Semax
A short synthetic peptide related to a fragment of adrenocorticotropic hormone, studied in neurochemical research.
- Also known as
- Met-Glu-His-Phe-Pro-Gly-Pro
- Molecular formula
- C37H51N9O10S
- CAS number
- 80714-61-0
- Form supplied
- Lyophilised powder, sealed vial
What has been published on Semax
Semax is a synthetic analogue related to the ACTH(4-10) fragment, developed in Russia in the 1980s. It is registered as a medicine in Russia, which is not the case in the UK, the EU or the US — a point worth being explicit about, because it is sometimes cited as though it carried wider regulatory approval.
Lines of investigation in the literature
- Neurotrophin expression. Rodent work examining BDNF and NGF expression in brain tissue.
- Ischaemia models. A substantial Russian literature on experimental cerebral ischaemia.
- Attention and learning paradigms. Behavioural work in rodents.
- Peptide stability. Work on the proline modification that extends its half-life relative to the native fragment.
What the literature does not establish
A large proportion of the primary literature is Russian-language, published in journals with limited international indexing, and has not been widely replicated outside that research community. English-language systematic review is sparse. That is a genuine limitation rather than a translation problem.
Summaries of published research, provided as context for laboratory work. Findings described are from in-vitro and animal models unless stated otherwise, and nothing here is evidence of any effect in humans or a basis for use in any living subject.