RESEARCH PROFILE
SELANK
Synthetic Tuftsin Analog • Anxiolytic & Neuroendocrine Research
Selank, also known as TP-7, is a synthetic seven-amino-acid peptide developed from the naturally occurring immune-related peptide tuftsin. Research has focused primarily on anxiety-related effects, with additional investigation into neurotransmitter signaling, BDNF-related pathways, immune signaling, cognition, and stress response.
Human clinical studies have been published primarily from Russia, but Selank has not undergone a large multinational clinical-development program and is not FDA approved in the United States.
HUMAN ANXIETY RESEARCH • NEUROPEPTIDE RESEARCH • NOT FDA APPROVED IN THE U.S.
SELANK AT A GLANCE
Compound Type
Synthetic heptapeptide
Other Name
TP-7
Sequence
Thr-Lys-Pro-Arg-Pro-Gly-Pro
Origin
Synthetic analog of tuftsin
Primary Research Focus
Anxiety • Stress response • Neurotransmitter signaling
Additional Research Areas
BDNF • Immune signaling • Cognition • Memory
Human Evidence
Published Russian clinical studies, primarily involving anxiety-related disorders
Regulatory Status
Not FDA approved in the United States
IMPORTANT DISTINCTION
Selank is frequently described as a “nootropic,” but the strongest human evidence identified in your Project profile concerns anxiety-related outcomes, not enhancement of cognition in healthy people.
Research involving:
BDNF
Memory
Neuroprotection
GABA-related gene expression
Serotonin and dopamine
is largely animal, cellular, or mechanistic research.
Those findings should not be presented as proven cognitive benefits in humans.
WHAT IS SELANK?
Selank is a synthetic peptide consisting of seven amino acids:
Thr-Lys-Pro-Arg-Pro-Gly-Pro
It was developed in Russia as an analog of tuftsin, a naturally occurring immune-related tetrapeptide.
The addition of a Pro-Gly-Pro sequence creates the seven-amino-acid Selank molecule.
WHY WAS SELANK DEVELOPED?
Research into Selank has centered primarily on its potential anxiolytic, or anxiety-reducing, properties.
Human studies cited in the Project profile have investigated Selank in conditions involving:
Generalized anxiety disorder
Neurasthenia
Phobic anxiety
Somatoform disorders
Anxiety-asthenic conditions
Researchers have also investigated potential effects involving:
Stress response
GABA-related signaling
Serotonin
Dopamine
Norepinephrine
BDNF
Immune signaling
Memory and cognition
INTRANASAL RESEARCH
Selank's published Russian clinical literature prominently involves intranasal administration.
Your Project profile also discusses subcutaneous administration in research-community contexts.
These routes should not be treated as interchangeable from an evidence standpoint.
Human findings from intranasal studies do not automatically establish equivalent outcomes with subcutaneous administration.
MECHANISM OF ACTION
Selank does not have one fully established human mechanism of action.
Research suggests effects across several neural and immune signaling systems.
GABA-RELATED SIGNALING
GABA is the brain's principal inhibitory neurotransmitter.
Cell and animal research cited in your Project profile suggests Selank may alter expression of genes associated with GABAergic signaling.
This mechanism may help explain its proposed anxiolytic effects.
However, Selank does not have the same established mechanism as conventional benzodiazepines.
SEROTONIN & DOPAMINE
Animal and mechanistic research has examined Selank's effects on:
Serotonin
Dopamine
Norepinephrine
These neurotransmitter findings may contribute to observed behavioral effects in experimental models.
They do not establish specific neurotransmitter effects or clinical benefits in humans.
BDNF
Brain-derived neurotrophic factor, or BDNF, plays a role in neuronal development, synaptic plasticity, and learning.
Animal studies cited in the Project profile reported changes in hippocampal BDNF expression following intranasal Selank.
This remains preclinical evidence.
ENKEPHALIN STABILIZATION
Enkephalins are naturally occurring opioid peptides involved in nervous-system signaling.
Laboratory research using human serum reported that Selank inhibited or slowed enzymes involved in enkephalin degradation.
This provides a possible mechanistic pathway but is not proof of a clinical effect.
IMMUNE SIGNALING
Because Selank is derived from tuftsin, researchers have also examined its interaction with immune signaling.
One human study cited in your Project source reported changes involving:
IL-6
and
Th1/Th2 cytokine balance
during a 14-day course.
The clinical significance of these changes remains uncertain.
IMPORTANT MECHANISM LIMITATION
Changes in GABA-related genes, neurotransmitter systems, BDNF, enkephalin metabolism, or immune markers do not establish that Selank improves cognition, memory, mood, or neurologic health in humans.
Mechanistic evidence and clinical outcomes should remain separate.
WHAT THE RESEARCH SHOWS
HUMAN ANXIETY RESEARCH
Selank has published human clinical research involving anxiety-related conditions.
