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Semax
What it is
Semax is a short nerve-signalling peptide made of seven amino acids: Met-Glu-His-Phe-Pro-Gly-Pro. The first four come from ACTH, the hormone the pituitary uses to talk to the adrenal glands. The last three, Pro-Gly-Pro, are a shield that slows breakdown and carries its own protective action. The result keeps what ACTH does in the brain and leaves out the cortisol push. Through the nose it reaches the brain in about four minutes, and one dose acts for 20 to 24 hours as its fragments keep working.
Sources
Read the original sources
- Semax 0.1% and 1% nasal drops, Russian drug register entry (RLS) (Full text · checked 2026-10-13)
- Shadrina et al., 2001: Semax in glial cell cultures (Original abstract; cell culture, not people · checked 2026-10-09)
- Semax, an analog of ACTH(4-10) with cognitive effects, regulates BDNF and trkB expression in the rat hippocampus (Abstract · checked 2026-10-13)
- Novel insights into the protective properties of ACTH(4-7)PGP (Semax) at the transcriptome level following cerebral ischaemia-reperfusion in rats (Abstract · checked 2026-10-13)