Kalios
← Compounds

Sleep & focus · Nasal spray

Selank

Gray market

Checked · 18 sources · 9 corrections on this page · No vendors · No affiliates · No one buys a word of it

Anxiety: similar to medazepam

Clinical Use (Russia) · 62 patients · no placebo arm · Zozulia 2008

Gray market · No FDA ruling — not on any list

Sold as a research chemical. Some clinics and pharmacies still supply it; that’s their risk, not a change in the rule.

Bottom line

Licensed in Russia (Russian product instructions), unapproved in the US, and untested outside Russia.

Also called
TP-7 · Selanc · Thr-Lys-Pro-Arg-Pro-Gly-Pro · Russian anxiolytic
Category
Peptide — Anxiolytic Nootropic (Tuftsin Analog)
Molecular Weight
751.90 Da
Sequence
7 aa (heptapeptide)
Half-life
Plasma level falls within 5–5.5 min (Russian label)
Route (studied)
IP, intranasal (rats) · human route not stated
Route (sold)
Nasal drops (non-prescription in Russia); nasal spray, powder vials (research chemical)
FDA Status
Not approved
Russian Approval
2009 (GAD, neurasthenia)
Parent Molecule
Tuftsin (Thr-Lys-Pro-Arg)
Primary Effect
Anxiolytic + nootropic
WADA Status
Not specifically named; approved in Russia, so S0 does not apply
Cost & Access
Research-only

Also for sleep & focus

The other four questions

What does it do? In rats, it shifted dozens of nerve-signalling genes in step with GABA, the brain's main calming messenger (Volkova et al., 2016). In a test tube, it inhibited the serum enzymes that break down enkephalins, the body's own painkillers (Kost et al., 2001). After a nasal dose, its blood level falls away within 5–5.5 minutes (Russian product instructions).
Who uses it? In Russia, adults with anxiety or fatigue: it is sold there without a prescription (Russian product instructions), and one trial added it to the benzodiazepine phenazepam (Medvedev et al., 2015). Western community users take it as a nasal spray for anxiety and focus.
Does the evidence hold up? Two small Russian trials: one matched the benzodiazepine medazepam (Zozulia et al., 2008), and one eased phenazepam's side effects when added to it (Medvedev et al., 2015). The mechanism studies are in rats and cells (Volkova et al., 2016; Filatova et al., 2017), and PubMed lists no trial from outside Russia.
Bottom line? Licensed in Russia (Russian product instructions), unapproved in the US, and untested outside Russia.

Dosing from the Literature

Published for anxiety: the Russian label's 0.15% nasal drops, 2 drops in each nostril three times a day for 14 days (Russian product instructions). Not published: any trial outside Russia.

ProtocolDoseFrequencyNotes
Russian label (anxiety states, asthenia, stress disorders)0.15% nasal drops (1.5 mg/mL)2 drops in each nostril, 3× dailyRussian product instructions: adults 18 and over; a 14-day course, which can be repeated after 1–3 weeks, after consulting a doctor.
Dosing Disclaimer

The only published dose is the Russian label's, for adults 18 and over (Russian product instructions). Always work with a licensed healthcare provider.

→ Calculator — vial-to-syringe math

What It Is

Selank is a synthetic heptapeptide (a chain of 7 amino acids), registered in Russia as nasal drops; its registration holder and maker is Peptogen of Moscow (Russian product instructions). Its amino acid sequence is Thr-Lys-Pro-Arg-Pro-Gly-Pro. Structurally it is a modified analog of the endogenous tetrapeptide (a chain of 4 amino acids) tuftsin (Thr-Lys-Pro-Arg), a fragment of the Fc region of immunoglobulin G that has immunomodulatory (adjusting the immune system up or down) and CNS-active properties. The Russian research team extended tuftsin at its C-terminus by adding Pro-Gly-Pro, conferring substantially improved metabolic stability and producing a compound with pronounced anxiolytic, nootropic, and antistress activity.

Selank was approved for clinical use by the Russian Federation Ministry of Health in 2009 for generalized anxiety disorder (GAD) and neurasthenia. In Russia it is sold without a prescription, as 0.15% nasal drops (Russian product instructions). It is not approved in the United States, Western Europe, or any other major Western regulatory jurisdiction, though it has been the subject of a substantial Russian-language literature and a growing number of English-language publications indexed in PubMed.

