Provided are a peptide, which has an amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO. 1 and is effective for the prevention of cell damage, and a pharmaceutical composition for preventing cell damage, the pharmaceutical composition including the peptide as an active component. The peptide according to the present invention not only exhibits substantially better biological activities than conventional natural human erythropoietin in terms of various cell protection activities, but also has a substantially simpler structure than the natural human erythropoietin. Thus, the peptide may easily pass through a tissue-blood barrier and is economically advantageous due to its low production cost. Accordingly, the pharmaceutical composition including the peptide according to the present invention as an active component is effective for the prevention and treatment of stroke, mechanical damage or ischemic injury to the nervous system, myocardial infarction, diabetes, heart failure, peripheral vascular disorders, diabetic retinopathy, diabetic nephritis, diabetic neuropathy, glaucoma, neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimers disease, Parkinsons disease, and Lou Gehrigs disease, and acute and chronic renal dysfunction.
