If you have been reading about Tuftsin analogue and want a single page that covers the useful parts, this is it: definitions, context, how it is studied, and the questions that come up repeatedly.
Updated 2026-06-15. Numbers and descriptions here follow the published literature rather than marketing material.
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.
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.
Pharmacokinetic data are limited. Like most short peptides, Selank is vulnerable to plasma and tissue peptidases, and its measured half-life in circulation is short, on a minutes scale. The Pro-Gly-Pro tail slows this degradation but does not eliminate it. Intranasal administration is the route described in most reports, with absorption through the nasal mucosa and a hypothesized path into the central nervous system that avoids the blood-brain barrier. Direct measurements of human brain exposure are unavailable, so distribution claims rest on inference from animal work.
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.
| Property | Value | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Peptide sequence | Thr-Lys-Pro-Arg-Pro-Gly-Pro | Seven residues; tuftsin plus a Pro-Gly-Pro tail |
| Molecular formula | C33H57N11O9 | Commonly reported value for the free peptide |
| Monoisotopic mass | Roughly 751.4 Da | Average molecular mass near 751.9 Da |
| Appearance | White to off-white powder | Typically supplied as a lyophilized solid |
| Solubility class | Freely soluble in water | Also dissolves in saline and other polar solvents |
Handling follows standard practice for research peptides. Material is weighed in a low-humidity environment because the powder absorbs atmospheric moisture. Purity is reported as the percentage area of the main peak in a chromatogram, with specifications commonly set at 95 percent or higher; values below that threshold indicate the presence of truncated or modified species. Residual trifluoroacetate from purification is often present and may affect mass balance. Certificates of analysis should state the analytical method, the column and gradient used, and the lot-specific retention time so that results can be compared across suppliers.
Identity and purity of selank are established with reversed-phase high-performance liquid chromatography coupled to mass spectrometry. The peptide elutes from C18 columns with acetonitrile gradients in water containing trifluoroacetic acid or formic acid, and detection is usually performed by ultraviolet absorbance near 214 nm. Electrospray ionization in positive mode gives a doubly protonated ion near m/z 377, consistent with a mass of about 752 Da. Amino acid analysis or tandem mass spectrometry of fragment ions confirms the sequence. Because the molecule has no aromatic residues, it lacks a usable 280 nm chromophore, so low-wavelength detection or mass spectrometry is required.
Development work on the compound began in the 1980s and 1990s at the Institute of Molecular Genetics in Moscow, within the same research programme that produced the peptide Semax. Early investigators sought a tuftsin derivative with improved resistance to enzymatic breakdown and with activity in the central nervous system after peripheral administration. Most of the primary literature from this period was published in Russian, a factor that still shapes how easily the findings can be checked by outside groups.
Naming for this compound is not fully standardised in English sources. The spelling Selanc appears in some transliterations, and catalogue entries may instead list the peptide sequence itself as the identifier. Reference material sometimes groups it with other short synthetic peptides studied for behavioural effects, which can create confusion when citations are compared. Distinguishing the exact sequence from related tuftsin analogues is therefore a practical first step when reviewing any dataset or specification sheet.
Published work on this peptide almost always uses intranasal delivery, with drops or a spray applied to the nasal mucosa. Some animal experiments have used subcutaneous or intraperitoneal injection, and a smaller number have compared routes directly. Oral administration is not a focus of the literature, because short peptides of this size are broken down by digestive enzymes and cross intestinal barriers poorly. How much of an intranasal dose reaches the bloodstream intact in humans remains an open question.
Animal studies have examined behaviour in tests of anxiety, memory retention and stress response, and several report changes in neurotrophic or neurotransmitter-related markers. The human evidence base is much smaller, consisting mainly of short trials conducted in Russia with limited reporting in English-language journals. Sample sizes are modest and outcome measures vary between studies, so the findings are best described as preliminary. Independent replication under modern trial standards has not been widely reported.
