HOME / RESEARCH COMPOUNDS / SELANK
Lyophilised vial · supplied for laboratory research
Selank is a synthetic heptapeptide, Thr-Lys-Pro-Arg-Pro-Gly-Pro. Its first four residues are tuftsin, an immunomodulatory fragment of the heavy chain of human immunoglobulin G; the developers added a Pro-Gly-Pro tail to slow its metabolic breakdown and extend its action. Selank came out of the Russian Academy of Sciences' Institute of Molecular Genetics, working with the Zakusov Research Institute of Pharmacology, both in Moscow.
Titan Peptides supplies Selank as a lyophilised powder in a sealed 10 mg vial for laboratory research only. As a research-grade material it is not a medicine in any jurisdiction. Below: specifications, a referenced summary of the laboratory, animal and clinical studies, regulatory status and handling notes.
| Compound class | Synthetic heptapeptide; tuftsin analogue with a C-terminal Pro-Gly-Pro |
|---|---|
| Sequence (one-letter) | TKPRPGP |
| Sequence (three-letter) | Thr-Lys-Pro-Arg-Pro-Gly-Pro |
| Molecular formula | C33H57N11O9 (free peptide, PubChem) |
| Molar mass | 751.9 g/mol (free peptide, PubChem); salt forms such as the acetate are heavier |
| CAS number | 129954-34-3 |
| PubChem CID | 11765600 |
| Other names | TP-7 |
| Supplied as | Lyophilised powder, sealed vial |
| Strength | 10 mg per vial |
| Storage (lyophilised) | Sealed, dry and dark at −20 °C or colder; warm to room temperature in a desiccator before opening |
| Intended use | Laboratory research only |
GABA-A receptor binding. GABA-A receptors are where benzodiazepines act. Using radioligand binding in brain membrane preparations, a 2018 study found that Selank shifted [3H]GABA binding in a way the authors interpreted as positive allosteric modulation, and that it interfered with modulation by diazepam and olanzapine. They put forward subtype-selective, concentration-dependent GABA receptor modulation as one possible mechanism.1
Gene expression. A 2016 rat study tracked 84 genes linked to neurotransmission in frontal cortex tissue. An hour after Selank, 45 had shifted expression, in a pattern that correlated with the shifts GABA itself produced.2
Anxiety models in rats. Behavioural anxiety and stress paradigms account for most of the animal work. A 2017 study gave rats courses of Selank, diazepam or both, with or without weeks of unpredictable mild stress, then scored them in the elevated plus maze; the authors reported lower anxiety measures with Selank alone and with the combination.3 Maze behaviour in rodents is only a rough stand-in for anxiety disorders in people.
Human studies. The clinical record is a few small Russian-language trials that used benzodiazepines, not placebo, as comparators. A 2008 trial allocated 62 patients with generalised anxiety disorder or neurasthenia to Selank or medazepam; the authors described comparable anxiolytic effects in the two arms, and the abstract says nothing about blinding.4 ClinicalTrials.gov listed no registered Selank trials in September 2026.
Most of the literature, preclinical and clinical, traces back to a few Moscow institutes, the developers' own among them, so independent replication is scarce. See the Selank research overview for the full evidence, or Semax vs Selank for how it compares with Semax.
In Russia, a 2026 review describes Selank as an approved treatment for anxiety.5 It has no FDA approval: Drugs@FDA holds no product containing it.6 Australia's June 2026 Poisons Standard (F2026L00633) does not name Selank.7 A product's supply and presentation also bear on how it is regulated; see our guide to Australian research peptide law. The research-grade Selank sold here is not an approved medicine.
The 2026 WADA Prohibited List does not name Selank either. That does not make it permitted: most sections give examples "including, but not limited to", and the List's catch-all wording can reach substances it does not name. Whether it applies to a given compound is for anti-doping authorities to decide.8
Selank has none of the residues most prone to oxidation (methionine, cysteine, tryptophan), but routine peptide storage still applies. Keep the sealed vial dry, dark and at −20 °C or colder, and bring it to room temperature in a desiccator before opening, since peptide powders readily take up moisture. Carrying lysine and arginine but no acidic side chains, Selank behaves as a basic peptide, which matters when choosing a solvent. After dissolving, split the stock into single-use aliquots, freeze them and avoid repeated freeze–thaw. More on storing lyophilised and reconstituted peptides and choosing a diluent for reconstitution.
Selank comes as a lyophilised (freeze-dried) powder in a sealed 10 mg vial, sold for laboratory research only. Peptide powders usually include a counter-ion such as acetate and some residual water, so the mass of peptide itself is less than the weight of powder in the vial. The specifications above give free-peptide values from PubChem.
Both are Russian heptapeptides ending in Pro-Gly-Pro, but their parent sequences are unrelated. Selank builds on tuftsin, an immunoglobulin G fragment; Semax builds on ACTH(4-7), a hormone fragment. Selank work centres on rodent anxiety models and GABA-A binding, Semax work on experimental stroke and BDNF. Direct comparisons between the two are rare.
PubChem lists Selank under CAS number 129954-34-3 and CID 11765600, with the synonym TP-7. For the free peptide it gives the molecular formula C33H57N11O9 and a molar mass of 751.9 g/mol; salt forms such as selank acetate weigh more per mole, so check which form a document refers to.
Selank does not appear by name in the June 2026 Poisons Standard. The Therapeutic Goods Act 1989 defines therapeutic goods partly by presentation, so goods likely to be taken as being for therapeutic use are caught whatever their label says. The Selank sold here is not an approved medicine and is for laboratory research only.
No. Selank is a seven-residue peptide with no benzodiazepine structure. A laboratory binding study suggests it modulates GABA-A receptors allosterically, at a site distinct from, though possibly overlapping, the diazepam site. The FDA has said it lacks important information about the safety of selank acetate in humans.
Selank is a seven-amino-acid analogue of the immune peptide tuftsin, approved in Russia as an anti-anxiety medicine but not in the US or EU. This is what the published studies report, and how far they go.
A plain-English primer on research peptides: what a peptide is, how peptides are built one amino acid at a time on a resin bead, why they arrive as a freeze-dried powder, and what "research use only" does and does not mean.
What bacteriostatic water actually contains, how it compares with sterile water, when benzyl alcohol can interfere, and how to reconstitute a lyophilised peptide and calculate stock concentrations.
Semax is a seven-amino-acid ACTH fragment analogue listed as an essential medicine in Russia but not approved in the US or EU. Here is what the rodent and small clinical studies report, and how much weight they can bear.
All products are supplied strictly for laboratory research and in-vitro applications. They are not approved therapeutic goods in Australia and are not for human or veterinary use.
