What researchers study it for

• Rodent behavior tests related to anxiety
• One small Russian study in generalized anxiety disorder
• Genes tied to GABA signaling
• Enzymes that break down enkephalins

How it is thought to work

There is no settled account of how Selank acts. Ideas put forward include slowing the enzymes that degrade enkephalins, nudging how GABA receptors bind their ligand in radioligand experiments, and altering which GABA-linked genes are active. The teams that created the peptide in Russia produced most of this evidence.

Where the research stands

Said to be approved in Russia; no FDA approval. Sources describe it as approved in Russia for anxiety. The human studies are small and written in Russian, one being a comparison against medazepam in 62 patients, and we found no sign of FDA approval.

Sources

1. Volkova A, Shadrina M, Kolomin T, Andreeva L, Limborska S, Myasoedov N, Slominsky P (2016). Selank Administration Affects the Expression of Some Genes Involved in GABAergic Neurotransmission.. Front Pharmacol.
2. Zozulia AA, Neznamov GG, Siuniakov TS, Kost NV, et al. (2008). [Efficacy and possible mechanisms of action of a new peptide anxiolytic selank in the therapy of generalized anxiety disorders and neurasthenia].. Zh Nevrol Psikhiatr Im S S Korsakova.
3. Zozulya AA, Kost NV, Yu Sokolov O, Gabaeva MV, et al. (2001). The inhibitory effect of Selank on enkephalin-degrading enzymes as a possible mechanism of its anxiolytic activity.. Bull Exp Biol Med.
4. Vyunova TV, Andreeva L, Shevchenko K, Myasoedov N (2018). Peptide-based Anxiolytics: The Molecular Aspects of Heptapeptide Selank Biological Activity.. Protein Pept Lett.
5. Rahman OF, Lee SJ, Seeds WA (2026). Therapeutic Peptides in Orthopaedics: Applications, Challenges, and Future Directions.. J Am Acad Orthop Surg Glob Res Rev.