Neurotrophic factor raises a handful of sensible questions. This page answers them in order, starting with the fundamentals and moving to applications.
This page was last updated on 2025-09-09 and is reviewed periodically as new material appears.
Most published work on selank originates from a small number of research groups in the Russian Federation. A large share of that record appears in Russian-language journals, which limits access for readers who rely on English-indexed databases. Independent replication by laboratories outside the original research network is sparse in publicly available sources. This concentration of origin and language is a frequently noted feature when the compound is summarized in broader reviews of synthetic peptides.
Reported pharmacological effects center on reduced anxiety-like behavior in animal models and on measures of memory and learning. Proposed contributing mechanisms include modulation of GABAergic signaling, shifts in monoamine turnover, and changes in the activity of enzymes that degrade neuropeptides. Effects on the expression of genes linked to neuroplasticity have also been described. No single molecular target is widely accepted, and whether the behavioral findings arise from one pathway or several remains an open question.
Regulatory status differs sharply by region. Selank holds a Russian marketing authorization, where it is supplied mainly as nasal drops, while authorities elsewhere have not approved it for medical use. Material sold internationally is therefore usually labeled as a research chemical rather than a medicine. Peer-reviewed publications come predominantly from Russian laboratories, and sample sizes are generally small. Whether the compound produces comparable effects under independent, well-controlled replication remains an open question that the broader literature has not settled.
Selank is a synthetic heptapeptide developed in Russia as a structural analogue of tuftsin, a naturally occurring immunomodulatory tetrapeptide. Its sequence, Thr-Lys-Pro-Arg-Pro-Gly-Pro, keeps the tuftsin core at the N-terminus and appends a Pro-Gly-Pro tail. Researchers at the Institute of Molecular Genetics in Moscow synthesized the compound during the 1990s while searching for peptides with combined anxiolytic and immunomodulatory activity. The added tail was intended to resist enzymatic cleavage and prolong the molecule's presence in circulation.
The compound has a calculated molecular weight near 751.9 daltons and carries a net positive charge at physiological pH because of its arginine residue. It dissolves freely in water and in common aqueous buffers, and typically appears as a white or off-white lyophilized powder. The amide backbone makes the molecule susceptible to peptidases, which limits oral use and favors intranasal or parenteral routes. Nomenclature in the literature varies: the substance is also described by the sequence abbreviation TP-7 and by a Russian trade designation.
| Property | Value | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Molecular formula | C33H57N11O9 | Derived from the seven-residue sequence |
| Molecular weight | About 751.9 g/mol | Average mass; the monoisotopic value is slightly lower |
| Residue count | Seven amino acids | Thr-Lys-Pro-Arg-Pro-Gly-Pro |
| Parent compound | Tuftsin (Thr-Lys-Pro-Arg) | Selank extends tuftsin at the C-terminus |
| Compound class | Synthetic short peptide | Studied in a research setting; not a licensed drug in most markets |
Clinical evidence comes mainly from small studies conducted in Russia, several of which were open-label or lacked robust blinding. Reported outcomes include lower anxiety scores, changes in attention measures, and effects on asthenic states following illness. Sample sizes are typically in the tens of participants, and independent replication outside the region is scarce. Reviews published in English generally note the limited methodological quality of the underlying trials. Whether the compound produces clinically meaningful effects under rigorous conditions remains unresolved.
Proposed mechanisms center on modulation of the GABA system, but no single molecular target has been confirmed. Rodent studies report changes in GABA-A receptor expression and in the turnover of serotonin, dopamine, and norepinephrine in several brain regions. Increases in brain-derived neurotrophic factor and its receptor have also been described after repeated administration. These findings come largely from animal models, and the degree to which they describe human neurochemistry remains an open question. The mechanism is best characterized as multi-system and not fully resolved.
Tuftsin, the parent structure, is a naturally occurring immunomodulatory tetrapeptide released from the Fc region of immunoglobulin G by spleen enzymes. Selank extends this four-residue sequence with three additional amino acids. The stated rationale is that the added tail slows enzymatic breakdown and may influence receptor interactions. How the full heptapeptide behaves at the molecular level is not firmly established, and proposed mechanisms often involve indirect modulation of neurotransmitter or immune signaling rather than a single defined target.
Selank is a synthetic heptapeptide developed in Russia. Its sequence is Thr-Lys-Pro-Arg-Pro-Gly-Pro, a seven-residue chain built around the natural tetrapeptide tuftsin. Researchers at the Institute of Molecular Genetics of the Russian Academy of Sciences first described the compound in the mid-1990s. The design combined the tuftsin core with an added Pro-Gly-Pro tail, a modification intended to extend the molecule's stability in biological fluids. Published work on the peptide has appeared mainly in Russian-language journals.
