Linaclotide Reference

Plain English

What it is

Linaclotide is a prescription medicine sold under the brand name Linzess. It is approved by the FDA, the US agency that regulates drugs. It works in the gut to help pull in fluid and keep things moving.

What people use it for

Doctors prescribe it for adults who have long-term constipation with no clear cause, and for a kind of irritable bowel syndrome where constipation is the main problem. It is also approved for some children with ongoing constipation. In the peptide community it mostly comes up when people compare gut medicines while taking GLP-1 drugs.

What the science shows

This is an approved medicine backed by human studies, not a research peptide. In those studies, the most common side effect was diarrhea.

The catch

It carries the FDA's strongest alert, a boxed warning: it must not be given to very young children (under 2 years old) because it can cause dangerous dehydration in them. It is a prescription drug and needs a doctor's care.

Reference summary

Linaclotide is a label-verified guanylate cyclase-C agonist. pepSmart surfaces label-reference content only.

Regulatory and posture

Categories

GI

Aliases

Linzess, Guanylate cyclase-C agonist

Evidence posture

human

Regulatory status

FDA-approved prescription medication (Linzess). Indicated for chronic idiopathic constipation (CIC) and irritable bowel syndrome with constipation (IBS-C) in adults, and functional constipation in pediatric patients. Boxed warning against use in pediatric patients under 2 years (lethal dehydration in juvenile mice).

Content review status

label verified