What makes Selank pharmacologically interesting — and what separates it from traditional benzodiazepine anxiolytics — is that it produces anxiolytic effects without sedation, without muscle relaxation, without dependence, and without the withdrawal syndrome that complicates benzodiazepine use. The mechanism is not direct GABA-A (the main calming and inhibitory receptor in the brain) receptor agonism. Instead, gene-activity studies in rats and cells led their authors to propose that it adjusts the GABA system (related to GABA signaling) allosterically, as benzodiazepines do at GABA-A receptors (Volkova et al., 2016; Filatova et al., 2017).

In English-speaking optimization communities, Selank is used off-label for anxiety, focus, cognitive performance, and stress resilience. Intranasal administration (drops or metered spray) is the standard route, leveraging direct nose-to-brain delivery that bypasses first-pass metabolism. The compound's popularity has also spawned modified analogs, most notably N-Acetyl Selank Amidate, which pairs a stabilizing N-acetyl cap with a C-terminal amide to extend duration.

Mechanism of Action

  • GABA system — In rat frontal cortex, Selank and GABA each changed the activity of many of 84 nerve-signalling genes within an hour, and the changes correlated; the authors propose allosteric modulation of the GABA system as one possible mechanism (Volkova et al., 2016; PMC4757669). In cultured human nerve cells, Selank alone changed none of the genes but nearly cancelled GABA's changes when the two were given together, which the authors read as partial support for an effect on how GABA acts at GABA-A receptors (Filatova et al., Front Pharmacol 2017).
  • BDNF — A nasal dose changed BDNF expression in the rat hippocampus (Inozemtseva et al., 2008). In rats given ethanol as their only drink for 30 weeks, Selank prevented the rise in BDNF that ethanol caused in the hippocampus and frontal cortex, and the memory and attention deficits that came with withdrawal (Kolik et al., 2019; PMID 31625062).
  • Enkephalins — In a test tube, Selank inhibited the human serum enzymes that break down enkephalins, at half Semax's potency (IC50 20 vs 10 µM) (Kost et al., 2001). In the 2008 trial, the serum half-life of leu-enkephalin, low in the patients, rose during Selank treatment, mostly in those with generalized anxiety disorder (Zozulia et al., 2008).
  • Immune signals — In blood cells from patients with depression, Selank suppressed the IL-6 gene in a test tube, while IL-6 in the culture rose; in patients with generalized anxiety disorder or neurasthenia given Selank for 14 days, the serum balance of Th1 and Th2 cytokines shifted (Uchakina et al., 2008).
  • With diazepam (rats) — Under chronic mild stress, rats given Selank with diazepam came closest to their pre-stress anxiety scores; without stress, Selank alone best offset the rise in anxiety that a course of either drug caused (Kasian et al., 2017; PMC5322660).
  • Absorption and breakdown — Through the nasal lining, 92.8% of a dose reaches the blood, within 30 seconds, and spreads to organs including the brain; the blood level falls over 5–5.5 minutes as tissue peptidases break it down, and neither Selank nor its breakdown products appear in urine (Russian product instructions).

What the Research Shows

The Selank literature is split between a large Russian-language corpus from the 1990s–2000s (much of it now translated) and a growing English-language research base focused on mechanism.

  • Generalized anxiety disorder, controlled trial (Zozulia et al., 2008; PMID 18454096) — 62 patients with GAD and neurasthenia; Selank (n=30) vs medazepam (n=32). The anxiolytic effects were similar, and Selank also had anti-asthenic and psychostimulant effects.
  • GABAergic gene expression (Volkova et al., 2016; PMC4757669) — Selank altered expression of genes involved in GABAergic neurotransmission in brain tissue and cell models.
  • GABA / Selank / olanzapine comparison (Filatova et al., Front Pharmacol 2017; PMID 28293190) — Compared gene-expression effects of Selank, GABA, and olanzapine on GABAergic pathway genes in IMR-32 cells.
  • BDNF elevation in rat hippocampus (Inozemtseva et al., Dokl Biol Sci 2008; PMID 18841804) — Intranasal Selank regulated BDNF expression in rat hippocampus in vivo.
  • Ethanol-induced memory impairment (Kolik et al., 2019; PMID 31625062) — Selank protected against ethanol-induced memory deficits and normalized BDNF in hippocampus and prefrontal cortex.
  • Synergy with diazepam in chronic stress (PMC5322660) — Selank enhanced diazepam's anxiolytic effect in unpredictable chronic mild stress rat models.
  • Enkephalinase inhibition (Kost et al., 2001; PMID 11443939) — Selank and Semax inhibit enkephalin-degrading enzymes from human serum.
  • Stress resistance / HPA axis (Kozlovskaya et al., 2003; PMID 14969422) — Selank and short tuftsin-family peptides in regulation of adaptive behavior in stress.
Honest Evidence Framing

