Comparison
Semax vs Selank
Two Russian nasal peptides that get discussed as a pair and are reached for at opposite ends of a problem: one for focus, the other for anxiety.
They come from the same research tradition, share a route and a half-life, and are frequently stacked. What separates them is which direction they push.
Semax derives from ACTH fragment 4-10 and is used for attention, cognition and stroke recovery. Selank derives from tuftsin and is used for anxiety and stress resilience. In the reports, one sharpens and the other settles.
Both hold Russian approvals, and neither has a Western regulatory approval or the trial programme that would come with one. Their evidence is largely Russian clinical literature, which is real and is not the same as a phase 3 file.
| Attribute | Semax | Selank |
|---|---|---|
| Derived from | ACTH fragment 4-10 | Tuftsin |
| Evidence level | Approved for another indication | Approved for another indication |
| Reached for | Focus, cognition, stroke recovery | Anxiety, stress resilience |
| Route | Nasal | Nasal |
| Half-life | About 30 minutes | About 30 minutes |
| Dosing frequency | Once or twice daily | One to three times daily |
| Western approval | None | None |
Things worth knowing
- The pairing is so routine that the two get treated as one thing. They are not: reports describe semax as stimulating and selank as calming, and taking both is a decision about two effects rather than a stronger version of one.
- A thirty-minute half-life means the effect is short and the schedule is frequent. Anything described as lasting all day from one morning dose is describing something other than the peptide's presence in blood.
- Both are nasal, and nasal absorption varies enough between people and between congested and clear noses that the same dose is not the same exposure.
Full profile
Semax
A seven-amino-acid peptide developed in Russia and approved there for stroke and cognitive indications. It holds no approval elsewhere and is used nasally rather than injected.
Full profile
Selank
A seven-amino-acid peptide developed in Russia and used there for anxiety. Nasal rather than injected, and the sibling compound to Semax.
Related
This page is educational. It describes what published research reports, not what you should do. Peptides discussed here are largely not approved for human use, and nothing on Bioalmanac is medical advice.