Your Project profile identifies studies involving:
Generalized anxiety disorder
Neurasthenia
Phobic anxiety
Somatoform disorders
Anxiety-asthenic conditions
SELANK VS MEDAZEPAM
A human study cited in the Project profile compared Selank with medazepam, a benzodiazepine anxiolytic, in 62 patients with generalized anxiety disorder and neurasthenia.
The study reported anxiolytic effects with Selank and described fewer sedative or cognitive adverse effects than with medazepam.
This is meaningful human evidence, but it comes from a relatively small regional clinical literature and should not be interpreted as establishing equivalence or superiority to modern approved anxiety treatments.
PHOBIC & SOMATOFORM ANXIETY
Another study identified in your Project source included 60 patients with phobic-anxiety and somatoform disorders.
The authors reported anxiolytic effects and described carryover of the effect after the final dose.
Again, these findings require interpretation within the limitations of the study design and evidence base.
COMBINATION WITH PHENAZEPAM
Your Project profile cites research involving approximately 70 patients examining Selank added to phenazepam.
The study reported faster response and fewer phenazepam-related side effects.
This does not establish that the combination is safe or appropriate outside the specific research setting.
HUMAN IMMUNE-MARKER RESEARCH
A 14-day human study examined immune markers in patients with anxiety-asthenic disorders.
Reported findings included changes involving:
IL-6
Th1/Th2 cytokine balance
These biomarker changes do not independently establish clinical benefit.
HUMAN IMAGING RESEARCH
Your Project source also identifies an fMRI study in healthy volunteers comparing Selank, Semax, and placebo.
Researchers reported specific connectivity changes between the right amygdala and temporal cortex following Selank.
The clinical significance remains uncertain.
PRECLINICAL COGNITIVE RESEARCH
Animal studies have investigated:
BDNF expression
Memory
Learning
Stress response
Anxiety-like behavior
Protection from experimentally induced memory impairment
These studies provide mechanistic and preclinical support but do not prove cognitive enhancement in humans.
IMPORTANT EVIDENCE LIMITATIONS
The Project profile identifies a clear evidence gap:
As of the source date, no ClinicalTrials.gov-registered FDA-style Phase 1 through Phase 3 development program for Selank was identified.
The evidence base is characterized by:
Relatively small human studies
Predominantly Russian clinical literature
Limited independent international replication
Limited long-term safety data
Predominantly intranasal human research
Substantial reliance on preclinical evidence for cognitive claims
Selank can reasonably be described as a human-studied investigational anxiolytic peptide, but not as an established FDA-approved anxiety or cognitive therapy.
SAFETY & RESEARCH CONSIDERATIONS
Your Project profile describes Selank as having a relatively mild side-effect profile in the published Russian clinical record.
However, large Western trials with extensive long-term safety reporting are absent.
REPORTED EFFECTS
The Project source identifies reported effects including:
Injection-site redness or irritation with subcutaneous administration
Nasal stinging or dryness with intranasal administration
Mild headache
These effects are generally described as mild and transient in the available literature.
SEDATION & COGNITIVE EFFECTS
An important feature of the Russian clinical literature is that Selank was investigated as an anxiolytic without the same degree of:
Sedation
Memory impairment
Tolerance
Dependence
Withdrawal
associated with benzodiazepines.
However, the existing evidence does not establish that Selank is universally free of these risks or that it is safer than FDA-approved therapies.
IMMUNOGENICITY
Your Project source identifies immunogenicity as a theoretical concern raised in FDA compounding-related contexts.
This concern reflects limited FDA-regulated safety data rather than a documented Russian clinical signal.
DRUG INTERACTIONS
Combination effects with prescription:
Anxiolytics
Antidepressants
Sedatives
have not been formally characterized through extensive modern interaction studies.
LONG-TERM SAFETY
Most published evidence involves relatively short treatment periods.
Long-term human safety data remain limited.
PREGNANCY & BREASTFEEDING
Adequate human safety data are not established.
PRODUCT QUALITY
Research-grade Selank is not an FDA-regulated prescription product.
Product quality can therefore introduce separate concerns involving:
Identity
Purity
Concentration
Sterility
Stability
Lot-to-lot variability
REGULATORY CONTEXT
SELANK IS NOT FDA APPROVED
Selank is not FDA approved for any therapeutic indication in the United States.
The Project profile states that no FDA-approved Selank prescription drug exists.
RUSSIA
Selank has a different regulatory history in Russia.
Your Project source describes Selank as approved in Russia for generalized anxiety disorder and neurasthenia, where it has been used clinically since the 1990s.
That Russian regulatory history does not confer FDA approval in the United States.
UNITED STATES
As reflected in your Project profile, Selank remains an investigational or research-use compound in the U.S.
The profile also states that, as of its source date, no ClinicalTrials.gov-registered FDA-style Phase 1 through Phase 3 U.S. development program had been identified.
