Heptapeptide comes up often in conversation and rarely with the context attached. Here we lay out the basics in order, then work through the practical considerations.
Last reviewed on 2026-04-15. Where a claim depends on a specific study, the study is described rather than over-claimed.
Proposed mechanisms centre on the GABAergic system. Animal and tissue studies report changes in GABA-A receptor expression and reduced activity of GABA transaminase, the enzyme that degrades GABA. Effects on monoamine turnover, including serotonin and dopamine pathways, are also described, and a separate line of work links the peptide to increased expression of brain-derived neurotrophic factor in hippocampal tissue. Most of these findings come from rodent models and cell preparations. How the individual observations combine into a single coherent mode of action is not settled.
Pharmacokinetic data are sparse and largely derived from animal work. After intranasal administration the peptide appears in plasma within minutes, and reported half-lives are short, on the order of minutes to tens of minutes. Degradation proceeds through ordinary proteolytic cleavage into constituent amino acids and smaller fragments. Direct evidence that intact Selank reaches brain tissue in meaningful amounts is limited, and the extent of blood-brain barrier penetration is debated. Some authors argue that fragments, not the parent peptide, carry much of the observed activity.
Selank is a synthetic heptapeptide with the sequence Thr-Lys-Pro-Arg-Pro-Gly-Pro, written TKPRPGP in one-letter notation. Its structure consists of the immunomodulatory tetrapeptide tuftsin, Thr-Lys-Pro-Arg, extended at the carboxyl terminus by a Pro-Gly-Pro segment. The molecular formula is commonly given as C33H57N11O9, corresponding to a monoisotopic mass near 751.4 Da and an average molecular mass near 751.9 Da. All seven residues are proteinogenic amino acids, and the molecule carries no modified side chains or non-natural linkages.
The compound was designed at the Institute of Molecular Genetics of the Russian Academy of Sciences during the 1980s and 1990s. The stated design goal was to retain the immunomodulatory and central nervous system activity attributed to tuftsin while improving resistance to enzymatic breakdown. Adding a proline-rich tail to the short parent peptide was a deliberate strategy, because proline residues restrict the conformations available to many peptidases. The same laboratory produced Semax, an ACTH fragment analog, and both compounds were developed in parallel as short, enzymatically stabilized peptides intended for intranasal use.
Selank is not a naturally occurring peptide and has no known endogenous counterpart in human physiology. Russian-language sources frequently call it TP-7, while English-language sources use the name Selank almost exclusively. Database indexing is uneven, partly because early reports appeared in regional journals that are not widely cataloged. Some summaries describe the material as a tuftsin analog and others as a synthetic heptapeptide; the labels overlap rather than conflict. Citing the primary sequence resolves ambiguity more reliably than the research or trade name alone.
| Property | Value | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Primary route studied | Intranasal | Also examined parenterally in animal work |
| Reported plasma half-life | Minutes to tens of minutes | Values vary widely between reports |
| Main model systems | Rodent behavioural and cell assays | Human trials are few and small |
| Principal proposed targets | GABA-A receptor, GABA transaminase | Monoamine and neurotrophic pathways also reported |
| Evidence grade | Preliminary | Limited independent replication |
Selank is a synthetic heptapeptide with the sequence Thr-Lys-Pro-Arg-Pro-Gly-Pro. It was designed at the Institute of Molecular Genetics of the Russian Academy of Sciences as a structural analogue of tuftsin, a naturally occurring tetrapeptide fragment of the immunoglobulin heavy chain. The added Pro-Gly-Pro tail was intended to slow enzymatic degradation and extend biological activity. In Russia it is registered as an anxiolytic nasal preparation, while regulators elsewhere have not approved it for clinical use.
Proposed mechanisms centre on modulation of the GABAergic system, with reports of altered expression of genes related to GABA-A receptor subunits and changed monoamine turnover. Some studies describe inhibition of enkephalinase, the enzyme that degrades endogenous enkephalins, which may prolong opioid peptide signalling. Effects on brain-derived neurotrophic factor and on cytokine expression have also been reported. These findings come largely from animal models and small human studies, and the precise primary target remains unresolved.
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.
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.
Once dissolved, the peptide is markedly less stable than the dry powder. Aqueous solutions are subject to backbone hydrolysis and to microbial growth when they are handled without sterile technique. Buffered solutions near neutral pH are common for short-term laboratory work, while acidic conditions are sometimes used to improve solubility. Analytical laboratories generally prepare working solutions fresh rather than storing them, and a residual water film left in a reopened vial can seed degradation even when the container appears dry.
Reversed-phase high-performance liquid chromatography is the standard technique for estimating peptide purity. The result is a peak-area percentage, which describes how much of the detected material elutes as the main peak in one run. Mass spectrometry confirms the molecular mass and can reveal truncated, adducted, or otherwise modified species. Amino acid analysis or tandem mass spectrometry can address sequence fidelity when identity is in doubt. None of these measurements, taken alone, establishes that a sample is fit for any specific purpose.
After the start of treatment, cats must be kept indoors for four weeks, and contact with pregnant women and children under the age of 16 must be avoided due to residual radioactivity. Just like a medical practice, any veterinary practice operating an X-ray machine must have sufficient staff with the appropriate expertise, as required by Section 18 of the X-Ray Ordinance 2002. The corresponding training for paraveterinary workers (then called veterinary nurses) took place in 1990. In 2017, Linsengericht (Hesse) opened Europe's first clinic for horses with cancer. Radiation therapy is administered in a treatment room that is eight meters wide, on a specially designed table that can withstand heavyweight. The surrounding area is protected from radiation by three-meter thick walls. Mobile equipment is used to irradiate tumors in small animals at various locations.
