This is a working overview of alpha-MSH analogue, written for readers who want more than a one-paragraph summary but less than a textbook.
Reviewed 2025-09-15. Anything still debated is marked as such rather than presented as settled.
Melanocortin receptors comprise five subtypes with distinct tissue distributions and functions. Melanotan-2 is described in the literature as a non-selective agonist that engages several of these subtypes, including MC1R, MC3R, MC4R, and MC5R. MC1R is the subtype most directly linked to melanin production in skin cells. Because the compound is not subtype-selective, its observed effects in experimental settings are generally attributed to activity across multiple receptor pathways rather than to a single target.
Melanotan-2 is a synthetic linear peptide built from seven amino acids arranged in a short chain. Its sequence is commonly written as Ac-Nle-Asp-His-D-Phe-Arg-Trp-Lys-NH2, which includes a modified N-terminus and an amidated C-terminus. The molecule belongs to the melanocortin family and acts as a receptor agonist. Structural features such as the D-phenylalanine residue and the Nle substitution are associated with increased stability against enzymatic degradation relative to the natural parent peptide.
The compound was developed in the late 1980s and 1990s by academic researchers investigating photoprotection. The rationale held that stimulating melanin production might reduce ultraviolet damage to skin and lower skin cancer risk. Early work examined receptor binding, pigment response, and short-term tolerability in small studies. That program did not produce an approved drug, and formal development stalled after early-phase trials. Whether induced pigmentation confers meaningful photoprotection remains an open question.
Outside regulated medicine, melanotan II circulates through online vendors as a research chemical, often marketed for tanning. Products sold this way vary widely in purity, concentration, and labeling accuracy, and independent testing has documented discrepancies. Published reports describe both pigment effects and adverse reactions, including nausea, flushing, and darkening of existing moles. Long-term safety data are sparse, and no large controlled trial has established a risk profile. Questions about cumulative effects on melanocytes remain unresolved in the literature.
| Property | Value | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Molecular formula | C50H69N15O9 | Free base; salt forms differ |
| Molecular weight | Approximately 1024 g/mol | Calculated for the free base |
| Appearance | White to off-white powder | Typically supplied as a lyophilised solid |
| Solubility | Soluble in water and polar solvents | Poorly soluble in non-polar solvents |
| Typical storage | -20 degrees Celsius, dry, protected from light | Refers to the solid form |
Research interest has centred on photoprotection and pigmentation, with a smaller body of work on appetite and sexual function. Published human data remain limited to small, frequently uncontrolled studies, and the compound has never received marketing approval from a national medicines regulator. Most laboratory work treats it as a pharmacological tool for probing melanocortin signalling in cell culture or animal models. Whether pigmentation changes observed in people translate into measurable protection against ultraviolet-induced DNA damage remains an open question.
Melanotan-2 is a synthetic cyclic heptapeptide designed as an analogue of alpha-melanocyte-stimulating hormone, the naturally occurring peptide involved in pigmentation signalling. Its sequence is conventionally written as Ac-Nle-cyclo[Asp-His-D-Phe-Arg-Trp-Lys]-NH2, with a lactam bridge joining the aspartate side chain to the lysine side chain. The empirical formula is C50H69N15O9 and the monoisotopic mass lies near 1023.5 daltons. N-terminal acetylation and the D-configured phenylalanine both increase resistance to enzymatic breakdown compared with the parent hormone.
Melanocytes are the pigment-producing cells of the skin, and they carry melanocortin-1 receptors on their surface. When the receptor is activated, cyclic adenosine monophosphate rises inside the cell and raises the activity of enzymes such as tyrosinase, which increases melanin output. Melanotan-2 binds melanocortin-1 receptors in vitro and in animal models, and this binding is generally described as the basis for the tanning effect. Other receptors account for different effects: melanocortin-4 receptors contribute to appetite and erectile signalling, while melanocortin-3 and melanocortin-5 receptors contribute to energy balance and exocrine function.
Early published reports described melanotan-2 as a tanning agent without sun protection, which means darkening is not the same as protection against ultraviolet radiation. Later studies explored the peptide in erectile dysfunction, hemorrhagic shock, and some skin conditions. No regulator in the United States or Europe has approved it for clinical use. Many products labelled melanotan-2 are sold without approval and their identity and purity are unverified. Its long-term safety in humans remains an open question.
No regulatory authority has approved melanotan-2 for human use, and several countries classify it as a prescription-only or controlled substance, which restricts lawful supply. Material sold online is generally labelled as a research chemical and is not required to meet pharmaceutical standards of identity or purity. Published human data consist mainly of small uncontrolled studies, case reports and adverse-event notifications, so the evidence base is descriptive rather than confirmatory. Whether repeated melanocyte stimulation alters long-term naevus behaviour remains an open question that no completed trial has resolved.
Melanotan-2 is a synthetic cyclic heptapeptide designed as a structural analogue of alpha-melanocyte-stimulating hormone, the endogenous tridecapeptide that regulates pigment production. Two modifications distinguish it from the natural hormone: norleucine replaces methionine at the N-terminus, which limits oxidation, and a D-phenylalanine substitution raises receptor affinity. The ring is closed through an aspartate-lysine lactam bridge, giving the molecule a constrained conformation. The free base has a molecular mass near 1024 daltons, and commercial material is usually supplied as an acetate salt. It appears in the literature as a research peptide rather than an approved therapeutic agent.