Reported activity for Selank centers on anxiolytic and nootropic effects. Russian clinical reports describe use in anxiety and in cognitive or attention-related complaints. Most of this evidence comes from studies conducted by the same research groups that developed the peptide. Independent replication in other countries remains limited, and no major Western regulatory agency has approved the compound for any indication. The gap between local reports and external verification is a recurring point in discussions of the peptide.
=== T-cell activation === Crosslinking Thy-1 molecules in the membrane raft, in the context of strong costimulatory signaling through CD28 in mouse T cells can act to some extent as a substitute activating signal for T-cell receptor signaling. Conversely it can substitute CD28 costimulation for activation through the TCR.
Unfortunately, therapies which lower testosterone levels, such as orchiectomy or GnRH analogue administration, also have significant side effects. Compared to these therapies, treatment with antiandrogens exhibits "fewer hot flashes, less of an effect on libido, less muscle wasting, fewer personality changes, and less bone loss." However, antiandrogen therapy alone is less effective than surgery. Nevertheless, given the advanced age of many with prostate cancer, as well as other features, many men may choose antiandrogen therapy alone for a better quality of life. Flutamide has been found to be similarly effective in the treatment of prostate cancer to bicalutamide, although indications of inferior efficacy, including greater compensatory increases in testosterone levels and greater reductions in PSA levels with bicalutamide, were observed. The medication, at a dosage of 750 mg/day (250 mg three times daily), has also been found to be equivalent in effectiveness to 250 mg/day oral cyproterone acetate as a monotherapy in the treatment of prostate cancer in a large-scale clinical trial of 310 patients, though its side effect and toxicity profiles (including gynecomastia, diarrhea, nausea, loss of appetite, and liver disturbances) were regarded as considerably worse than those of cyproterone acetate. A dosage of 750 mg/day flutamide (250 mg/three times a day) is roughly equivalent in terms of effectiveness to 50 mg/day bicalutamide when used as the antiandrogen component in combined androgen blockade in the treatment of advanced prostate cancer.
electron transport in the mitochondrial ETC, by shuttling electrons from mitochondrial complexes like nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide (NADH), ubiquinone reductase (complex I), and succinate ubiquinone reductase (complex II), the fatty acids and branched-chain amino acids oxidation (through flavin-linked dehydrogenases) to ubiquinol–cytochrome-c reductase (complex III) of the ETC: CoQ10 participates in fatty acid and glucose metabolism by transferring electrons generated from the reduction of fatty acids and glucose to electron acceptors; antioxidant activity as a lipid-soluble antioxidant together with vitamin E, scavenging reactive oxygen species and protecting cells against oxidative stress, inhibiting the oxidation of proteins, DNA, and use of vitamin E.
The ELP tags have been used in the fusion protein of intein, so that the aggregates can be isolated without chromatography (by centrifugation) and then intein and tag can be cleaved in controlled manner to release the target protein into solution. This protein isolation can be done using continuous media flow, yielding high amounts of protein, making this process more economically efficient than conventional methods. Another group of researchers used smaller self aggregating tags to isolate target protein. Small amphipathic peptides 18A and ELK16 (figure 5) were used to form self cleaving aggregating protein.
==== Obsessive–compulsive disorder ==== Psilocybin has been studied for the treatment of obsessive–compulsive disorder. It is formally under development for treatment of OCD by multiple pharmaceutical companies. These include candidates with the developmental code names SYNP-101 (Ceruvia Lifesciences) and MLS-101 (MycoMedica Life Sciences).
Sources: en.wikipedia.org
The Asilomar Conference in 1975 established widespread agreement that recombinant techniques were insufficiently understood and needed to be tightly controlled. The DNA transmission capabilities of Agrobacterium have been vastly explored in biotechnology as a means of inserting foreign genes into plants. Shortly after the Asilomar Conference, Marc Van Montagu and Jeff Schell discovered the gene transfer mechanism between Agrobacterium and plants, which resulted in the development of methods to alter the bacterium into an efficient delivery system for genetic engineering in plants. The plasmid T-DNA that is transferred to the plant is an ideal vehicle for genetic engineering. This is done by cloning a desired gene sequence into T-DNA binary vectors that will be used to deliver a sequence of interest into eukaryotic cells. This process has been performed using the firefly luciferase gene to produce glowing plants. This luminescence has been a useful device in the study of plant chloroplast function and as a reporter gene. It is also possible to transform Arabidopsis thaliana by dipping flowers into a broth of Agrobacterium: the seed produced will be transgenic. Under laboratory conditions, T-DNA has also been transferred to human cells, demonstrating the diversity of insertion application. The mechanism by which Agrobacterium inserts materials into the host cell is by a type IV secretion system which is very similar to mechanisms used by pathogens to insert materials (usually proteins) into human cells by type III secretion.