Selank is a registered medicine in Russia (Russian product instructions) and is not approved by the FDA. Its controlled human trials compared it with another anxiolytic, medazepam, in 62 patients (Zozulia et al., 2008) or added it to phenazepam in 70 (Medvedev et al., 2015); neither had a placebo arm, and both were published in Russian.

Human Data

Selank has accumulated a meaningful human evidence base through its Russian clinical development and post-approval use:

  • Zozulia 2008 pivotal trial (PMID 18454096) — Direct comparison to medazepam; similar anxiolytic effects plus antiasthenic and mild psychostimulant benefits.
  • Adjunct-to-benzodiazepine studies — Evaluations of Selank's use as a benzodiazepine-taper aid in anxiety-asthenic conditions (Medvedev 2015 and others).
  • Immunomodulation studies (Uchakina et al., 2008) — Documented cytokine modulation in patients with anxiety-asthenic disorders.
  • No Western Phase 3 — No randomized controlled trials conducted under FDA/EMA regulatory standards. All formal clinical evidence is generated in Russia and Ukraine.

Reconstitution & Storage

Selank is sold as the Russian 0.15% nasal drops, 1.5 mg per mL in 3 mL bottles (Russian product instructions), and online as research-chemical powder in vials.

FormPreparationConcentration
0.15% nasal drops (Russian)Ready to use1.5 mg/mL
5 mg powder1 mL BAC water5 mg/mL
5 mg powder2.5 mL BAC water2 mg/mL
10 mg powder5 mL BAC water2 mg/mL
10 mg powder6.7 mL BAC water1.5 mg/mL (match 0.15%)
  • Intranasal delivery — The Russian instructions describe drops placed on the lining of each nostril while seated, head tilted slightly back or to one side, each nostril then pressed shut for a moment; a runny nose can reduce absorption (Russian product instructions).
  • Storage — The Russian instructions list 2–8 °C, away from light and not frozen, with a 2-year shelf life; an opened bottle keeps up to 15 days at no more than 25 °C (Russian product instructions). No document read for this page gives storage for research powder.
  • Inspection — The Russian instructions describe the drops as a clear, colorless liquid (Russian product instructions).

→ Calculator — vial-to-syringe math

Side Effects & Risks

Important

Selank's safety data come from its Russian label and small Russian trials (Russian product instructions; Zozulia et al., 2008; Medvedev et al., 2015). Consult a licensed healthcare provider.

What the Russian label and the trials record:

  • Unpleasant taste — When the drops run from the nose into the throat, in people sensitive to smell and taste (Russian product instructions).
  • Allergic reactions — Including delayed ones, frequency unknown; the preservative in the drops, methylparaben, can also cause them (Russian product instructions).
  • Sedation — The label says Selank does not affect the ability to drive or operate machinery (Russian product instructions). Added to the benzodiazepine phenazepam in a 2015 trial, it reduced that drug's side effects, sedation among them, during treatment and after withdrawal (Medvedev et al., 2015).
  • Dependence — The label says Selank causes no drug dependence or habituation (Russian product instructions).
  • Drug interactions — The label reports no effect on haloperidol, pentobarbital, hexobarbital or analeptics, and no interaction with ethanol (Russian product instructions). In stressed rats, Selank added to diazepam's effect on anxiety (Kasian et al., 2017).
  • Pregnancy, breastfeeding, under 18 — Ruled out by the label, because no studies were done (Russian product instructions).
  • What is in a research vial — Selank is sold online as a research chemical; no analysis of such products appears in the documents read for this page.
  • WADA status — Not named on the 2026 Prohibited List. Selank is approved in Russia, so S0, which covers substances with no government approval, does not apply (WADA Prohibited List 2026).

