This is a working overview of tuftsin, written for readers who want more than a one-paragraph summary but less than a textbook.
This page was last updated on 2026-03-31 and is reviewed periodically as new material appears.
Laboratory work relies on standard behavioral paradigms. Rodents are tested in the elevated plus maze, open field, and passive avoidance tasks, with outcomes compared against diazepam or vehicle controls. Intranasal dosing is used most often because it bypasses first-pass metabolism, though intraperitoneal and intravenous routes also appear in published protocols. Biochemical endpoints include tissue BDNF concentrations, cytokine levels, and monoamine metabolites. Human data are limited to small Russian trials reporting reduced anxiety scores; most were not prospectively registered, and few employed independent outcome assessment.
Measuring peptide exposure inside the brain is technically difficult. Selank is degraded rapidly in plasma, and assays must separate intact peptide from fragments, which favors targeted mass spectrometry over immunoassays alone. Reported half-lives are short, on the order of minutes, so effects observed hours later are attributed to downstream signaling rather than to the parent compound. Blood-brain barrier permeability is debated and rarely quantified directly. Gaps include absent dose-response characterization, inconsistent reporting of purity, and almost no pharmacokinetic data from human participants.
Selank is studied chiefly as an animal-model anxiolytic with proposed secondary effects on memory and immune signaling. Reported mechanisms include modulation of the GABA-A receptor complex, inhibition of enkephalin-degrading enzymes, and shifts in monoamine turnover within limbic structures. Some experiments describe increased expression of brain-derived neurotrophic factor in the hippocampus after repeated dosing. No single molecular target has been confirmed, and the peptide does not bind any receptor with the selectivity typical of a conventional small-molecule drug. Mechanism therefore remains a set of hypotheses rather than an established pathway.
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.
| Property | Value | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Principal proposed target | GABA-A receptor complex | Hypothesis derived mainly from animal pharmacology |
| Common behavioral assay | Elevated plus maze | Rodent test for anxiety-like behavior |
| Reported molecular marker | Hippocampal BDNF expression | Measured by immunoassay or mRNA quantification |
| Typical dosing route | Intranasal | Chosen to reduce first-pass metabolism |
| Reported plasma half-life | Minutes | Based on limited peptide stability data |
Development took place at the Institute of Molecular Genetics of the Russian Academy of Sciences, where a series of short peptides were designed in the 1980s and 1990s. Selank was selected from variants of tuftsin that showed resistance to plasma peptidases. Russian regulatory approval covers it as an anxiolytic agent given intranasally. Outside that market the compound is normally handled as a research chemical rather than a medicine, and no widely recognised international pharmacopoeial monograph exists. The name Selank is a coined trade designation rather than a systematic chemical name.
Enzymatic stability motivates the extra three residues at the carboxyl end. Native tuftsin is cleaved quickly by circulating aminopeptidases and carboxypeptidases, which limits its duration of action and its usefulness as a tool compound. Extending the chain with proline-rich segments is a common design tactic because proline constrains the backbone and slows proteolysis. The same Pro-Gly-Pro motif appears in other Russian-developed peptides of the era. Whether the full seven-residue chain is required for activity, or whether it acts mainly as a prodrug releasing tuftsin, remains unresolved.
Selank is a synthetic heptapeptide with the sequence Thr-Lys-Pro-Arg-Pro-Gly-Pro. Its four N-terminal residues reproduce tuftsin, a tetrapeptide fragment of the immunoglobulin heavy chain, while the C-terminal Pro-Gly-Pro extension is a synthetic addition. The peptide has a molecular mass near 752 daltons and carries a net positive charge at physiological pH because of the arginine and lysine side chains. Published indexes list it under the name Selank and the sequence abbreviation TKPRPGP. Solid-phase peptide synthesis is the standard production route for research quantities.
Regulatory status differs sharply by region. Selank holds a Russian marketing authorization, where it is supplied mainly as nasal drops, while authorities elsewhere have not approved it for medical use. Material sold internationally is therefore usually labeled as a research chemical rather than a medicine. Peer-reviewed publications come predominantly from Russian laboratories, and sample sizes are generally small. Whether the compound produces comparable effects under independent, well-controlled replication remains an open question that the broader literature has not settled.
Selank is a synthetic heptapeptide developed in Russia as a structural analogue of tuftsin, a naturally occurring immunomodulatory tetrapeptide. Its sequence, Thr-Lys-Pro-Arg-Pro-Gly-Pro, keeps the tuftsin core at the N-terminus and appends a Pro-Gly-Pro tail. Researchers at the Institute of Molecular Genetics in Moscow synthesized the compound during the 1990s while searching for peptides with combined anxiolytic and immunomodulatory activity. The added tail was intended to resist enzymatic cleavage and prolong the molecule's presence in circulation.