Endoxifen, also known as 4-hydroxy-N-desmethyltamoxifen, is a nonsteroidal selective estrogen receptor modulator (SERM) of the triphenylethylene group as well as a protein kinase C (PKC) inhibitor. It is under development for the treatment of estrogen receptor-positive breast cancer and for the treatment of mania in bipolar disorder. It is taken by mouth. Endoxifen is an active metabolite of tamoxifen and has been found to be effective in patients that have failed previous hormonal therapies (tamoxifen, aromatase inhibitors, and fulvestrant). The prodrug tamoxifen is metabolized by the CYP2D6 enzyme to produce endoxifen and afimoxifene (4-hydroxytamoxifen). Currently, endoxifen is approved by Drugs Controller General of India for the acute treatment of manic episode with or without mixed features of Bipolar I disorder. It is manufactured and sold by Intas Pharmaceuticals under the brand name Zonalta.
Given the reference range for serum potassium is 3.5-5.5 mEq/L, concentrations up to 8 mEq/L shorten action potential duration and the refractory period due to an allosteric effect of potassium ions on potassium channels, leading to increased conduction velocity and subsequently quicker potassium efflux, which contributes to quicker repolarization and the mentioned shortening of the refractory period. At approximately 8 mEq/L and beyond, the shortened refractory period and increased resting membrane potential diminish the quantity of voltage-gated sodium channels ready to contribute to rapid phase 0 depolarization due to the inactivation gate requiring further repolarization to open back up. At potassium concentrations beyond 14mEq/L, enough sodium channels remain inactivated to no longer generate an action potential, ultimately leading to no heartbeat. Heart potassium levels after lethal injection can reach 160.0 mEq/L. Depolarizing the muscle cell inhibits its ability to fire by reducing the available number of sodium channels (they are placed in an inactivated state). ECG changes vary depending on serum potassium concentrations and on the individual. Peaked T-waves signifying faster repolarization and potentially instances of early repolarization and phase 2 re-entry (Brugada, Short QT, and Early-Repolarization Syndromes) are evident in the first phase of hyperkalemia. This progresses into a broadening and lengthening of the P wave and PR interval, then eventually disappearance of the P wave, widening of the QRS complex, and finally, asystole.
==== Belgium ==== Cidrerie Ruwet SA, established in 1898, is the only independent craft cider producer in Belgium. In addition to their own brand Ruwet, the company produces 'high-end' ciders for private labels. Heineken owns the other Belgian cider maker Stassen SA, who in addition to their own local brands such as Strassen X Cider also produce Strongbow Jacques, a 5.5% ABV cider with cherry, raspberry, and blackcurrant flavours. Zonhoven-based Konings NV specialises in private label ciders for European retailers and offers a wide variety of flavours and packaging options to the beverage industry. Stella Artois Cidre is produced in Zonhoven and has been marketed since 2011.
Neurons that produce GABA as their output are called GABAergic neurons. In adult vertebrates, GABA is usually considered as the major inhibitory neurotransmitter. It also exhibits excitatory effect via GABAB receptor via activation of a specific type of voltage dependent calcium channel. Medium spiny cells are a typical example of inhibitory central nervous system GABAergic cells. In contrast, GABA exhibits both excitatory and inhibitory actions in insects, mediating muscle activation at synapses between nerves and muscle cells, and also the stimulation of certain glands. In mammals, some GABAergic neurons, such as chandelier cells, are also able to excite their glutamatergic counterparts. In addition to fast-acting phasic inhibition, small amounts of extracellular GABA can induce slow timescale tonic inhibition on neurons. GABAA receptors are ligand-activated chloride channels: when activated by GABA, they allow the flow of chloride ions across the membrane of the cell. Whether this chloride flow is depolarizing (makes the voltage across the cell's membrane less negative), shunting (has no effect on the cell's membrane potential), or inhibitory/hyperpolarizing (makes the cell's membrane more negative) depends on the direction of the flow of chloride. When net chloride flows out of the cell, GABA is depolarising; when chloride flows into the cell, GABA is inhibitory or hyperpolarizing. When the net flow of chloride is close to zero, the action of GABA is shunting.
Sources: en.wikipedia.org
=== Comprehensively sanctioned jurisdictions === Comprehensively sanctioned jurisdictions are subject to the most restrictive sanctions measures. Most transactions between a U.S. person and any person or entity "ordinarily resident" in a comprehensively sanctioned jurisdiction are restricted. In addition to the general sanctions listed below, transactions involving entities or individuals from these countries on OFAC's SDN List or BIS' Entity List are also restricted.