Bloodwork & Monitoring

No trial, label or guideline sets monitoring for Selank; its Russian instructions list no laboratory tests (Russian product instructions). The 2008 trial rated patients on the Hamilton, Zung and CGI scales and measured enkephalin activity in their serum (Zozulia et al., 2008); a 2015 trial also rated side effects on the UKU scale (Medvedev et al., 2015).

Commonly Stacked With

Semax

FDA's reviewers found a US website offering a premixed 50:50 Semax and Selank nasal spray and injection (FDA Semax briefing, 2026). No published study has given the two together; in a test-tube study, both inhibited the human serum enzymes that break down enkephalins (Kost et al., 2001).

Tested together in people: none published · Read the receipt →

Stacking this? Read the receipt →

→ Calculator — vial-to-syringe math

Legal Status

Current Status — April 2026

Selank is approved by the Russian Federation Ministry of Health (2009) and sold there without a prescription, as 0.15% nasal drops for anxiety states, asthenia and stress disorders in adults (Russian product instructions).

Selank is not approved by the FDA, EMA, or any major Western regulator. It is not a controlled substance or scheduled drug in the United States. It is not currently on the FDA Category 2 Bulk Drug Substances list. Community access is primarily via research-chemical suppliers or international pharmacy import. Neither is a legally recognized prescribing pathway in the US.

Selank is not named on the WADA Prohibited List. It is approved in Russia, so S0, which covers substances with no current government approval for human therapeutic use, does not apply (WADA Prohibited List 2026).

Because Selank is neither approved nor a scheduled substance in the US, legal status sits in a gray area. This is different from Category 2 peptides (compounding-prohibited) and from approved compounds (prescribable). Use implies acceptance of gray-market product quality and legal ambiguity.

Cost & Access

Selank is not approved for human use in the United States. It is available through research suppliers for laboratory research purposes only in the U.S. market.

U.S. compounding pharmacies cannot legally compound Selank under current FDA bulk-substance rules.

Selank was not among the 12 peptides FDA removed from Category 2 in April 2026, which included Semax (FDA 503A categories list, April 22, 2026). Selank's regulatory pathway for U.S. approval would require a sponsor-led IND/NDA program; no such program is publicly active as of April 2026.

Estimated pricing as of April 2026. Actual costs vary by provider, location, and prescription status. Kalios does not sell compounds.

