peptide Research), the sample name (BPC-157 10mg), the sample type (white lyophilized powder), the lot number, and the molecular weight (1419.5 g/mol).

• Molecular weight. 1419.5 g/mol matches the published average mass for BPC-157, a 15-amino-acid peptide. It is a consistency check, not proof of identity by itself. Identity is established separately (section 3).
• Lot number: BPC-07072026-10. The lot field ties the report to a specific production lot of the material, so the document is about a named batch rather than just “a sample of BPC-157.” A note on the history of this report: the first copy of COA7117 left the lot field as “NA.” We asked the lab to reissue it, and the reissued report carries the lot number above. The test results did not change between the two copies; only the lot field did. That is the kind of difference worth checking for whenever you are handed an older PDF: compare it with the version on the lab’s own site. Keep in mind what a lot number does and does not do. It helps only if you can find the same number on the packaging or the order record for the vial you hold, so it is fair to ask any supplier how a lot number reaches the product. See lot numbers and traceability for why this matters.

3. The results table

Three separate questions, three separate methods. Keeping them apart is the whole skill of reading a COA.

Identity: is it BPC-157?

Identity is confirmed by LC-MS/MS: liquid chromatography separates the sample, a mass spectrometer measures the mass of the molecules, and a second stage breaks them into fragments to check the structure. The mass spectrum printed on the report labels two ions, the doubly charged [M+2H]²⁺ and the singly charged [M+H]⁺. For a peptide of mass 1419.5, the doubly charged ion is expected near m/z 710.8 and the singly charged ion near m/z 1420.5, and the dominant peak on the spectrum sits near 710, as it should. Our explainer on HPLC versus LC-MS covers why mass spectrometry answers a different question than a purity percentage.

Content: how much is in the vial?

The report gives 11.02 mg by HPLC quantitation for a vial labeled 10 mg. Two points about that number:

• It is a measurement of one sample, with the uncertainty any quantitation has. A result a little above or below the labeled amount is normal, and a report that gives no measured content at all is the more worrying case.
• The report prints “Conforms” but does not state the acceptance range it was compared against. Without the range, the status tells you the lab was satisfied, not what the standard was. If the acceptance limits matter to you, ask the lab or supplier for them.

Content and purity are not the same measurement. For the difference, with a worked example, read purity versus content.

Purity: how clean is it?

99.85% by RP-HPLC at 214 nm means that, of the material absorbing ultraviolet light at 214 nm, 99.85% of the signal comes from the main peak. 214 nm is a standard wavelength for peptides because it detects the peptide bond itself. What that number cannot see: anything that does not absorb at 214 nm (some salts, water, certain counterions), and impurities that elute at the same time as the main peak. It is an area percentage on a single injection, not a statement about the whole vial’s composition.

The chromatogram and the retention time

The printed chromatogram shows detector response against time, with the main peak at a retention time of 9.181 minutes. What to look for: one dominant peak, a flat baseline, and a retention time that matches the lab’s method for this compound. A small feature very early in the run, close to 1 minute, is typically material that is not retained by the column, and is usually not counted as a peptide impurity. The retention time on its own proves nothing, because it depends on the lab’s column and gradient. It is useful mainly for comparing one report from the same lab with another.

What this report does not tell you

• Lot-to-vial linkage. The report prints a lot number, but it cannot show which vial in your hand came from that lot. That depends on the supplier’s labeling and records.
• Sterility and endotoxin. The report lists neither test. See sterility versus endotoxin testing for what those tests add.
• Water, counterion and residual solvents. These affect how much of the powder is peptide. The report gives content but no breakdown.
• Stated limits. “Conforms” has no visible numbers behind it.
• Anything after testing. Storage and shipping conditions come after the sample was tested. Storage and stability of lyophilized peptides explains why that matters.
• Any outcome. A COA is an analytical document about a sample, nothing more.

A 60-second checklist for any COA

1. Is the lab named, and can you look the report up on the lab’s own site by its code?
2. Do the sample name, label amount and molecular weight match what you are buying?
3. Is identity confirmed by mass spectrometry, separate from purity?
4. Is content reported, not only purity?
5. Does the chromatogram show one clean main peak?
6. Is there a lot number you can match to the vial, and if not, how does the supplier connect the two?
7. Are the acceptance limits behind “Conforms” stated?

The same seven questions apply to any compound and any lab. For the red flags that most often fail them, see ten things to check on a peptide COA.

Related reading

• How to Read a Peptide Certificate of Analysis
• Peptide Purity Testing: Why “99% Pure” Isn’t the Same as Content
• HPLC vs. LC-MS for Peptides
• Peptide COA Red Flags: 10 Things to Check

Related lab results (full disclosure: DAAVY Research is our own company): BPC-157 COA (99.85% purity, 11.02 mg content) · COA library, every current lot.

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