UPMC Presbyterian is the historic and academic center of UPMC and is physically attached to the primary facility of the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, Scaife Hall. Located in Oakland, the hospital has 792 beds and includes a Level I Trauma Center. Listed among Becker's Hospital Review 50 Best Hospitals in America, UPMC Presbyterian's specialties include organ transplantation, cardiology, trauma, gastroenterology, and neurosurgery. The School of Medicine uses UPMC Presbyterian for research and graduate programs.
== Chemistry == Phenazepam is a drug of the benzodiazepine class. Benzodiazepine drugs contain a benzene ring fused to a diazepine ring, which is a seven membered ring with the two nitrogen constituents located at R1 and R4. The benzyl ring of phenazepam is substituted at R7 with a bromine group. Like most benzodiazepines, phenazepam has a phenyl ring in R5 which is substituted by chlorine in the R2' group. Phenazepam also contains an oxygen group double bonded to R2 of its diazepine ring to form a ketone. This oxygen substitution at R2 is shared with other benzodiazepine drugs with the suffix -azepam. Like other benzodiazepines, phenazepam (7-bromo-5-(2-chlorophenyl)-1,3-dihydro-1,4-benzodiazepin-2-one) is composed of a benzene ring fused to a seven-membered 1,4-diazepine ring. A 2-chlorophenyl ring is attached at the 5-position and a bromine is attached at the 7-position. Phenazepam has a molecular formula of C15H10BrClN2O and a molecular weight of 349.6 g/mol.
Whereas testosterone is the major circulating androgen, DHT is the major androgen in the prostate gland. DHT levels in circulation are relatively low and only approximately 10% of those of circulating testosterone levels. Conversely, local concentrations of DHT in the prostate gland are 8- to 10-fold higher than circulating levels of DHT. This is due to high expression of 5α-reductase in the prostate gland, which very efficiently catalyzes the formation of DHT from testosterone such that over 90% of intraprostatic testosterone is converted into DHT. Relative to testosterone, DHT is 2.5- to 10-fold as potent as an AR agonist in bioassays, and hence, is a much stronger androgen in comparison. As such, AR signaling is exceptionally high in the prostate gland, and the effectiveness of bicalutamide monotherapy in the treatment of prostate cancer, which is roughly equivalent to that of gonadotropin-releasing hormone analogues (GnRH analogues), demonstrates a capacity of bicalutamide to strongly antagonize the AR. On the other hand, GnRH analogue monotherapy achieves only a 50 to 60% reduction in levels of DHT in the prostate gland, and combined androgen blockade (CAB), the combination of surgical castration or a GnRH analogue and bicalutamide, is significantly more effective than either modality alone in the treatment of prostate cancer.
Non-focal symptoms such as amnesia, confusion, incoordination of limbs, unusual cortical visual symptoms (such as isolated bilateral blindness or bilateral positive visual phenomena), headaches and transient loss of consciousness are usually not associated with TIA, however patient assessment is still needed. Public awareness on the need to seek a medical assessment for these non-focal symptoms is also low, and can result in a delay by patients to seek treatment Symptoms of TIAs can last on the order of minutes to one–two hours, but occasionally may last for a longer period of time. TIA is defined as ischemic events in the brain that last less than 24 hours. Given the variation in duration of symptoms, this definition holds less significance. A pooled study of 808 patients with TIAs from 10 hospitals showed that 60% lasted less than one hour, 71% lasted less than two hours, and 14% lasted greater than six hours. Importantly, patients with symptoms that last more than one hour are more likely to have permanent neurologic damage, making prompt diagnosis and treatment important to maximize recovery.
Sources: en.wikipedia.org
Selank is a synthetic heptapeptide with the sequence Thr-Lys-Pro-Arg-Pro-Gly-Pro, designed as a metabolically stabilized analogue of the endogenous tetrapeptide tuftsin. It has been studied mainly against anxiety-related and cognitive endpoints rather than as an approved medicine in most jurisdictions.
Tuftsin contains four residues, while selank carries an additional Pro-Gly-Pro segment at the carboxyl end. That extension is intended to reduce enzymatic cleavage. Comparative pharmacokinetic data in humans remain limited.
No single receptor target is widely accepted as the definitive mediator of the reported effects. Proposed contributors include GABAergic modulation, shifts in monoamine turnover, and altered neuropeptide degradation. The mechanism is treated in the literature as unresolved.
Selank is a synthetic seven-amino-acid peptide modeled on tuftsin, a fragment of the immunoglobulin G heavy chain. It was designed in Russia to combine anxiolytic and immunomodulatory properties in one molecule.