This is a working overview of Semax, written for readers who want more than a one-paragraph summary but less than a textbook.
This page was last updated on 2026-01-23 and is reviewed periodically as new material appears.
Semax 是人工设计的七肽，序列为 Met-Glu-His-Phe-Pro-Gly-Pro，骨架取自促肾上腺皮质激素片段 ACTH(4-10)。它于二十世纪八十年代在苏联的分子遗传学研究机构内合成。设计目标是保留该片段与注意力和记忆相关的活性，同时剔除促皮质激素释放等内分泌作用。此后俄罗斯将其登记为药品并进入临床使用。
当时的短肽研究普遍关注能否穿越血脑屏障、在低剂量下产生中枢效应，Semax 属于这一路线。鼻内给药是其主要使用方式，俄语文献报道的适应症涵盖缺血性卒中、短暂性脑缺血发作、认知功能减退以及视神经病变。这些研究大多发表在当地期刊上，样本规模与终点设置同西方试验惯例存在差异，国际同行对其临床证据的强度看法不一。
各国监管态度分化明显。俄罗斯按处方药管理，部分东欧国家留有使用记录；欧盟与美国未批准其作为药物上市，市面流通品通常标注为研究用化学品。身份差异意味着标示含量、纯度与无菌性缺少统一核查。体育领域还牵涉反兴奋剂名录，跨境携带则受目的地药品法规约束。
Semax is a synthetic heptapeptide developed in the Soviet Union during the 1980s by researchers at the Institute of Molecular Genetics in Moscow. It was designed as a truncated analog of adrenocorticotropic hormone, retaining only the fragment spanning residues four through ten. Investigators sought a peptide that would preserve the cognitive effects associated with ACTH while eliminating the hormonal stimulation of the adrenal cortex. The compound entered clinical use in Russia during the following decade.
Russian regulatory authorities approved the peptide for nasal administration, and it remains listed in the national pharmacopoeia under several trade names. Documented indications include acute ischemic stroke, transient ischemic attacks, traumatic brain injury, and certain ophthalmological and neurological conditions. Physicians also prescribe it for cognitive complaints in older patients, although the evidence base for that use is thinner. Outside Russia and a few neighboring states, the substance is not an approved medicine and is sold instead as a research chemical.
Later generations of the molecule include an N-acetylated form and an amidated form, both marketed online alongside the parent peptide. These variants differ in terminal chemistry and stability, and they are frequently discussed in the same breath even though they have not been compared in controlled trials. Supply outside formal healthcare systems comes largely from laboratories that synthesize peptides to order. Purity and identity of these materials vary widely, and no single body oversees the international trade.
| Property | Value | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| 结构类别 | 线性合成七肽 | 无环化结构，不含二硫键 |
| 氨基酸序列 | Met-Glu-His-Phe-Pro-Gly-Pro | N 端为甲硫氨酸 |
| 分子量 | 约 814 Da | 游离碱形式的计算值 |
| 外观 | 白色至类白色粉末 | 具吸湿性 |
| 溶解性 | 易溶于水 | 亦可溶于甲醇等极性溶剂 |
Semax is a synthetic heptapeptide with the sequence Met-Glu-His-Phe-Pro-Gly-Pro. It is described in the literature as an analogue of the ACTH(4–10) fragment, a short N-terminal portion of adrenocorticotropic hormone that retains some neurotropic activity without the full hormonal effects of the parent peptide. The molecule carries a methionine residue at the N-terminus and two proline residues near the C-terminus, features that shape both its interactions with receptor systems and its chemical stability. The free peptide corresponds to the formula C37H51N9O10S and a molecular mass near 813.9 Da.
The compound was developed in the 1980s at the Institute of Molecular Genetics in Moscow, where it emerged from research on short ACTH fragments and their effects on the central nervous system. Russian pharmaceutical listings describe it as a nootropic and neuroprotective agent, most often formulated as nasal drops. It is not a marketed medicine in the United States or the European Union, and no pharmacopoeial monograph covers it. Consequently, most published clinical experience with the substance originates from a small number of research centres, mainly in Russia and neighbouring countries.