References

  1. Zozulia AA, Neznamov GG, Syunyakov TS, et al. [Efficacy and possible mechanisms of action of a new peptide anxiolytic selank in the therapy of generalized anxiety disorders and neurasthenia]. Zh Nevrol Psikhiatr Im S S Korsakova. 2008;108(4):38-48. PMID: 18454096. (Randomized comparison with medazepam, 62 patients.)
  2. Volkova A, Shadrina M, Kolomin T, Andreeva L, Limborska S, Myasoedov N, Slominsky P. Selank Administration Affects the Expression of Some Genes Involved in GABAergic Neurotransmission. Front Pharmacol. 2016;7:31. PMID: 26924987. PMC4757669.
  3. Filatova E, Kasian A, Kolomin T, Rybalkina E, Alieva A, Andreeva L, Limborska S, Myasoedov N, Pavlova G, Slominsky P, Shadrina M. GABA, Selank, and Olanzapine Affect the Expression of Genes Involved in GABAergic Neurotransmission in IMR-32 Cells. Front Pharmacol. 2017;8:89. PMID: 28293190.
  4. Inozemtseva LS, Karpenko EA, Dolotov OV, Levitskaya NG, Kamensky AA, Andreeva LA, Grivennikov IA. Intranasal administration of the peptide Selank regulates BDNF expression in the rat hippocampus in vivo. Dokl Biol Sci. 2008;421:241-243. PMID: 18841804.
  5. Kolik LG, Nadorova AV, Antipova TA, Kruglov SV, Kudrin VS, Durnev AD. Selank, Peptide Analogue of Tuftsin, Protects Against Ethanol-Induced Memory Impairment by Regulating of BDNF Content in the Hippocampus and Prefrontal Cortex in Rats. Bull Exp Biol Med. 2019;167(6):776-779. PMID: 31625062.
  6. Kozlovskaya MM, Kozlovskii II, Val'dman EA, Seredenin SB. Selank and short peptides of the tuftsin family in the regulation of adaptive behavior in stress. Neurosci Behav Physiol. 2003;33(7):639-643. PMID: 14969422.
  7. Kost NV, Sokolov OY, Gabaeva MV, Grivennikov IA, Andreeva LA, Myasoedov NF, Zozulya AA. [Semax and selank inhibit the enkephalin-degrading enzymes from human serum]. Bioorg Khim. 2001;27(3):180-183. PMID: 11443939.
  8. Kasian A, Kolomin T, Andreeva L, et al. Peptide Selank Enhances the Effect of Diazepam in Reducing Anxiety in Unpredictable Chronic Mild Stress Conditions in Rats. Behav Neurol. 2017;2017:5091027. PMC5322660.
  9. Kolomin T, Shadrina M, Slominsky P, Limborska S, Myasoedov N. A new generation of drugs: synthetic peptides based on natural regulatory peptides. Neuroscience and Medicine. 2013;4:223-252. DOI: 10.4236/nm.2013.44035.
  10. Uchakina ON, Uchakin PN, Miasoedov NF, et al. [Immunomodulatory effects of selank in patients with anxiety-asthenic disorders]. Zh Nevrol Psikhiatr Im S S Korsakova. 2008;108(5):71-75. PMID: 18577961.
  11. Medvedev VE, Tereshchenko ON, Kost NV, Ter-Israelyan AY, Gushanskaya EV, Chobanu IK, Sokolov OY, Myasoedov NF. [Optimization of the treatment of anxiety disorders with selank]. Zh Nevrol Psikhiatr Im S S Korsakova. 2015;115(6):33-40. PMID: 26356395.
  12. Semenova TP, Medvinskaia NI, Nesterova IV, Kozlovskaia MM. [Experimental analysis of the effect of Selank on the emotional and cognitive behavior of mice]. Zh Vyssh Nerv Deiat Im I P Pavlova. 2007;57(6):738-743.
  13. Vyunova TV, Andreeva LA, Shevchenko KV, Shevchenko VP, Myasoedov NF. Peptide-based anxiolytics: the molecular aspects of heptapeptide Selank biological activity and in silico modeling of its interaction with serotonin receptors. Peptides. 2018;106:55-62.
  14. Russian Federation State Register of Medicines. Selank — 0.15% intranasal solution. Approved 2009.
  15. FDA. Bulk Drug Substances Nominated for Use in Compounding Under Section 503A of the FD&C Act (503A categories list), versions updated April 15, April 22 and May 14, 2026. fda.gov/media/94155/download. Read October 3, 2026. (Notice that 12 peptides would leave Category 2 because their nominations were withdrawn; their removal; GHK-Cu, except injectable, back in Category 1.)
  16. World Anti-Doping Agency. Prohibited List 2026 (in effect January 1, 2026). S0, Non-approved substances. wada-ama.org/sites/default/files/2025-09/2026list_en_final_clean_september_2025.pdf. Read October 3, 2026.
  17. Peptogen. Селанк® (Selank) 0.15% nasal drops: instructions for medical use, registration ЛРС-003338/09. peptogen.ru/products/selank-0-15/ (instructions PDF); the current text, updated April 8, 2026, at rlsnet.ru/drugs/selank-2638. Read October 4, 2026. (In Russian. Indications, dose, contraindications, side effects, interactions, nasal absorption, storage; non-prescription.)
  18. FDA. Evaluation of Semax-Related Bulk Drug Substances (Semax (Free Base) and Semax Acetate) for Inclusion on the 503A Bulk Drug Substances List. FDA Briefing Document, Pharmacy Compounding Advisory Committee meeting of July 23–24, 2026 (memorandum dated May 11, 2026). fda.gov/media/193348/download. Read October 4, 2026.

Also for sleep & focus

Tested together in people

None published · Read the receipt →

See every change to this page → · Status now →

Checked 13 Oct 2026