Selank
/seh-LANK/aka Селанк, Tuftsin analog, Thr-Lys-Pro-Arg-Pro-Gly-Pro
A seven-amino-acid analog of the immune peptide tuftsin, given as nasal drops and approved in Russia as an anti-anxiety drug.
Selank: educational research discussion. Not medical advice. Not a protocol for you.Details
- Reported range
- ≈ 900 mcg/day nasal (Russian label)
- Frequency
- 3× daily (Russian label)
- Cycle length
- 14-day courses (Russian use)
- Half-life
- Minutes in plasma (Russian label data)
- Route
- Nasal drops
Reported figures describe what is published or discussed. None of them is a dose for you.
Mechanism
What it is proposed to do
Selank is tuftsin (Thr-Lys-Pro-Arg, a fragment of immunoglobulin G) with Pro-Gly-Pro added to resist breakdown. In human plasma in the lab it slows the breakdown of enkephalins, the body's own opioid peptides. In rat and cell studies it shifts the expression of GABA-system genes, and binding studies suggest it acts as a positive allosteric modulator at GABA receptors. Russian studies also report immune effects (IL-6, Th1/Th2 balance). None of these has been shown to be the operative mechanism in people.
- 01
Selank
Tuftsin + Pro-Gly-Pro; intranasal, cleared from plasma within minutes
established - 02
Enkephalinase inhibition
Slows enkephalin breakdown in human plasma in vitro
proposed - 03
GABA-A modulation
Radioligand binding and rat gene-expression studies
proposed - 04
Less anxiety
Rodent behavior; small Russian clinical studies without placebo
proposed
Half-life. Russian prescribing information reports 92.8% nasal bioavailability, detection in blood within 30 seconds, and plasma levels falling over about 5 minutes. Claimed effects outlast those plasma levels; human data do not explain the gap.
Dosing & cycles
What is reported, and where it comes from
Numbers below are labeled FDA label, clinical trial range or commonly reported range. They describe the published and discussed landscape. They are not instructions and not a protocol for you.
Dosing studio
Every figure is labeled by where it comes from.
Scale view: Russian clinical course (0.15% drops)
Probe at 900 mcg: at the listed figure Drag it to read the scale. It does not pick a number for you.
Typical cycle, as a calendar
Russian course pattern
14 days on; repeat after 1–3 weeks
Russian studies gave selank for 14 days, and Russian prescribing information allows a repeat course after a 1–3 week gap. Shown as a shape, not a plan. No study has tested longer or continuous use.
Cycle patterns
Russian course pattern
Russian studies gave selank for 14 days, and Russian prescribing information allows a repeat course after a 1–3 week gap. Shown as a shape, not a plan. No study has tested longer or continuous use.
Stacks
What it gets combined with
Why people pair things, and what nobody has tested.
Selank + Semax
2 compounds- Why people combine these
- Both came out of the same Russian research circle and are pitched as a pair: selank for calm, semax for focus.
- Caution
- No trial has tested the combination. Semax's Russian label lists anxiety disorders as a contraindication, which sits oddly with using the two together.
- What is unknown
- No published human data on this combination: dosing, interactions and long-term effects are all unstudied.
Evidence
How much of this is known
Evidence grade
C
Thin human data
Human data thin (pilots, uncontrolled, or none completed). Strong animal data and a lot of anecdote.
How we gradeGraded C rather than D because human clinical studies exist and it is an approved drug in Russia. They are small, short, Russian-language and not placebo-controlled; the mechanism data are animal and in vitro.
Human trial status
The clinical record is Russian and small. A 2008 study of 62 patients with generalized anxiety disorder or neurasthenia compared selank (30) with the benzodiazepine medazepam (32) and reported similar anxiety relief, with no placebo arm. A companion study reported cytokine shifts over 14 days of treatment. Earlier work found altered enkephalin breakdown in the blood of patients with generalized anxiety. No Western or placebo-controlled trials were found.
Limitations
- The main trial had no placebo arm, so it cannot separate drug effect from time and expectation.
- Studies are small, short and Russian-language, largely by the developers.
- Mechanism data come from rodents, cell lines and in-vitro enzyme assays.
- Dependence and withdrawal have not been independently studied.
Sources to read
- Zozulia AA et al. Selank vs medazepam in generalized anxiety disorder and neurasthenia (Zh Nevrol Psikhiatr 2008, in Russian)
- Zozulya AA et al. Selank inhibits enkephalin-degrading enzymes (Bull Exp Biol Med 2001)
- Volkova A et al. Selank and GABAergic gene expression in rat frontal cortex (Front Pharmacol 2016)
- Vyunova TV et al. Molecular aspects of selank activity, GABA binding (Protein Pept Lett 2018)
- Doyno CR, White CM. GABAergic sedative-hypnotics including phenibut and selank (J Clin Pharmacol 2021)
- Selank 0.15% nasal drops, Russian prescribing information (Vidal drug reference, in Russian)
- Selank 0.15% nasal drops, instructions for use (RLS drug reference, in Russian)
Links open PubMed, DailyMed, FDA or trial-registry searches. We do not cite what we have not described accurately.
Safety
Side effects, cautions, status
Commonly reported effects
- Russian prescribing information lists allergic reactions (including delayed ones) and an unpleasant taste as drops run into the throat.
- Russian authors describe it as free of benzodiazepine-style sedation and dependence. That claim rests on small, short studies by the developers and has not been independently tested.
- A 2021 US pharmacology review grouped selank with phenibut as poorly studied Russian GABAergic drugs being sold to US consumers as supplements.
- Long-term safety is unknown.
Who should be extra cautious
- Pregnancy or breastfeeding. Contraindicated in Russian prescribing information.
- Under 18. Contraindicated in Russian prescribing information for lack of data.
- Benzodiazepines or other sedatives. Binding studies suggest selank acts at GABA receptor sites and can block diazepam's modulatory effect in vitro. No clinical interaction data exist.
- Tested athletes. Not named by WADA, but S0 status is unclear. Confirm with your federation.
- Gray-market product. Online selank, including modified versions, is not the Russian drug. Content and purity vary.
Legal & regulatory status
Approved in Russia as an anxiolytic (0.15% nasal drops), not by FDA or EMA. Selank was not among the peptides in FDA's 2026 Category 2 removals or its July 2026 compounding advisory committee review.
WADA. Not named on the list. S0 covers substances with no approval by any governmental health authority, and selank is approved in Russia, so S0 coverage is unclear. Some anti-doping groups treat it as an S0 risk. Confirm with your federation.
Storage & handling, high level
The Russian product is 0.15% nasal drops in 3 mL bottles, stored per its own label. Research-market versions vary, and storage advice online is not based on stability data for those products.
Reconstitution and injection technique are clinical skills. The reconstitution calculator does arithmetic only.
FAQ
Questions people ask about Selank
Is selank a benzodiazepine alternative?
Is it approved anywhere?
Does it work on GABA like Xanax?
Why is it always mentioned with semax?
Is it safe?
The monthly Evidence Brief
Keep up with the evidence
One email a month: new trials, grade changes and FDA or WADA updates across the whole atlas, Selank included. You get the free guide right away.
Free guide · PDF
10 Peptide Claims, Fact-Checked
13 pages · sent to your inbox right away
Email only. Unsubscribe from any email in one click. We do not sell or rent your address. Nothing we send is medical advice. Privacy