Semax 是一种人工合成的七肽，氨基酸序列为 Met-Glu-His-Phe-Pro-Gly-Pro，单字母缩写记作 MEHFPGP。它被归类为促肾上腺皮质激素片段 ACTH(4-10) 的结构类似物，但并不天然存在于生物体内。母体片段 ACTH(4-10) 的序列为 Met-Glu-His-Phe-Arg-Trp-Gly，Semax 替换了中间两个残基，并在羧基端延长了 Pro-Gly-Pro 三肽。这种延长被普遍认为能提升分子对肽酶的耐受性。
该化合物于二十世纪八十年代在俄罗斯被开发，相关工作由俄罗斯科学院分子遗传学研究所的研究团队主导。开发目标并非复制 ACTH 的完整激素活性，而是寻找保留其神经作用方向、同时去除促肾上腺皮质激素释放效应的短肽片段。研究记录显示，这一方向促成了多个相关短肽的合成与筛选，而 Semax 是其中被研究最广泛的一个。当地文献常以 Семакс 这一名称指代它。
DAMPs can trigger re-epithelialization upon kidney injury, contributing to epithelial–mesenchymal transition, and potentially, to myofibroblast differentiation and proliferation. These discoveries suggest that DAMPs drive not only immune injury, but also kidney regeneration and renal scarring. For example, TLR2-agonistic DAMPs activate renal progenitor cells to regenerate epithelial defects in injured tubules. TLR4-agonistic DAMPs also induce renal dendritic cells to release IL-22, which also accelerates tubule re-epithelialization in acute kidney injury. Finally, DAMPs also promote renal fibrosis by inducing NLRP3, which also promotes TGF-β receptor signaling.
=== Psychiatric symptoms === Cocaine produces a spectrum of psychiatric symptoms including agitation, paranoia, anxiety, irritability, psychosis, hallucinations, delusions, violence, as well as suicidal and homicidal thinking. A substantial proportion of cocaine addicts exhibit hypomanic personality traits that are ego-syntonic with their pattern of cocaine abuse. Cocaine intoxication mirrors core traits of narcissism—both involve a dopamine-driven, compulsive drive for reward. Just as cocaine produces a brief high that temporarily enhances the sense of worth, narcissists rely on external admiration to feed an addiction to their self-esteem, resulting in a self-reinforcing feedback cycle. The misuse of cocaine has a high correlation with suicide. In those who use cocaine, the risk is greatest during the withdrawal phase. Cocaine use has been linked to homicide, with up to 31% of homicide victims testing positive for the drug. In 1989 Fulton County, 40% of homicide victims had cocaine metabolites, especially Black and firearm victims. A 2020 study found that men with cocaine use disorder have greater difficulty identifying emotional expression in female faces, affecting relationships and suggesting a target for intervention. A 2021 study found that cocaine use disorder impairs emotion recognition, especially for happiness and fear, with improvement after long-term abstinence. Depression is modestly linked to current drug use in cocaine users but does not clearly predict treatment participation or future use.
Human interferon drugs (mainly versions of IFNα) are also used to treat other mammals because they can activate the interferon receptors of these other animals. There are also recombinant versions of animal interferons that have been used clinically. Interferon also appears to work across species among some birds. Chicken IFNα is recognized by chicken, duck, and turkey cells. Chicken cells recognize pigeon and turkey IFNγ.
Sources: en.wikipedia.org
=== Role in neonatal immunity across species === The function of FcRn in neonatal immunity differs across species. In humans, FcRn in the placenta transfers maternal IgG to the fetus during gestation. In rodents, maternal IgG is delivered postnatally through FcRn-mediated uptake in the neonatal gut. Species like piglets and foals, which lack prenatal IgG transfer due to their placental structure, depend entirely on intestinal FcRn to absorb IgG from colostrum shortly after birth. These species-specific mechanisms reflect evolutionary adaptations in FcRn expression and function across mammals.
"Neats" hope that intelligent behaviour is described using simple, elegant principles (such as logic or optimisation). "Scruffies" expect that it necessarily requires solving a large number of unrelated problems. Neats defend their programs with theoretical rigour, scruffies rely mainly on incremental testing to see if they work. This issue was actively discussed in the 1970s and 1980s. The rise of deep learning may represent a shift toward the scruffies.