The compound has a calculated molecular weight near 751.9 daltons and carries a net positive charge at physiological pH because of its arginine residue. It dissolves freely in water and in common aqueous buffers, and typically appears as a white or off-white lyophilized powder. The amide backbone makes the molecule susceptible to peptidases, which limits oral use and favors intranasal or parenteral routes. Nomenclature in the literature varies: the substance is also described by the sequence abbreviation TP-7 and by a Russian trade designation.
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.
Selank is a synthetic heptapeptide with the sequence Thr-Lys-Pro-Arg-Pro-Gly-Pro, frequently abbreviated as TKPRPGP. It was designed as a structural analogue of tuftsin, a naturally occurring tetrapeptide released by enzymatic cleavage of the immunoglobulin heavy chain. The two additional proline residues at the C-terminal end extend the parent chain and change how the molecule behaves in solution. The free peptide has a calculated molecular mass of approximately 751.9 g/mol and is generally supplied as a lyophilised white to off-white powder.
Identity and purity are usually assessed by reversed-phase high-performance liquid chromatography, with mass spectrometry used to confirm molecular mass and sequence information. Amino acid analysis and peptide mapping may supplement these methods. Certified reference standards are scarce, and many commercial lots are sold as research chemicals without a pharmacopoeial monograph. Regulatory treatment differs by country: Selank is a registered prescription medicine in Russia, while in the European Union and the United States it is not an approved drug and may fall under research-chemical or unapproved-product frameworks.
Selank is a hydrophilic peptide and dissolves readily in water and in aqueous buffers. The lyophilised powder is typically a white to off-white solid. Because short peptides are prone to hydrolysis and oxidation, handling benefits from limiting exposure to heat, moisture and strong light. Working solutions are commonly prepared in sterile water or saline, and repeated freeze-thaw cycles are avoided to reduce aggregation and loss of activity. These practices reflect general laboratory convention rather than published stability specifications.
Dry powder is normally held at -20 degrees Celsius or lower, in a sealed container with desiccant and protection from light. Reconstituted solutions are usually kept at 2 to 8 degrees Celsius for short periods and frozen for longer ones. Proline residues at several positions are generally associated with some resistance to peptidase attack, but chemical stability still declines at neutral to alkaline pH and at elevated temperature. Exact shelf-life figures are product-specific and are not standardised across suppliers.
Colombia's varied cuisine is influenced by its diverse fauna and flora as well as the cultural traditions of the ethnic groups. Colombian dishes and ingredients vary widely by region. Some of the most common ingredients are: cereals such as rice and maize; tubers such as potato and cassava; assorted legumes; meats, including beef, chicken, pork and goat; fish; and seafood. Colombia cuisine also features a variety of tropical fruits such as cape gooseberry, feijoa, arazá, dragon fruit, mangosteen, granadilla, papaya, guava, mora (blackberry), lulo, soursop and passionfruit. Colombia is one of the world's largest consumers of fruit juices. Among the most representative appetizers and soups are patacones (fried green plantains), sancocho de gallina (chicken soup with root vegetables) and ajiaco (potato and corn soup). Representative snacks and breads are pandebono, arepas (corn cakes), aborrajados (fried sweet plantains with cheese), torta de choclo, empanadas and almojábanas. Representative main courses are bandeja paisa, lechona tolimense, mamona, tamales and fish dishes (such as arroz de lisa), especially in coastal regions where kibbeh, suero, costeño cheese and carimañolas are also eaten. Representative side dishes are papas chorreadas (potatoes with cheese), remolachas rellenas con huevo duro (beets stuffed with hard-boiled egg) and arroz con coco (coconut rice). Organic food is a current trend in big cities, although in general across the country the fruits and veggies are very natural and fresh.
== Spray tanning == Spray tanning is a method of applying a dihydroxyacetone-based sunless tanning solution to the skin as a fine mist, producing a developed tan that lasts roughly five to ten days and fades as the outer skin layer is shed. Professional applications are offered at spas, salons and gymnasiums, either applied by hand with a hand-held airbrush sprayer ("airbrush tanning") or dispensed automatically in an enclosed spray booth that resembles a shower stall; consumer spray and aerosol products for home use are also widely sold. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has approved DHA for external application but not for use around the eyes, on the lips or on mucous membranes, and it has not approved DHA for inhalation. The agency notes that when DHA is applied as an all-over spray or mist in a commercial booth, it may be difficult to avoid exposure in these unapproved ways. DHA and the slower-developing co-ingredient erythrulose have both been reported to cause contact dermatitis.
lamella 1. Any thin layer, membrane, or plate of tissue, occurring in a wide variety of structures of various scales and with various functions; e.g. a lamella made of a sheet of lipids forms a component of the extracellular matrix between the cells of some tissues. 2. The leading edge of a motile cell, of which the lamellipodia is the most forward portion.