Exosomal polycystin-1-interacting protein is a protein that, in humans, is encoded by the EPCIP gene. EPCIP is found on human chromosome 21, and it is thought to be expressed in tissues of the brain and reproductive organs. Additionally, EPCIP is highly expressed in ovarian surface epithelial cells during normal regulation, but is not expressed in cancerous ovarian surface epithelial cells.
==== Liver toxicity ==== Although rare, flutamide has been associated with severe hepatotoxicity and death. By 1996, 46 cases of severe cholestatic hepatitis had been reported, with 20 fatalities. There have been continued case reports since, including liver transplants and death. A 2021 review of the literature found 15 cases of serious hepatotoxicity in women treated with flutamide, including 7 liver transplantations and 2 deaths. Based on the number of prescriptions written and the number of cases reported in the MedWatch database, the rate of serious hepatotoxicity associated with flutamide treatment was estimated in 1996 as approximately 0.03% (3 per 10,000). However, other research has suggested that the true incidence of significant hepatotoxicity with flutamide may be much greater, as high as 0.18 to 10%. Flutamide is also associated with liver enzyme elevations in up to 42 to 62% of patients, although marked elevations in liver enzymes (above 5 times upper normal limit) occur only in 3 to 5%. The risk of hepatotoxicity with flutamide is much higher than with nilutamide or bicalutamide. Lower doses of the medication appear to have a possibly reduced but still significant risk. Liver function should be monitored regularly with liver function tests during flutamide treatment. In addition, due to the high risk of serious hepatotoxicity, flutamide should not be used in the absence of a serious indication. The mechanism of action of flutamide-induced hepatotoxicity is thought to be due to mitochondrial toxicity.
== Uses == Irradiation is used to reduce or eliminate pests and the risk of food-borne illnesses as well as prevent or slow spoilage and plant maturation or sprouting. Depending on the dose, some or all of the organisms, microorganisms, bacteria, and viruses present are destroyed, slowed, or rendered incapable of reproduction. When targeting bacteria, most foods are irradiated to significantly reduce the number of active microbes, not to sterilize all microbes in the product. Irradiation cannot return spoiled or over-ripe food to a fresh state. If this food was processed by irradiation, further spoilage would cease and ripening would slow, yet the irradiation would not destroy the toxins or repair the texture, color, or taste of the food. Irradiation slows the speed at which enzymes change the food. By reducing or removing spoilage organisms and slowing ripening and sprouting (e.g. potato, onion, and garlic) irradiation is used to reduce the amount of food that goes bad between harvest and final use. Shelf-stable products are created by irradiating foods in sealed packages, as irradiation reduces chance of spoilage, the packaging prevents re-contamination of the final product. Foods that can tolerate the higher doses of radiation required to do so can be sterilized. This is useful for people at high risk of infection in hospitals as well as situations where proper food storage is not feasible, such as rations for astronauts.
== Applications == PEDOT:PSS has the highest efficiency among conductive organic thermoelectric materials (ZT~0.42) and thus can be used in flexible thermoelectric generators. Yet its largest application is as a transparent, conductive polymer with high ductility. For example, AGFA coats 200 million photographic films per year with a thin, extensively-stretched layer of virtually transparent and colorless PEDOT:PSS as an antistatic agent to prevent electrostatic discharges during production and normal film use, independent of humidity conditions, and as electrolyte in polymer electrolytic capacitors. PEDOT:PSS is commonly used in organic light emitting diode (OLED) and organic solar cell for hole injection or hole extraction to improve carrier transport. If organic compounds, including high boiling solvents like methylpyrrolidone, dimethyl sulfoxide, sorbitol, ionic liquids and surfactants, are added conductivity increases by many orders of magnitude. This makes it also suitable as a transparent electrode, for example in touchscreens, organic light-emitting diodes, flexible organic solar cells and electronic paper to replace the traditionally used indium tin oxide (ITO). Owing to the high conductivity (up to 4600 S/cm), it can be used as a cathode material in capacitors replacing manganese dioxide or liquid electrolytes. It is also used in organic electrochemical transistors.
