This compound is supplied for in-vitro and preclinical research only. It is not a medicinal product. It is not approved for human or veterinary use in any jurisdiction. No therapeutic, medicinal, cosmetic, or performance-enhancement claims are made or implied. By proceeding to inquire, you confirm you are an adult researcher acquiring this compound within your own research framework. Full terms on the Research Use Only page.
Semax
10 mg freeze-dried vial, ACTH(4-10) analogue neuropeptide
Compound specifications, chemistry, and storage.
Technical specifications
Specimen format| Compound name | Semax |
| Also known as | Semax, ACTH(4-10) analogue, MEHFPGP |
| CAS number | 80714-61-0 |
| PubChem CID | 113749 → |
| InChI Key | IMFACGCPASFAPR-UHFFFAOYSA-N |
| SMILES | Reference SMILES on COA |
| Empirical formula (Hill notation) | C37H51N9O10S |
| Molecular weight | 813.93 g/mol (monoisotopic mass: 813.34) |
| Salt form | Acetate (default) |
| Counter-ion content | Quantified per batch on COA. Custom salt forms (chloride, ammonium, TFA) available on quote. |
| Sequence (1-letter) | MEHFPGP |
| Sequence (3-letter) | Met-Glu-His-Phe-Pro-Gly-Pro |
| Length | 7 amino acids |
| Weight basis | Gross weight per industry standard. Net peptide content quantified on batch COA. |
| Quantity per vial | 10 mg |
| Format | Freeze-dried white powder or thin film, sealed under inert atmosphere. Why does the vial look empty? |
| Appearance | White freeze-dried cake or powder. May also appear as a thin film on the vial wall. |
| Solubility | Water soluble, reconstituted with bacteriostatic water (1 to 2 ml typical) |
| Solution colour | Clear and colourless when correctly reconstituted |
| Purity (HPLC) | Specification ≥98.5%, tested before listing |
| Identity confirmation | LC-MS, batch-specific spectrum on COA |
| Endotoxin (LAL) | Within Ph. Eur. specification, batch report on COA |
| Storage (freeze-dried) | 2 to 8 degrees Celsius, sealed, protected from light. Avoid thermal cycling. |
| Storage (reconstituted) | 2 to 8 degrees Celsius. Use within 4 to 6 weeks. Avoid repeated freeze-thaw. |
| Shelf life | 24 months from synthesis date when storage conditions are maintained |
| Country of synthesis | EU partner facility, Ph. Eur. methodology references |
| Application | In-vitro and preclinical research only. Not for human or veterinary use. |
Neuropeptide receptor pharmacology
Primary research area. Studied for ACTH(4-10) receptor binding and downstream signalling.
Open research area → 02BDNF expression & neurotrophic signalling
Secondary research area. Studied for cortical and hippocampal BDNF response in preclinical models.
Open research area →A heptapeptide ACTH(4-10) analogue, and what the published research investigates.
Semax is a synthetic heptapeptide developed at the Institute of Molecular Genetics, Russian Academy of Sciences, as a stable analogue of the ACTH(4-10) fragment with the C-terminal proline-glycine-proline tail extending stability against enzymatic degradation. The published research base spans the Russian-language and English-language scientific literature and investigates BDNF expression, neurotrophic signalling, neuropeptide receptor pharmacology, and cognitive pathway modulation in preclinical models. Semax sits in the Cresten catalogue alongside Selank as a peer compound from the Russian school of regulatory peptide research. The sections below summarise what the published research investigates, what Cresten supplies, and what the certificate of analysis confirms.
Where Semax comes from.
Semax is a synthetic heptapeptide developed at the Institute of Molecular Genetics of the Russian Academy of Sciences in the 1980s. Its sequence is built from the ACTH(4-10) fragment, a short stretch of the adrenocorticotropic hormone molecule, with a Pro-Gly-Pro tail added at the C-terminus. That tail is the point of the design. The native ACTH fragment is broken down in the body within minutes; the proline-glycine-proline extension slows enzymatic cleavage, so the molecule survives long enough to be studied. Semax is, in other words, a stability-engineered version of a natural hormone fragment, stripped of the hormonal activity and kept for the part the researchers were interested in.
The peptide is built one amino acid at a time on a solid support, by Fmoc solid-phase peptide synthesis, the same method used across the catalogue. After assembly it is cleaved, purified by reverse-phase HPLC, and freeze-dried. What arrives in the vial is the lyophilized heptapeptide, sequence Met-Glu-His-Phe-Pro-Gly-Pro, molecular weight near 813 g/mol, ready for reconstitution in a research setting.
What the research looks at.
Semax sits in the Russian neuropeptide research tradition, a body of work that is large in Russian-language literature and thinner in English-indexed databases. PubMed returns a smaller set than a compound like BPC-157, and a meaningful share of the primary work is published in Russian journals. A researcher reading the English literature should know that going in: the citation base is real but unevenly indexed, and the largest studies are not always the easiest to retrieve.