Sources: en.wikipedia.org
In April 2014, it was reported that 21 Japanese people who had received shots of the long-acting injectable paliperidone palmitate had died, out of 10,700 individuals prescribed the drug. On December 4, 2014, a 5-year-old Spanish boy, Borja Piriz Matía, died 15 days after he started taking paliperidone (Invega) 3 mg. In 2019, it was reported that a 33-year-old man died after a single injection of 819 mg of Trevicta (paliperidone palmitate three-monthly injection), with paliperidone poisoning appearing to be the highly likely cause of death.
Other drugs prolong the activity of neurotransmitters after their release by blocking neurotransmitter reuptake or inhibiting enzymes responsible for neurotransmitter degradation. Finally, some drugs interfere with the generation or propagation of action potentials by blocking ion channels involved in neuronal signaling. For example, tetrodotoxin blocks voltage-gated sodium channels, thereby preventing neural conduction in both the central and peripheral nervous systems; as a result, tetrodotoxin is highly toxic and can be lethal. Drugs targeting the neurotransmitter of major systems affect the whole system, which can explain the complexity of action of some drugs. Cocaine, for example, blocks the re-uptake of dopamine back into the presynaptic neuron, leaving the neurotransmitter molecules in the synaptic gap for an extended period of time. Since the dopamine remains in the synapse longer, the neurotransmitter continues to bind to the receptors on the postsynaptic neuron, eliciting a pleasurable emotional response. Physical addiction to cocaine may result from prolonged exposure to excess dopamine in the synapses, which leads to the downregulation of some post-synaptic receptors. After the effects of the drug wear off, an individual can become depressed due to decreased probability of the neurotransmitter binding to a receptor.
The main street in the city centre, Via Roma, runs atop a tunnel built during the fascist era (when Via Roma itself was totally refurbished and took on its present-day aspect). The tunnel was supposed to host the underground line, but it is now used as an underground car park. A project to build an underground system was ready in the 1970s, with government funding for it and for similar projects in Milan and Rome. Whilst the other two cities went ahead with the projects, Turin's local government led by mayor Diego Novelli shelved the proposal as it believed it to be too costly and unnecessary. The city has an international airport known as Caselle International Airport Sandro Pertini (airport code: TRN), in Caselle Torinese, about 13 km (8 mi) from Turin's centre—connected to the city by rail (from Dora Station) and bus (from Porta Nuova and Porta Susa railway stations). From 2010 to 2023 a bicycle sharing system, the ToBike, was operational. The metropolitan area is served by Turin metropolitan railway service. Central districts are served by tram; lines 3, 4, and 9 are light rail.
== Preparation == Home drying of vegetables, fruit and meat can be carried out with electrical dehydrators (household appliances) or by sun-drying or by wind. Preservatives such as potassium metabisulfite, BHA, or BHT may be used, but are not required. However, dried products without these preservatives may require refrigeration or freezing to ensure safe storage for a long time. Industrial food dehydration is often accomplished by freeze-drying. In this case, food is flash frozen and put into a reduced-pressure system which causes the water to sublimate directly from the solid to the gaseous phase. Although freeze-drying is more expensive than traditional dehydration techniques, it also mitigates the change in flavor, texture, and nutritional value. In addition, another widely used industrial method of drying of food is convective hot air drying. Industrial hot air dryers are simple and easy to design, construct and maintain. More so, it is very affordable and has been reported to retain most of the nutritional properties of food if dried using appropriate drying conditions. Hurdle technology is the combination of multiple food preservation methods. Hurdle technology uses low doses of multiple food preservation techniques in order to ensure food is not only safe but is desirable visually and texturally.
