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Selank

Tuftsin analog / anxiolytic neuropeptide

Also known as TP-7, Tuftsin analog

A Russian-registered anxiolytic peptide with the same appraisal problem as Semax: a real literature that is largely inaccessible to outside review.

What doses have been studied? What each trial gave, with the population it was given to.

Guide updated Oct 22, 2026Literature checked Oct 21, 20261 curated study22 literature recordsBaseline editorial
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Overview

In shortA synthetic peptide developed in Russia and registered there for anxiety. It presents the same difficulty as Semax and deserves the same care: trials exist and are what it is registered on, but they are published largely in Russian-language journals Western reviewers do not index. Confident claims in either direction usually come from people who have not read the work.

Selank is a synthetic analog of the immunomodulatory peptide tuftsin, stabilized with a proline-glycine-proline extension, developed in Russia and registered there as an anxiolytic.

It presents the same difficulty as Semax and deserves the same care. Clinical trials exist and underpin its registration, but they are published largely in Russian-language journals not indexed where Western reviewers look, with methods that are difficult to evaluate at a distance. Confident claims in either direction are usually being made by people who have not read the underlying work.

Mechanism

In shortProposed routes include affecting the brain's main calming signal, changing levels of a brain growth factor, altering mood-chemical metabolism, and immune effects inherited from the natural peptide it is based on. It is described as reducing anxiety without the sedation, dependence or withdrawal that come with benzodiazepines. That claim rests on the same literature.

Proposed mechanisms include modulation of GABAergic signaling, effects on the expression of brain-derived neurotrophic factor, changes to monoamine metabolism, and immunomodulatory activity inherited from tuftsin.

It is described as anxiolytic without the sedation, dependence or withdrawal associated with benzodiazepines, which is the basis of its registered use. That claim rests on the same literature.

Evidence

In shortEarly human work, hard to appraise. Russian trials report reduced anxiety, in some reports comparable to benzodiazepines without the sedation. Independent replication outside Russia is essentially absent and the accessible trials are small. For sharper thinking in healthy people, which drives most interest, there is no properly sized controlled evidence in any language.

Early clinical and difficult to appraise. Russian trials report anxiolytic effects in generalized anxiety and adjustment disorders, comparable in some reports to benzodiazepines without sedation.

Independent replication outside Russia is essentially absent, and the accessible trials are small.

For cognitive enhancement in healthy people, which drives most community interest, there is no adequately powered controlled evidence in any language. As with Semax, "the evidence sits in a literature I cannot appraise" is a different statement from "there is no evidence", and collapsing them is its own error.

Safety

In shortTolerability in Russian clinical use is reported as good, with nasal irritation the main complaint, and years of registered use give some real-world observation. The limits are real: little independent safety data, nothing long-term in healthy users, and no map of interactions with psychiatric medication despite proposed effects on the same brain systems.

Reported tolerability in Russian clinical use is good, and the intranasal route produces local irritation as the main complaint. Years of registered use provide some real-world observation.

The limits are real: little independent safety data, no long-term data in healthy users, and no characterized interaction profile with psychiatric medication despite proposed effects on GABAergic and monoamine systems.

Regulatory status

In shortRegistered in Russia and some neighboring countries as an anti-anxiety medicine. Not approved in the US, the EU or most other places. Sold internationally as a research chemical.

Registered in Russia and some neighboring countries as an anxiolytic. Not approved in the United States, the European Union, or most other jurisdictions. Sold internationally as a research chemical.

The literature

1 study indexed. Findings and limitations get equal weight, on purpose.

Always check the primary source

Members area

The Selank literature needs an account

Everything above is free to read. What an account opens is the evidence underneath it: 1 study with their limitations, and the regimen each trial actually reported.

  • Every study, with what it found and what it cannot show
  • The limitations, given the same weight as the findings
  • The dose each named trial administered, where recorded
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Reading is free, an account is not the same as paying. 80 compound guides, every study with its limitations written underneath, and the regimens those trials actually used. A free account opens all of it. A membership is a separate decision, and it opens the forum. What membership costs.

The wider literature

22 indexed papers and 0 registered trials mentioning Selank, straight from PubMed and ClinicalTrials.gov. These have not been read by us. Unlike the studies above, they carry no findings and no limitations written by anyone here, because writing either would mean claiming a reading nobody has done. They are a starting point for yours.

Papers (22)

  1. Therapeutic Peptides in Orthopaedics: Applications, Challenges, and Future Directions.

    Rahman OF, et al.Journal of the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons. Global research & reviews2026PMID 41490200

    journal articlereview

  2. Atrial fibrillation-associated electrical remodelling in human induced pluripotent stem cell-derived atrial cardiomyocytes: a novel pathway for antiarrhythmic therapy development.

