Semax vs Selank: cognitive research peptides

Semax and Selank are short synthetic peptides originally developed by the Russian Academy of Medical Sciences. Both are widely used in cognitive- and behavioral-neuroscience research models, but they target different pathways.

Semax

• A heptapeptide derived from a fragment of ACTH (4–10).
• Studied for neurotrophic effects — upregulation of BDNF and NGF expression in preclinical models.
• Investigated for cognitive performance, neuroprotection, and stress resilience in rodent studies.

Selank

• A heptapeptide based on a fragment of the immunomodulatory peptide tuftsin.
• Studied for anxiolytic-like behavior in rodent models, with proposed mechanisms involving GABAergic and immunomodulatory pathways.

Both are RUO. See the Cognitive pathway for the full set of nootropic and neurotrophic research peptides in our catalog.