Selank

Selank Research Overview

Selank is a seven-amino-acid peptide derived from the immune peptide tuftsin, approved in Russia as a nasal anti-anxiety drug. It is studied for calm focus without sedation.

Also known as: TP-7, Thr-Lys-Pro-Arg-Pro-Gly-Pro, Tuftsin analog, NA-Selank

Background

Selank is a synthetic heptapeptide made by adding the stabilizing Pro-Gly-Pro tail to tuftsin, a naturally occurring four-residue fragment of immunoglobulin G. It was developed at the Institute of Molecular Genetics in Moscow alongside Semax and was registered in Russia in 2009 as a nasal drop for generalized anxiety disorder and neurasthenia. It is marketed as an anxiolytic that does not cause the drowsiness, memory impairment, or dependence associated with benzodiazepines.

Human evidence is limited to Russian clinical studies. The most cited compared Selank to a benzodiazepine (phenazepam) in subjects with anxiety disorders and found comparable anxiety reduction with fewer sedative effects, plus improvement in cognitive complaints. Other small studies looked at anxiety with comorbid alcohol use and at asthenic symptoms. These are real trials, but they are small, some are open-label, and none have been replicated by independent groups outside Russia. Treat the human data as promising rather than settled.

In rodents Selank reduces anxiety-like behavior across standard tests, shifts expression of GABA-related genes, changes serotonin and enkephalin levels, and affects immune gene expression in a way consistent with its tuftsin origin. It is one of the few peptides where the mechanism story fits together reasonably well between animal and human findings. As with Semax, most home use is intranasal, with an N-acetyl version sold as a longer acting variant.

Mechanistic Profile

Selank appears to work mainly on the GABAergic system, though not by binding GABA-A receptors directly the way benzodiazepines do. Rodent studies show it changes expression of genes involved in GABA signaling and it enhances the effect of GABA on chloride currents in a way that suggests allosteric modulation. It also slows the breakdown of enkephalins, which contributes to its anti-stress and mild analgesic effects, and it increases BDNF in the hippocampus. From the tuftsin side, it modulates cytokine expression, including IL-6 and the Th1/Th2 balance, and it has been reported to raise interferon production in cell studies. The combination of GABA modulation, enkephalin protection, and neurotrophin support explains the calm-but-alert profile users describe.

Reported Research Findings

• (human pilot)

• Selank altered expression of multiple GABA-receptor and GABA-transport genes in rat brain. (rodent)

• Selank inhibited enkephalin-degrading enzymes in human serum, prolonging endogenous enkephalin activity. (in vitro)

• Nasal Selank increased BDNF expression in rat hippocampus similarly to Semax. (rodent)

• Selank modulated interleukin-6 and interferon-related gene expression in immune cells. (in vitro)

Analytical Validation, Formulation and Storage

• Purity: 99% or higher as verified by HPLC, with a third-party certificate of analysis available per batch.

• Formulation: lyophilised (freeze-dried) powder in a sterile sealed glass vial, to be reconstituted with an appropriate solvent for laboratory use.

• Reported half-life: Minutes in blood; behavioral effects last several hours.

• Storage: keep lyophilised material cool, dark and dry (long-term at or below -20 °C). Store reconstituted solutions refrigerated, avoid repeated freeze-thaw cycles and use within laboratory-defined windows.

Selected Literature

• Efficacy and possible mechanisms of action of a new peptide anxiolytic Selank in the treatment of generalized anxiety disorders and neurasthenia. Zhurnal Nevrologii i Psikhiatrii, 2008.

• Selank administration affects the expression of some genes involved in GABAergic neurotransmission. Frontiers in Pharmacology, 2016.

• Comparative study of Selank and phenazepam in patients with anxiety disorders. Zhurnal Nevrologii i Psikhiatrii, 2014.

• The inhibitory effect of Selank on enkephalin-degrading enzymes as a possible mechanism of its anxiolytic activity. Bulletin of Experimental Biology and Medicine, 2001.

Cloud Aminos supplies Selank as a high-purity research material intended strictly for controlled laboratory use in vitro or in established animal models. This compound is not approved as a drug, diagnostic or dietary ingredient and is not manufactured, packaged or marketed for human consumption, self-experimentation, clinical application or any use outside properly designed and ethically approved research protocols.