The published work concentrates on the central nervous system. Studies in animal models have examined Semax in relation to BDNF and NGF, two neurotrophic factors involved in neuron growth and survival, looking at whether their expression changes after administration. Other lines of research have looked at cerebral ischaemia models, attention and memory tasks in rodents, and dopaminergic and serotonergic signalling. In Russia the compound has a long regulatory history in a clinical context that does not transfer to other jurisdictions, and that history is not a claim we make or rely on here.
"The mechanisms proposed in the literature, neurotrophic, antioxidant, neuromodulatory, are still being mapped, and the indexing gap means the English-language picture is partial."
Where the published research does not go: there are no large randomised controlled trials in the English literature establishing a medical use, and no FDA or EMA approval for any indication. The compound is supplied as a research compound. What it is studied for is in the literature, much of it Russian, and we link what is indexed. We do not narrate an outcome for you.
What the certificate confirms.
Every Cresten batch of Semax ships with a certificate from an analytical lab, against the test panel described on the Methodology page. The certificate that ships with your batch confirms:
The certificate format is shown on the batch verification page.
Selected published research on Semax.
Monograph last reviewed 26 May 2026 · references checked against PubMed
The curated reference list for Semax is being finalised against PubMed and will appear here. In the meantime, the indexed literature is available directly: PubMed results for Semax.
What this monograph is not
This monograph summarises what the published research looks at regarding Semax mechanism. It is not a therapeutic recommendation. It is not dosing guidance. It is not a clinical protocol. It is not medical advice.
Cresten Labs supplies Semax as a research compound for lab-based research only. The decision to investigate any compound in any research framework is the researcher’s decision, within their own ethical, legal, and methodological boundaries.
Cresten makes no claim about human therapeutic use, no claim about clinical effectiveness, no claim about safety in human use, and no claim that this compound has been reviewed by any regulator for any medical use.
Frequently asked questions about Semax
Common research-protocol and supply questions about Semax, with answers grounded in published peer-reviewed research and Cresten Labs supply practice. All information is for in vitro and preclinical research only.
What is Semax?
Semax is an ACTH(4-10) analogue, a 7-amino-acid peptide (CAS 80714-61-0, molecular weight 813.93 g/mol). Cresten Labs supplies Semax as a freeze-dried vial for in vitro and preclinical research only, with each batch verified at Janoshik Analytical.
What does research suggest Semax does?
Published research investigates Semax for modulating BDNF and dopaminergic pathway signaling and supporting neurotrophic factor research. The compound is studied primarily in BDNF expression and cognitive-pathway research. Semax is supplied for research use only and is not approved by any regulator for medical use.
What is the typical Semax dosage in published research?
Published Semax dosage in research protocols ranges from 300 to 1000 mcg per administration, administered subcutaneously or intranasally, with daily dosing in neurotrophic-factor and cognitive-pathway research. Cresten Labs publishes the typical Semax protocol ranges as research-protocol references only; this is not dosing guidance for human use.
How do I reconstitute Semax for research?
Standard Semax reconstitution adds 2 mL bacteriostatic water (NaCl preferred) for the 10 mg vial. NaCl bacteriostatic water preferred for the cationic peptide class.
What is the Semax half-life and how is Semax storage handled?
Published research reports Semax systemic half-life at short systemic half-life. Semax storage: lyophilized vial stable at room temperature for shipping; reconstituted solution stored at 2 to 8 °C and used within 28 days. The Cresten certificate of analysis lists the synthesis date, batch identifier, and the storage conditions verified for this specific batch.
Semax vs Selank: how do they compare in research?
In published research comparing Semax vs Selank, Semax and Selank are both Russian-school regulatory peptides that operate on different pathways; the two are sometimes combined in cognitive research. The two compounds are studied separately and in combination depending on the research question. Cresten Labs supplies both as verified research compounds.
What does research literature report about Semax side effects?
Published Semax research reports the following: preclinical models report tolerability; the cationic structure benefits from NaCl bacteriostatic water for injection. Cresten Labs supplies the compound for research use only; clinical-use side-effect data should be drawn from peer-reviewed clinical trial publications, not from research-vendor pages.
Where to buy Semax in Europe?
Cresten Labs supplies Semax across the EU single market to 16 European countries. Each Semax batch is tested at Janoshik Analytical with the certificate of analysis published on the website before it lists. Semax is sold for in vitro and preclinical research only, not for human or veterinary use.
How is Semax verified at Cresten Labs?
Every Semax batch is tested at Janoshik Analytical in Czech Republic, an third-party peptide-analysis laboratory. Each batch certificate documents HPLC purity, mass-spectrometry identity confirmation, and contamination panels. The certificate publishes with the batch, before it lists.
What is the typical Semax stack in published research?
In published research, the typical Semax stack pairs the compound with Selank. Semax and Selank are both Russian-school regulatory peptides that operate on different pathways; the two are sometimes combined in cognitive research.