Selank

What it is

Selank is a synthetic seven-amino-acid peptide (Thr-Lys-Pro-Arg-Pro-Gly-Pro) built on the natural immune peptide tuftsin, developed in Russia at the Institute of Molecular Genetics as an anxiolytic and nootropic. It has been a prescription drug in Russia, marketed as a 0.15 percent nasal drop/spray, used for generalized anxiety disorder, neurasthenia, and stress-related conditions, but it has never been evaluated or approved by the FDA or EMA, and no trials are registered on ClinicalTrials.gov. The human clinical evidence is thin by Western standards: the main trial we could verify is a small, 62-patient Russian comparator study against the benzodiazepine medazepam, finding comparable anxiolytic benefit. Animal studies in rats and mice suggest Selank reduces anxiety-like behavior, inhibits enkephalin-degrading enzymes, positively modulates GABA-A receptors, and affects hippocampal BDNF levels; a small human fMRI study found it altered amygdala functional connectivity. Selank's own pharmacokinetic half-life in humans has not been established in any peer-reviewed source we could open; widely repeated minute-scale figures online are unsourced vendor claims. Outside Russia, Selank is used informally as an intranasal research/nootropic peptide, a use that is community-driven rather than clinically established.

Dose ranges

Study-backed ranges carry a source you can open. Community ranges are widely reported but not clinically established - treat them as what people do, not as advice.

Storage

Common stacks

Interactions & cautions

Peer-reviewed data on Selank drug interactions are very limited. A rat study (Behav Neurol 2017, PMID 28280289) found that Selank combined with diazepam produced a stronger anxiolytic effect in the elevated plus maze than either compound alone under chronic mild stress. A separate radioligand-binding study (Protein Pept Lett 2018, PMID 30255741) reported that Selank acts as a positive allosteric modulator of GABA binding at GABA-A receptors and that co-administration with benzodiazepines produced non-cumulative (not simply additive) effects, with Selank able to block the modulatory activity of certain benzodiazepine-site ligands in vitro. No peer-reviewed human interaction studies were located, and no data on interactions with SSRIs, MAOIs, alcohol (outside of rat ethanol-withdrawal models), or other CNS depressants were found. Given the very small human clinical dataset, anyone combining Selank with other CNS-active medications should treat the interaction profile as essentially uncharacterized in humans.

Questions people ask

Sources

1. [1]Efficacy and possible mechanisms of action of a new peptide anxiolytic selank in the therapy of generalized anxiety disorders and neurasthenia PMID 18454096studyClinical study of 62 patients with generalized anxiety disorder/neurasthenia comparing Selank (n=30) to medazepam (n=32); comparable anxiolytic effect, plus antiasthenic/psychostimulant action, correlated with blood enkephalin activity.
2. [2]Peptide-based Anxiolytics: The Molecular Aspects of Heptapeptide Selank Biological Activity PMID 30255741studyRadioligand-binding review finding Selank acts as a positive allosteric modulator of [3H]GABA binding at GABA-A receptors, with non-cumulative interaction with benzodiazepines.
3. [3]Efficacy of peptide anxiolytic selank during modeling of withdrawal syndrome in rats with stable alcoholic motivation PMID 24913576studyIn rats, a single intraperitoneal dose of Selank 0.3 mg/kg reduced anxiety-like behavior (elevated plus maze, social interaction) and prevented mechanical allodynia during ethanol withdrawal, without changing ethanol consumption.
4. [4]Peptide Selank Enhances the Effect of Diazepam in Reducing Anxiety in Unpredictable Chronic Mild Stress Conditions in Rats PMID 28280289studyIn rats under chronic mild stress, Selank alone reduced anxiety in the elevated plus maze, and Selank combined with diazepam was more effective than either alone.
5. [5]Selank, Peptide Analogue of Tuftsin, Protects Against Ethanol-Induced Memory Impairment by Regulating of BDNF Content in the Hippocampus and Prefrontal Cortex in Rats PMID 31625062studyIn aged rats, Selank 0.3 mg/kg/day intraperitoneally for 7 days improved object-recognition memory and normalized ethanol-induced changes in BDNF content in the hippocampus and prefrontal cortex.
6. [6]Functional Connectomic Approach to Studying Selank and Semax Effects PMID 32342318studyResting-state fMRI study in 52 healthy human volunteers found Selank and Semax produced distinct changes in amygdala functional connectivity 5-20 minutes after dosing.
7. [7]The inhibitory effect of Selank on enkephalin-degrading enzymes as a possible mechanism of its anxiolytic activity PMID 11550013studySelank dose-dependently inhibited plasma enkephalin-degrading enzyme activity in vitro (IC50 approximately 15 microM); GAD patients had shortened plasma enkephalin half-life versus controls, proposed as an anxiolytic mechanism.
8. [8]Effects of Selank on behavioral reactions and activities of plasma enkephalin-degrading enzymes in mice with different phenotypes of emotional and stress reactions PMID 12432865studyIn BALB/c mice, Selank 100 mcg/kg produced an anxiolytic effect in the open-field test and extended plasma leu-enkephalin half-life; no behavioral or enzymatic effect was seen in C57Bl/6 mice, showing phenotype dependence.
9. [9]PubChem Compound Summary for CID 11765600, SelankreferenceChemical identity: heptapeptide Thr-Lys-Pro-Arg-Pro-Gly-Pro, molecular formula C33H57N11O9, molecular weight 751.9 g/mol; synonyms include TP-7 and Selank acetate.
10. [10]Selank Nasal Spray: Benefits, Dosage, and Side EffectscommunityCommunity-reported intranasal dosing: starting around 300 mcg/day, up to about 1000 mcg/day divided into 2-3 administrations, with cycles of roughly 12 weeks on and 4 weeks off; also claims Selank is undetectable in blood after about 10 minutes.
11. [11]Selank Nasal Spray: Dosage, Benefits & How to UsecommunityCommunity-reported storage guidance: refrigerate at 2-8 C or keep at room temperature 68-77 F, do not freeze, roughly 1-2 years stability refrigerated vs 6-12 months at room temperature, about 3-6 months once opened.