Receptor-binding studies classify melanotan II as a non-selective melanocortin agonist. It interacts with MC1R, MC3R, MC4R and MC5R, with reported affinities in the low nanomolar range and no strong subtype preference. Activation of MC1R on dermal melanocytes shifts pigment synthesis toward eumelanin, the dark polymer deposited in melanosomes and transferred to keratinocytes. Because the same peptide engages MC4R in the hypothalamus, it also appears in animal work on food intake and erectile response, which is why it is discussed in both pigment and metabolic research. Which receptor populations dominate after systemic exposure in humans is not fully established.
Published pharmacokinetic information is limited and comes mainly from small studies rather than registrational trials. Plasma half-life is usually described as short, on the order of tens of minutes, followed by rapid tissue distribution and clearance of the intact peptide. Metabolites and low concentrations of parent compound have been reported in urine, a detail relevant to anti-doping and forensic testing. Whether repeated exposure changes receptor sensitivity or clearance over time remains an open question. Values differ noticeably between analytical assays, so published numbers should be read as approximate rather than definitive.
== External links == CD49a+antigen at the U.S. National Library of Medicine Medical Subject Headings (MeSH) Human ITGA1 genome location and ITGA1 gene details page in the UCSC Genome Browser. ITGA1[link removed] Info with links in the Cell Migration Gateway Archived 2014-12-11 at the Wayback Machine PDBe-KB provides an overview of all the structure information available in the PDB for Human Integrin alpha-1
"Patent Pending". FBI: Most Wanted. Season 4. Episode 6. 15 November 2022. CBS. "Via Negativa". The X-Files. Season 8. Episode 7. 17 December 2000. Fox Broadcasting Company. "Getting Off". CSI: Crime Scene Investigation. Season 4. Episode 16. 26 February 2004. CBS. "Users". Law & Order: Special Victims Unit. Season 11. Episode 7. 4 November 2009. NBC. "Echoes". Nikita. Season 1. Episode 16. 24 February 2011. The CW Television Network. "One Last Time". Homeland (TV series). Season 3. Episode 9. 24 November 2013. Showtime. "Bon Voyage". Graceland (TV series). Season 3. Episode 7. 6 August 2015. USA Network.
At the beginning of March 2016, Hangman's Chair performed at Le Mondial du Tatouage, a major annual international tattoo convention held at the Grande halle de la Villette in Paris. During a tour in Japan with Arkangel, Chanut met the members of Greenmachine. Hangman's Chair subsequently recorded a split album with Greenmachine, released in France through Music Fear Satan and in Japan through Daymare Recordings in February and March 2017, respectively. Jacob Bannon expressed appreciation for the split. A music video for "Can't Talk" was released; it was made by Hanvic using excerpts from one of Brigitte [Lahaie]'s old pornographic films.
Matthew turning up after 20 years and wanting a relationship with her is "too much for Ari to handle", especially with Ari knowing how he took advantage of Mia. Chloe forges a bond with Matthew, which angers Mia and Ari, who later punches Matthew during an argument. Matthew realises he can use Ari's criminal record to his advantage and warns Mia to back off, or he will report Ari's assault to the police. Matthew tries to take Chloe away from Mia by offering her the tuition to a prestigious college in the city. Ari believes that telling Chloe the truth about her conception will keep her in the Bay. Kipa-Williams stated: "Ari respects Mia's choice not to tell Chloe about what happened with Matthew, but he also wants to keep her from making decisions that may affect her wellbeing." After Chloe accepts Matthews's offer, Mia tells her the truth and Chloe finally understands Mia's behaviour towards Matthew. Ari later receives a phone call from Chloe asking for his help as Matthew has turned up at the house. Kipa-Williams pointed out that Ari believes Matthew is "unpredictable and dangerous" and would do anything to protect Chloe and Mia. The story sees Chloe accidentally kill Matthew when she hits him over the head with a brick to protect Mia.
Sources: en.wikipedia.org
==== Termination of Peter Rost (2005) ==== Peter Rost was vice president in charge of the endocrinology division at Pharmacia before its acquisition by Pfizer. During that time he raised concerns internally about kickbacks and off-label marketing of Genotropin, Pharmacia's human growth hormone drug. Pfizer reported the Pharmacia marketing practices to the FDA and Department of Justice; Rost was unaware of this and filed an FCA lawsuit against Pfizer. Pfizer kept him employed, but isolated him until the FCA suit was unsealed in 2005. The Justice Department declined to intervene, and Pfizer fired him, and he filed a wrongful termination suit against Pfizer. Pfizer won a summary dismissal of the case, with the court ruling that the evidence showed Pfizer had decided to fire Rost prior to learning of his whistleblower activities.