Sources: en.wikipedia.org
Sitagliptin (Januvia) has a novel structure with β-amino amide derivatives (Figure 7). Since sitagliptin has shown excellent selectivity and in vivo efficacy it urged researchers to inspect the new structure of DPP-4 inhibitors with appended β-amino acid moiety. Further studies are being developed to optimize these compounds for the treatment of diabetes. In October 2006 sitagliptin became the first DPP-4 inhibitor that got FDA approval for the treatment of type 2 diabetes. Crystallographic structure of sitagliptin along with molecular modeling has been used to continue the search for structurally diverse inhibitors. A new potent, selective and orally bioavailable DPP-4 inhibitor was discovered by replacing the central cyclohexylamine in sitagliptin with 3-aminopiperidine. A 2-pyridyl substitution was the initial SAR breakthrough since that group plays a significant role in potency and selectivity for DPP-4. It has been shown with an X-ray crystallography how sitagliptin binds to the DPP-4 complex: 1. The trifluorophenyl group occupies the S1-pocket 2. The trifluoromethyl group interacts with the side chains of residues Arg358 and Ser209. 3. The amino group forms a salt bridge with Tyr662 and the carboxylated groups of the two glutamate residues, Glu205 and Glu206. 4. The triazolopiperazine group collides with the phenyl group of residue Phe357
Marcos Nogueira Eberlin (born 4 March 1959) is a Brazilian chemist and former professor at the Institute of Chemistry of the University of Campinas. He is a member of the Brazilian Academy of Sciences and received the Brazilian National Order of Scientific Merit in 2005 and the Thomson Medal in 2016. Eberlin discovered the Eberlin reaction during his work on gas-phase ion chemistry. He and his research group introduced EASI (Easy Ambient Sonic-spray Ionization), an ionization technique used in mass spectrometry. Eberlin is an advocate of intelligent design in Brazil, on which he also lectures and he has signed the Dissent From Darwinism statement. He is a creationist also, and has said that evolution theory is a fallacy. His daughter, Livia S. Eberlin, is also a chemist who won the MacArthur "Genius" Fellowship in 2018 for her research on the use of mass spectrometry to diagnose cancer. Eberlin and his daughter have worked together on a different project, using mass spectrometry to detect counterfeit money.
=== Ultrastructure and electron microscopy === The 1970s and 1980s provided new insights into lichen structure at the subcellular level. Aino Henssen and Hans Jahns revolutionised morphology‑centred systematics in 1973 by publishing an anatomy‑driven classification that combined light microscopy and electron microscopy data on 68 characters spanning ascoma development (ontogeny), ascus structure and photobiont interfaces. Their tree anticipated several clades later corroborated by DNA—such as the segregation of Gomphillaceae and the heterogeneous nature of the Ostropales—and it cemented detailed developmental anatomy as an indispensable taxonomic tool. Transmission electron microscopy (TEM) let researchers view cell walls, membranes, and attachment sites where the fungal and algal partners meet. Rosmarie Honegger's 1986 TEM survey examined the fungus–alga interface in more than 40 lichens, all harbouring Trebouxia photobionts. She observed that lichen fungi form three main types of contact structures (called haustoria). In one type, the fungal filaments (hyphae) penetrate directly into the algal cell ("intracellular" haustoria). In another, the filaments push between layers of the algal cell wall without breaking the plasma membrane ("intraparietal"). In the third, the fungus simply presses against the algal cell wall ("wall-to-wall"). Each lichen lineage consistently uses only one of these interaction styles, making it a useful trait for classification.