Sources: en.wikipedia.org
Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is a long-term autoimmune disorder that primarily affects joints. It typically results in warm, swollen, and painful joints. Pain and stiffness often worsen following rest. Most commonly, the wrist and hands are involved, with the same joints typically involved on both sides of the body. The disease may also affect other parts of the body, including skin, eyes, lungs, heart, nerves, and blood. This may result in a low red blood cell count, inflammation around the lungs, fever, low energy and inflammation around the heart. Often, symptoms come on gradually over weeks to months. The cause of rheumatoid arthritis is believed to involve a combination of genetic and environmental factors. The underlying mechanism involves the body's immune system attacking the joints. This results in inflammation and thickening of the joint capsule. It also affects the underlying bone and cartilage. The diagnosis is based on a person's signs and symptoms. X-rays and laboratory testing may support a diagnosis or exclude other diseases with similar symptoms. Other diseases that may present similarly include systemic lupus erythematosus, psoriatic arthritis, and fibromyalgia. The goals of treatment are to reduce pain, decrease inflammation, and improve a person's overall functioning. This may be helped by balancing rest and exercise, the use of splints and braces, or the use of assistive devices. Pain medications, steroids, and NSAIDs are frequently used to help with symptoms.
Small amounts of melamine have also been reported in foodstuff as a metabolite product of cyromazine, an insecticide used on animals and crops. The Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) of the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) provides a test method for analyzing cyromazine and melamine in animal tissues. In 2007, the FDA began using a high performance liquid chromatography test to determine the melamine, ammeline, ammelide, and cyanuric acid contamination in food. Another procedure is based on surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy (SERS). Member states of the European Union are required under Commission Decision 2008/757/EC to ensure that all composite products containing at least 15% of milk product, originating from China, are systematically tested before import into the Community and that all such products which are shown to contain melamine in excess of 2.5 mg/kg are immediately destroyed. Following the 2008 melamine milk scandal, China restructured its food safety system by implementing the Food Safety Law, introducing stricter dairy industry regulations, and establishing independent third-party inspections to strengthen oversight and restore public trust. The 2009 Food Safety Law also reorganized government oversight by placing food safety regulation under a uniform national framework that employs risk-based standards and adheres to international Codex Alimentarius Commission guidelines.
Retinoic acids tretinoin (all-trans-retinoic acid) and isotretinoin (13-cis-retinoic acid) are prescription medications used to treat moderate to severe cystic acne and acne not responsive to other treatments. Tretinoin is usually applied as a skin cream to the face after cleansing to remove make-up and skin oils, while isotretinoin is taken orally. Tretinoin and isotretinoin act by binding to two nuclear receptor families within keratinocytes: the retinoic acid receptors (RAR) and the retinoid X receptors (RXR). These events contribute to the normalization of follicular keratinization and decreased cohesiveness of keratinocytes, resulting in reduced follicular occlusion and microcomedone formation. The retinoid-receptor complex competes for coactivator proteins of AP-1, a key transcription factor involved in inflammation. Retinoic acid products also reduce sebum secretion, a nutrient source for bacteria, from facial pores. These drugs, when applied topically, are US-designated Pregnancy Category C (animal reproduction studies have shown an adverse effect on the fetus), and should not be used by pregnant women or women who are anticipating becoming pregnant. Many countries established a physician- and patient- education pregnancy prevention policy. Trifarotene is a prescription retinoid for the topical treatment acne vulgaris. It functions as a retinoic acid receptor (RAR)-γ agonist.
During the Napoleonic Wars, the United States, Sweden, and Sicily fought against the Barbary pirates in the Mediterranean. The Barbary wars were a conflict between the United States and the North African States (Tripoli, Algiers, Tunis, and Morocco).
== Clinical significance == It has been shown that low levels of glutathione peroxidase as measured in the serum may be a contributing factor to vitiligo. Lower plasma glutathione peroxide levels were also observed in patients with type 2 diabetes with macroalbuminuria and this was correlated to the stage of diabetic nephropathy. In one study, the activity of glutathione peroxidase along with other antioxidant enzymes such as superoxide dismutase and catalase was not associated with coronary heart disease risk in women. Glutathione peroxidase activity was found to be much lower in patients with relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis. One study has suggested that glutathione peroxidase and superoxide dismutase polymorphisms play a role in the development of celiac disease. The activity of this enzyme has been reported to be decreased in case of copper deficiency in the liver and plasma.
Sources: en.wikipedia.org
Intranasal administration predominates in both animal and human research because it avoids hepatic first-pass metabolism. Injectable and intraperitoneal routes appear in animal work mainly for comparison.
Behavioral endpoints include time spent in open arms of the elevated plus maze and avoidance latencies. Biochemical endpoints include BDNF concentration, cytokine levels, and monoamine metabolite ratios in brain tissue.
Most published studies are small, originate from a limited number of laboratories, and lack independent replication. Dose-response relationships, measured brain exposure, and long-term outcomes are not well characterized.
Most published work uses intranasal application, either as drops or as a nasal spray. Injection routes appear in a smaller set of animal experiments. Oral use is uncommon in the literature because peptide breakdown and poor absorption limit this route.