=== Strategies for toxicity prevention === Understanding the mechanisms behind the toxicity of gliotoxin can open new possibilities for the use of gliotoxin therapeutically or as a diagnostic test for some conditions. One potential strategy that has been explored to reduce the toxicity of the fungi that produce gliotoxin is to target the gli gene cluster that controls the expression of gliotoxin protein. The disulfide bridge of gliotoxin is crucial to its toxicity, so it is theorized that the tailoring of enzymes to prevent the disulfide bridge closure by interfering with GliT or by catalyzing another reaction to block the sulfur residues may be beneficial in reducing the toxicity of those fungi. Another potential strategy is the targeting of the transcriptional activator GliZ, as deletion of the GliZ resulted in abrogated gliotoxin biosynthesis. This leads to the possible targeting of GliZ itself rather than any gene-based methodology to prevent it from binding to the gli gene cluster and activate transcription of the genes required for gliotoxin biosynthesis. One possible strategy for disrupting the regulation of gliotoxin transport is depleting the amount of GipA in the cell. GipA is a transcriptional regulator for the expression of the GliA transporter protein, which is required for gliotoxin secretion. These biosynthetic strategies for reducing the toxicity of pathogenic fungal strains that produce gliotoxin are still in their early stages of exploration but could provide novel methodologies for the adoption of therapeutic uses for gliotoxin.
=== Emerald Twilight and beyond === In Emerald Twilight, Hal Jordan is driven to insanity and becomes the villain Parallax following the destruction of his hometown Coast City. He attacks Boodikka, cuts off her right hand, and takes her power ring, leaving her for dead. Boodikka is later revealed to have survived, but has been placed in suspended animation by the Manhunters along with many other former Green Lanterns, with the Manhunters intending to harness their energy to create more advanced Manhunters. After being freed, Boodikka is shocked that she no longer has her hand, and appears to remember nothing past her encounter with Parallax. During a later confrontation with the Manhunters, Kreon is killed and his ring chooses Boodikka. She resumes her duties in the Green Lantern Corps, replacing her lost hand with a Lantern construct.
Males perform a sequence of five behavioral patterns to court females. First, males orient themselves while playing a courtship song by horizontally extending and vibrating their wings. Soon after, the male positions himself at the rear of the female's abdomen in a low posture to tap and lick the female genitalia. Finally, the male curls his abdomen and attempts copulation. Females can reject males by moving away, kicking, and extruding their ovipositor. Copulation lasts around 15–20 minutes, during which males transfer a few hundred, very long (1.76 mm) sperm cells in seminal fluid to the female. Females store the sperm in a tubular receptacle and in two mushroom-shaped spermathecae; sperm from multiple matings compete for fertilization. A last male precedence is believed to exist; the last male to mate with a female sires about 80% of her offspring. This precedence was found to occur through both displacement and incapacitation. The displacement is attributed to sperm handling by the female fly as multiple matings are conducted and is most significant during the first 1–2 days after copulation. Displacement from the seminal receptacle is more significant than displacement from the spermathecae. Incapacitation of first male sperm by second male sperm becomes significant 2–7 days after copulation. The seminal fluid of the second male is believed to be responsible for this incapacitation mechanism (without removal of first male sperm) which takes effect before fertilization occurs.
=== Search and discussion === One of the central discussion forums was Reddit's /r/DarkNetMarkets/, which has been the subject of legal investigation, as well as the Tor-based discussion forum, The Hub. On March 21, 2018, Reddit administrators shut down the popular subreddit /r/DarkNetMarkets citing new changes to their content policy that forbids the sale of "Drugs, including alcohol and tobacco, or any controlled substances". This led to the rise of Dread, the dedicated darknet discussion forum and the news site Darknetlive (since closed). Some marketplaces maintain their own dedicated discussion forums and subreddits. The majority of the marketplaces are in English, but some have opened in Chinese, Russian, and Ukrainian. The dedicated market search engine Grams (closed December 2017) allowed the searching of multiple markets directly without login or registration. Dark web news and review sites such as the former DeepDotWeb, and All Things Vice provide exclusive interviews and commentary into the dynamic markets. Uptime and comparison services provide sources of information about active markets as well as suspected scams and law enforcement activity. Due to the decentralized nature of these markets, phishing and scam sites are often maliciously or accidentally referenced. After discovering the location of a market, a user must register on the site, sometimes with a referral link, after which they can browse listings. A further PIN may be required to perform transactions, better protecting users against login credential compromise.
Sources: en.wikipedia.org
No. Melanotan-2 is manufactured synthetically. The naturally occurring peptide in the same family is alpha-melanocyte-stimulating hormone, which the body produces as part of normal endocrine and neural signalling.
Both are synthetic analogues derived from the same parent hormone. Reference descriptions usually characterise afamelanotide as more selective for the MC1R subtype, whereas melanotan-2 is reported to interact with a wider range of melanocortin receptors.
Early studies explored melanocortin signalling and pigmentation, which later led to informal use of the label tanning peptide. That label is not a regulatory category and does not imply approved status for any purpose.
It is a synthetic cyclic peptide designed as an analog of alpha-melanocyte-stimulating hormone. It acts on melanocortin receptors and is best known from research into pigmentation. It is not an approved pharmaceutical product.