Isotopic reference materials are compounds (solids, liquids, gasses) with well-defined isotopic compositions and are the ultimate sources of accuracy in mass spectrometric measurements of isotope ratios. Isotopic references are used because mass spectrometers are highly fractionating. As a result, the isotopic ratio that the instrument measures can be very different from that in the sample's measurement. Moreover, the degree of instrument fractionation changes during measurement, often on a timescale shorter than the measurement's duration, and can depend on the characteristics of the sample itself. By measuring a material of known isotopic composition, fractionation within the mass spectrometer can be removed during post-measurement data processing. Without isotope references, measurements by mass spectrometry would be much less accurate and could not be used in comparisons across different analytical facilities. Due to their critical role in measuring isotope ratios, and in part, due to historical legacy, isotopic reference materials define the scales on which isotope ratios are reported in the peer-reviewed scientific literature. Isotope reference materials are generated, maintained, and sold by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), the United States Geologic Survey (USGS), the Institute for Reference Materials and Measurements (IRMM), and a variety of universities and scientific supply companies.
==== US policy vs EU policy ==== The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approves the use of meloxicam in cats only in injectable form and only as a one-time injection given before surgery. It does not approve meloxicam oral suspension for cats and it does not approve meloxicam spray for cats because after reviewing numerous reports of meloxicam side effects in cats, it has identified many cases of acute renal failure and death and has added the following boxed warning to the prescription label: "Repeated use of meloxicam in cats has been associated with acute renal failure and death. Do not administer additional injectable or oral meloxicam to cats. See Contraindications, Warnings, and Precautions for detailed information." In contrast, in the European Union and other continents or countries, the use of the drug in cats is allowed with no such warning. The product instruction leaflet for meloxicam for cats in the form of oral suspension 0.5 mg/ml states that: "Typical adverse reactions of NSAIDs such as loss of appetite, vomiting, diarrhoea, faecal occult blood, apathy, and renal failure have occasionally been reported. These side effects are in most cases transient and disappear following termination of the treatment but in very rare cases may be serious or fatal."
Sources: en.wikipedia.org
The body of 18-year-old Hannah Lynch, daughter of Mike Lynch, is recovered from the Bayesian, making her the seventh and final victim of the sinking. Storm Lilian brings disruption to much of the UK, with gusts of up to 70 mph in some regions. The Energy Price Cap is set to rise by 10% in October, with the average household price for gas and electricity increasing by £149 per year. A report by the United Nations urges the UK to take measures to curb race hate speech, including by politicians. 24–26 August – Eight people are stabbed during the Notting Hill Carnival, with a total of 334 people being arrested during the event. 24 August Data from the Office for National Statistics shows the number of those aged 16–24 not in employment, education or training rose to 872,000 during the period of April to June 2024. British athletes Helene Raynsford and Gregor Ewan light the Paralympic Flame at Stoke Mandeville, ahead of its journey to Paris for the 2024 Summer Paralympics. 25 August EE, one of the UK's largest mobile phone networks, advises parents not to give primary school age children smartphones after receiving an increase in the number of requests for guidance from parents. A British Reuters employee named as Ryan Evans is confirmed as having been killed in a missile attack on a hotel in Ukraine the previous day. 26 August A major incident is declared as a fire engulfs a block of flats in Dagenham, east London, which had "known" safety issues. More than 100 people are evacuated, with two taken to hospital.
Aortic root Z-score ≥ 2 AND ectopia lentis Aortic root Z-score ≥ 2 AND an FBN1 mutation Aortic root Z-score ≥ 2 AND a systemic score* > 7 points Ectopia lentis AND an FBN1 mutation with known aortic pathology In the presence of a family history of MFS (as defined above):
Specific industries, such as the airline, healthcare and food industries, have special concerns. Due to rising rates of obesity, airlines face higher fuel-costs and pressures to increase seating-width. In 2000, the extra weight of passengers with obesity cost airlines US$275 million. The healthcare industry has invested in special facilities for handling patients with class III obesity, including special lifting equipment and bariatric ambulances. Litigation accusing restaurants of causing obesity increases restaurant costs. In 2005, the US Congress discussed legislation to prevent civil lawsuits against the food industry in relation to obesity; however, it did not become law. With the American Medical Association's 2013 classification of obesity as a chronic disease, it is thought that health-insurance companies will more likely pay for obesity treatment, counseling and surgery, and the cost of research and development of adipose-treatment pills or gene-therapy treatments should become more affordable if insurers help to subsidize their cost. The AMA classification is not legally binding, however, so health insurers still have the right to reject coverage for a treatment or procedure. In 2014, The European Court of Justice ruled that morbid obesity is a disability. The Court said that if an employee's obesity prevents "full and effective participation of that person in professional life on an equal basis with other workers", then it shall be considered a disability and that firing someone on such grounds is discriminatory.
Sources: en.wikipedia.org
Reports describe modulation of GABA signalling, changes in monoamine turnover and effects on neurotrophic factor expression. These observations come mainly from animal and cell studies. A single unifying mechanism has not been demonstrated.
The peptide enters plasma rapidly and is broken down by ordinary proteases into amino acids and shorter fragments. Reported half-lives are short. Whether meaningful amounts of the intact molecule reach the brain is an open question.
Most clinical reports are small, published in Russian and not independently replicated. English-language reviews highlight the absence of large randomised trials. Conclusions about efficacy should be treated as provisional.
The sequence is Thr-Lys-Pro-Arg-Pro-Gly-Pro, written TKPRPGP in one-letter code. It combines the tetrapeptide tuftsin with a carboxyl-terminal Pro-Gly-Pro extension. This full sequence identifies the molecule more precisely than the research name.