RESEARCH-USE AVAILABILITY
Products labeled for research use have not thereby been evaluated by FDA for:
Safety
Effectiveness
Clinical dosing
Medical suitability
A research-use designation should not be represented as therapeutic authorization.
IMPORTANT REGULATORY DISTINCTION
Russian approval ≠ FDA approval
Published human research ≠ U.S. regulatory approval
Research-use availability ≠ established medical treatment
Preclinical cognitive findings ≠ approved nootropic use
ANALYTICAL DOCUMENTATION
Croix maintains available third party analytical documentation only for specific samples and lots that can be matched to corresponding laboratory reports.
LOT SPECIFIC ANALYTICAL DOCUMENTATION
Analytical documentation is displayed only when Croix has a corresponding laboratory report that can be matched to the specific product and lot.
No matching Selank COA is currently displayed.
IMPORTANT COA LIMITATION
When analytical documentation becomes available, results should apply only to the specific sample identified in the corresponding laboratory report.
A Certificate of Analysis for one sample does not establish the composition, purity, sterility, safety, efficacy, or characteristics of another sample, lot, batch, or product.
Croix requires the product, strength, lot or batch, sample ID, laboratory, and report date to be matched before analytical documentation is represented as supporting a product.
A passing COA does not establish FDA approval, clinical efficacy, medical suitability, or the characteristics of unrelated lots.
SELECTED RESEARCH & REFERENCES
Zozulia AA, Neznamov GG, Siuniakov TS, et al.
Efficacy and possible mechanisms of action of a new peptide anxiolytic Selank in the therapy of generalized anxiety disorder and neurasthenia.
Zhurnal Nevrologii i Psikhiatrii imeni S.S. Korsakova. 2008.
Human clinical research examining Selank in generalized anxiety disorder and neurasthenia.
Seredenin SB, et al.
A comparison of the anxiolytic effect and tolerability of Selank and phenazepam in the treatment of anxiety disorders.
Human comparative anxiolytic research.
Seredenin SB, et al.
Optimization of the treatment of anxiety disorders with Selank.
Human clinical research involving anxiety-related conditions.
Uchakina ON, Uchakina PM, Miasoedov NF, et al.
Immunomodulatory effects of Selank in patients with anxiety-asthenic disorders.
Bulletin of Experimental Biology and Medicine. 2008.
Human immune-marker research.
Volkova V, Borodarenko E, Wei H, et al.
Research examining Selank and expression of genes involved in GABAergic neurotransmission.
Frontiers in Pharmacology. 2016.
Mechanistic GABA-related research.
Filatova EV, et al.
Research examining Selank, GABAergic signaling, and gene expression.
Frontiers in Pharmacology. 2017.
Preclinical mechanistic research.
Kasim AI, et al.
Research examining whether Selank enhances diazepam-related anxiolytic effects in experimental chronic mild stress.
Molecular Neurobiology International. 2017.
Preclinical behavioral research.
Bakhmet AA, et al.
A functional connectomic approach to studying Selank and Semax effects.
Bulletin of Experimental Biology and Medicine. 2020.
Human neuroimaging research.
Inozemtseva LS, Karpenko EA, Dolotov OV, et al.
Research examining intranasal Selank and BDNF expression in the rat hippocampus in vivo.
Doklady Biological Sciences. 2008.
Preclinical neurotrophic research.
Kost NV, Sokolov OY, Gabaeva MV, et al.
Research examining Selank and enkephalin-degrading enzymes from human serum.
Bioorganicheskaya Khimiya. 2001.
Mechanistic human-serum research.
Kolos LG, et al.
Research examining Selank, hippocampal BDNF, and ethanol-induced memory impairment.
Bulletin of Experimental Biology and Medicine. 2019.
Preclinical cognition research.
EVIDENCE NOTE
Selank's evidence base should be separated into two distinct levels.
Human clinical evidence exists primarily for anxiety-related outcomes, particularly in Russian studies.
Claims involving memory enhancement, BDNF, cognitive optimization, neuroprotection, or broad nootropic effects rely much more heavily on animal and mechanistic research.
Those evidence levels should not be presented as equivalent.
RESEARCH & EDUCATIONAL INFORMATION
This profile is provided for research and educational reference. It does not constitute individualized medical advice or establish Selank as safe or effective for personal use.
Selank is a synthetic tuftsin-derived heptapeptide studied primarily for anxiety-related effects, with additional research involving neurotransmitter signaling, BDNF, immune signaling, stress response, and cognition.
Published human clinical research exists, particularly from Russia, but the evidence base remains relatively small and has not been replicated through a large multinational FDA-style clinical-development program.
Selank is not FDA approved for any therapeutic indication in the United States.
Human anxiety findings should not automatically be generalized to cognitive enhancement, memory improvement, neuroprotection, other populations, different formulations, or different routes of administration.
Analytical documentation presented by Croix applies only to the specific samples and lots identified in corresponding laboratory reports.