Hydrophilic/cytosolic – are soluble in water and are localized at the cytosol, including cAMP, cGMP, IP3, Ca2+, cADPR and S1P. Their main targets are protein kinases as PKA and PKG, being then involved in phosphorylation mediated responses. Hydrophobic/membrane-associated – are insoluble in water and membrane-associated, being localized at intermembrane spaces, where they can bind to membrane-associated effector proteins. Examples: PIP3, DAG, phosphatidic acid, arachidonic acid and ceramide. They are involved in regulation of kinases and phosphatases, G protein associated factors and transcriptional factors. Gaseous – can be widespread through cell membrane and cytosol, including nitric oxide and carbon monoxide. Both of them can activate cGMP and, besides of being capable of mediating independent activities, they also can operate in a coordinated mode.
DH5-Alpha Cells are E. coli cells engineered by American biologist Douglas Hanahan to maximize transformation efficiency. They are defined by three mutations: recA1, endA1 which help plasmid insertion and lacZΔM15 which enables blue white screening. The cells are competent and often used with calcium chloride transformation to insert the desired plasmid. A study of four transformation methods and six bacteria strains showed that the most efficient one was the DH5 strain with the Hanahan method. The recA1 mutation is a single point mutation that replaces glycine 160 of the recA polypeptide with an aspartic acid residue in order to disable the activity of the recombinases and inactivate homologous recombination. The endA1 mutation inactivates an intracellular endonuclease to prevent it from degrading the inserted plasmid.
Sources: en.wikipedia.org
Promethium is one of the two elements of the first 82 elements that has no stable isotopes. This is a rarely occurring effect of the liquid drop model. Namely, promethium does not have any beta-stable isotopes, as for any mass number, it is energetically favorable for a promethium isotope to undergo positron emission or beta decay, respectively forming a neodymium or samarium isotope which has a higher binding energy per nucleon. The other element for which this happens is technetium (Z = 43).
== External links == Michele Norris & Ivan Watson, "Profile: Opposition Group Claiming to Represent Iraqi Shias Enters Northern Iraq," All Things Considered (March 10, 2003), NPR. Counter Extremism Project profile
South Africa Act 1909 Constitution of the Republic of South Africa 1961 Constitution of the Republic of South Africa 1983 Constitution of the Republic of South Africa 1993 Constitution of the Republic of South Africa 1996 Kahn, E. (1961). The New Constitution. Kruger, D.W. (1969). The Making of a Nation. May, H.J. (1949). The South African Constitution.
Redox ( RED-oks, REE-doks, reduction–oxidation or oxidation–reduction) is a type of chemical reaction in which the oxidation states of the reactants change. Oxidation is the loss of electrons or an increase in the oxidation state. Reduction is the gain of electrons or a decrease in the oxidation state. The oxidation and reduction processes occur simultaneously in the chemical reaction. Redox reactions fall into two classes. In electron transfer, a single electron usually flows from the atom, ion, or molecule being oxidized to the one being reduced; this is often described in terms of redox couples and electrode potentials. In atom transfer, an atom passes from one substrate to another; for example, in the rusting of iron the oxidation state of the iron atoms increases as the metal converts to an oxide and oxygen is reduced as it absorbs the released electrons. Redox reactions occur throughout nature and industry. Cellular respiration and photosynthesis, combustion, and the corrosion of metals all proceed through redox chemistry, as do the reactions that power batteries and other electrochemical cells. Industry uses redox reactions to extract metals from their ores by smelting, to electroplate objects, and to manufacture chemicals such as nitric acid. In soils, sediments, and water, redox gradients drive the biogeochemical cycling of elements.
Sources: en.wikipedia.org
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.
No peptide with this exact sequence has been identified as an endogenous substance. It is a laboratory-designed analog of tuftsin, a naturally occurring immunomodulatory tetrapeptide. The Pro-Gly-Pro extension has no known natural source.
Proline introduces conformational constraints that make a peptide less accessible to common peptidases. This is a standard stabilization strategy in peptide design. The added residues also increase the distance between the active tuftsin portion and typical cleavage sites.
Reports describe effects on GABA-A receptor expression, monoamine turnover, and neurotrophic factor levels. These are proposed mechanisms drawn mainly from animal models. No single molecular target has been established.