Research
Melanotan-1
A synthetic analogue of α-melanocyte-stimulating hormone, with two amino acid substitutions that make it far more stable than the natural hormone.
Available in the catalogue
Supplied as research material. Sizes and pricing are on the product page. Availability is not a statement about what a compound does.
What is being investigated
Directions the published work points at, and how far each has actually got. These are open questions, not established effects: most of what looks promising in cells does not replicate in animals, and most of what works in animals does not work in people. Nothing here is a claim about what this compound does for anyone.
- Photoprotection in erythropoietic protoporphyria
The indication it is authorised in, on randomised evidence of pain-free time in direct sunlight. That authorisation covers a specific implant formulation, not this material.
Human trials
- Eumelanin production without UV exposure
The mechanism underneath: driving the darker, UV-absorbing pigment through MC1R rather than through sun damage. Measured directly in the trial work.
Human trials
- Vitiligo and other photosensitivity disorders
Studied in combination with narrowband UVB phototherapy for repigmentation, and in other light-sensitivity conditions. Smaller and less settled than the authorised indication.
Human trials
Published research
Every reference below was checked against the published record before being listed, with the model each study used.
- Langendonk et al. (2015)New England Journal of Medicine · 373(1):48–59
Reported a median 69.4 pain-free hours in direct sunlight versus 40.8 on placebo, in participants with erythropoietic protoporphyria.
human, randomised controlled Source
Further reading
Longer articles on handling, analysis and what the published work reports.
- Melanotan-1 (afamelanotide): what the research says
Approved in the EU and US as Scenesse for a rare light-sensitivity disorder. What the trial measured, and why the approval is narrower than it sounds.
- How to store research peptides
Lyophilised peptides at -20°C, reconstituted at 2–8°C, ambient in transit. Why the dry cake tolerates shipping, and what actually degrades a vial.
- Peptide shelf life and stability
How long lyophilised and reconstituted peptides keep, and the four things that shorten it: temperature, moisture, light and oxidation. Storage figures included.
- How to reconstitute lyophilised peptides
How to reconstitute a lyophilised peptide with bacteriostatic water without damaging it: why you run the liquid down the vial wall and never shake it.