    Seibertz F, et al.Cardiovascular research2023PMID 37677054

    journal articleresearch support, non-u.s. gov't

  3. Effect of dietary inclusion of mealworm frass on growth, hematology, and serum biochemistry of sheep.

    Ayaz M, et al.Tropical animal health and production2023PMID 36881277

    journal article

  4. Selank, a Peptide Analog of Tuftsin, Attenuates Aversive Signs of Morphine Withdrawal in Rats.

    Konstantinopolsky MA, et al.Bulletin of experimental biology and medicine2022PMID 36322304

    journal article

  5. Exosomal and Non-Exosomal MicroRNAs: New Kids on the Block for Cancer Therapy.

    Syed SN, et al.International journal of molecular sciences2022PMID 35562884

    journal articlereview

  6. The Influence of Selank on the Level of Cytokines Under the Conditions of "Social" Stress.

    Leonidovna YA, et al.Current reviews in clinical and experimental pharmacology2021PMID 32621722

    journal articleresearch support, non-u.s. gov't

  7. Functional Connectomic Approach to Studying Selank and Semax Effects.

    Panikratova YR, et al.Doklady biological sciences : proceedings of the Academy of Sciences of the USSR, Biological sciences sections2020PMID 32342318

    journal article

  8. Selank, Peptide Analogue of Tuftsin, Protects Against Ethanol-Induced Memory Impairment by Regulating of BDNF Content in the Hippocampus and Prefrontal Cortex in Rats.

    Kolik LG, et al.Bulletin of experimental biology and medicine2019PMID 31625062

    journal article

  9. Peptide-based Anxiolytics: The Molecular Aspects of Heptapeptide Selank Biological Activity.

    Vyunova TV, et al.Protein and peptide letters2018PMID 30255741

    journal article

  10. Effect of Selank on Spontaneous Synaptic Activity of Rat Hippocampal CA1 Neurons.

    Povarov IS, et al.Bulletin of experimental biology and medicine2017PMID 28361410

    journal article

  11. GABA, Selank, and Olanzapine Affect the Expression of Genes Involved in GABAergic Neurotransmission in IMR-32 Cells.

    Filatova E, et al.Frontiers in pharmacology2017PMID 28293190

    journal article

  12. Tuftsin - Properties and Analogs.

    Siebert A, et al.Current medicinal chemistry2017PMID 28745220

    journal articlereview

  13. Effect of Selank on Functional State of Rat Hepatocytes under Conditions of Restraint Stress.

    Fomenko EV, et al.Bulletin of experimental biology and medicine2017PMID 28853100

    journal article

  14. Peptide Selank Enhances the Effect of Diazepam in Reducing Anxiety in Unpredictable Chronic Mild Stress Conditions in Rats.

    Kasian A, et al.Behavioural neurology2017PMID 28280289

    journal article

  15. [COMPARISON OF PHARMACOLOGICAL EFFECTS OF HEPTAPEPTIDE SELANK AFTER INTRANASAL AND INTRAPERITONEAL ADMINISTRATION TO BALB/c AND C57BL/6 MICE.].

    Vasil'eva EV, et al.Eksperimental'naia i klinicheskaia farmakologiia2016PMID 29787664

    comparative studyjournal article

  16. Selank Administration Affects the Expression of Some Genes Involved in GABAergic Neurotransmission.

    Volkova A, et al.Frontiers in pharmacology2016PMID 26924987

    journal article

  17. [Optimization of the treatment of anxiety disorders with selank].

    Medvedev VE, et al.Zhurnal nevrologii i psikhiatrii imeni S.S. Korsakova2015PMID 26356395

    journal articlerandomized controlled trial

  18. The temporary dynamics of inflammation-related genes expression under tuftsin analog Selank action.

    Kolomin T, et al.Molecular immunology2014PMID 24291245

    journal articleresearch support, non-u.s. gov't

  19. Antiviral properties of structural fragments of the peptide Selank.

    Andreeva LA, et al.Doklady biological sciences : proceedings of the Academy of Sciences of the USSR, Biological sciences sections2010PMID 20506839

    journal articleresearch support, non-u.s. gov't

  20. [Antiviral activity of immunomodulator Selank in experimental influenza infection].

    Ershov FI, et al.Voprosy virusologii2009PMID 19882898

    journal article

  21. [Immunomodulatory effects of selank in patients with anxiety-asthenic disorders].

    Uchakina ON, et al.Zhurnal nevrologii i psikhiatrii imeni S.S. Korsakova2008PMID 18577961

    comparative studyjournal article

  22. The optimizing action of the synthetic peptide Selank on a conditioned active avoidance reflex in rats.

    Kozlovskii II, et al.Neuroscience and behavioral physiology2003PMID 14552529

    comparative studyjournal articleresearch support, non-u.s. gov't

Discussion

Selank has its own forum, and sits in Mental Performance & Mood. Every post says what kind of claim it makes.

All threads
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For Research & Educational Discussion Only. Not Medical Advice

This guide is educational reference material compiled from published literature. It is not medical advice, not a recommendation, and not a substitute for a clinician who knows your history. Nothing here should be used to make a decision about your own health without one.

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