Semax
Semax is a synthetic fragment of ACTH developed in Russia and registered there as a nasal-spray neuroprotective and nootropic medicine, with no FDA or EMA approval.
Regulatory status: Registered as a medicine in Russia as a nasal spray. Not FDA-approved and not evaluated by the EMA — almost all clinical literature comes from Russian sources rather than Western regulatory review.
Default vial
10 mg
Default mix
2 mL
Reported range
200–600 mcg
Draw (U-100)
6 u
Nootropic ACTH(4-10) analog, usually intranasal in the morning for short 10–14 day courses.
What it is
- A synthetic heptapeptide analogue of ACTH(4-10) with an added Pro-Gly-Pro tail, written in the literature as ACTH(4-7)PGP.
- It does not retain classical melanocortin activity in the way native ACTH does; proposed mechanisms centre on BDNF and neurotrophic modulation.
- Commonly studied by intranasal administration.
- Research clusters around ischaemia and neuroprotection models in rodents plus small Russian clinical cohorts.
How it is described to act
- 1
Administered intranasally in the registered formulation.
- 2
Reported to reach the circulation and possibly the brain directly by the nasal route, though transport is not fully characterised.
- 3
Proposed effects include increased BDNF expression and suppression of pro-inflammatory transcripts after brain ischaemia.
- 4
Observed in rodent ischaemia models as reduced pro-inflammatory mediator transcripts.
What the research has looked at
Ischaemia and neuroinflammation
- Investigators reported (Molekuliarnaia Biologiia, 2021) that Semax suppressed mRNA transcripts encoding pro-inflammatory mediators after reversible cerebral ischaemia in rats.
Network-level animal studies
- Researchers using a functional connectomic approach in animals (Doklady Biological Sciences, 2020) compared network effects of Semax and Selank.
Strength of evidence: Limited human evidence
Russian clinical use and registration exist, but rigorous randomised data outside the Russian-language literature are sparse and independent Western replication is essentially absent.
Some human data exist, but they are small, short, or not designed to answer the questions people ask online.
Reported cautions and unknowns
- No robust independent safety database exists outside Russian sources, and adverse-event reporting standards there are not directly comparable to FDA or EMA pharmacovigilance.
- As an unapproved product elsewhere, sourcing and purity for non-Russian users cannot be verified.
References
Handling this vial
- Lyophilized vials are generally stored at 2–8 °C and kept out of light; once reconstituted with bacteriostatic water they are refrigerated and commonly discarded after 28 days.
- Mix by aiming water down the vial wall and rolling gently — do not shake — and never re-freeze a reconstituted vial.
- Pep-Tidy cannot verify what is in your vial. Ask your supplier for a current Certificate of Analysis (HPLC/MS).
Semax questions people ask
How do you reconstitute Semax?
A common starting point for a 10 mg vial of Semax is 2 mL of bacteriostatic water, which gives 5 mg per mL. Aim the water down the inside wall of the vial, let it dissolve on its own, and roll gently instead of shaking. Pep-Tidy's reconstitution calculator will recalculate the numbers for any other vial size or water volume you use.
How many units of Semax is one dose?
At 5 mg per mL, that works out to about 6 units on a U-100 insulin syringe for a 300 mcg dose. Change the vial size, water volume, or target dose in the calculator and the syringe reading updates with it. This is arithmetic, not a dosing recommendation.
What dosing schedule is reported for Semax?
Published and community sources describe 200–600 mcg, intranasal / subcutaneous, every day, typically run 2 weeks on and 2 weeks off. These figures describe what has been reported, not what anyone should take — talk to a licensed clinician first.
How should Semax be stored?
Lyophilized Semax vials are generally kept at 2–8 °C and out of light. Once reconstituted with bacteriostatic water they are refrigerated and commonly discarded after about 28 days. Never re-freeze a reconstituted vial and never shake it.
Read this before you act on anything above
Everything on this page is a summary of what other people have published — it is not medical advice, not a recommendation, and not a dosing instruction. Reported dose ranges describe what appears in the literature or in community protocols, not what anyone should take. Talk to a licensed clinician before using any peptide.