=== Blackest Night === During the Blackest Night event, Oa is attacked by the Black Lantern Corps. During the attack, Salaak decrees that all rings from fallen Green Lanterns should be sent to Mogo, so as not to endanger the lives of potential rookies. Soranik Natu then sends all injured patients from the fight to Mogo, but is sidetracked by Kyle Rayner being attacked by a Black Lantern Jade. She sends her partner Iolande to Mogo with the patients alone instead. Mogo shows up at Oa to help in the battle against the Black Lanterns, pulling them into his core. There, they are continuously burned with magma, preventing them from regenerating. Following the successful imprisonment and destruction of the Black Lanterns, Mogo and the rest of the Green Lantern Corps along with Munk and Miri face the wrath of a red ring–possessed Guy Gardner. Mogo manages to purge the red light from Guy, but warns him that some influence of the red still remains and that only a Blue Lantern's power ring can completely remove the influence of the red ring. Mogo soon resumes his duties of supervising new rookies as they are recruited.
Sources: en.wikipedia.org
Many within the scientific community consider acupuncture to be quackery and pseudoscience, having no effect other than as "theatrical placebo". David Gorski has argued that of all forms of quackery, acupuncture has perhaps gained most acceptance among physicians and institutions. Academics Massimo Pigliucci and Maarten Boudry describe acupuncture as a "borderlands science" lying between science and pseudoscience. A 2015 paper states that acupuncture is "often considered as 'pseudoscience' or 'quackery' with no credible or respectable place in medicine".
At Adelaide, because of the absence of Professor Johnston, he was appointed Acting Chair of Zoology, as acting head of the department he organised the new department and its teaching. Here he was influenced by Wood Jones, Professor of Anatomy, and the physiologist Professor Brailsford Robertson, one of the pupils of Jacques Loeb. Oscar Tiegs spent three years at Adelaide, during which time he was granted a Bachelor of Science degree in 1922 and obtained his Doctorate of Science degree in 1922 both from the University of Adelaide, at the age of 25, his thesis being on the histology of metamorphosis of a pteromalid wasp (Nasonia), specifically Nasonia brevicornis (now designated Nasonia vitripennis). Oscar Tiegs' doctoral thesis work was to be the basis for much of his later work, in embryological studies, and the study of fine structures in muscle. He found clear evidence that the apparent striation of muscle fibres did not arise from separate disks, but from a helicoidal organisation within the fibre. He also found a similar condition in vertebrate muscles. Later he discovered that former histologists had recorded the same thing, but their observations had received little attention. He contended that helicoidal striation is a general feature of muscles and that muscular conduction takes place along this helicoidal path, even though the evidence for this generality was against him, yet his cinematographic records supported his interpretation for arachnids and other arthropods.
A later investigation by the aircraft manufacturer stated it was an accident; Noriega's authority over the government investigation led to speculation about his involvement. Florencio Flores Aguilar had inherited Torrijos's position, but true power lay with the trio of Noriega, Díaz Herrera, and Rubén Darío Paredes, who ranked just below him. Flores was removed in a quiet coup on March 3, 1982. By general agreement, Paredes was made leader until 1983, after which the military would work together to ensure his election as the president in the election scheduled for 1984. During this period Noriega became a full colonel and the National Guard's chief of staff, effectively the second-highest rank in the country. He reformed the National Guard as the Panama Defense Forces (PDF), and with the financial assistance of the U.S., expanded and modernized it. The quick promotions they received earned him the officer corps' loyalty. Among the steps he took to consolidate his control was to bring the various factions of the army together into the PDF. On August 12, 1983, in keeping with Noriega's earlier deal with Paredes, Paredes handed over his position to Noriega, newly appointed a general, with the understanding that Noriega would allow him to stand for president. However, Paredes never received the political support he expected, and after assuming his new position Noriega reneged on the deal, telling Paredes he could not contest the election. Noriega, now head of the PDF, thus became the de facto ruler of Panama.
Sources: en.wikipedia.org
不存在。它是依据 ACTH 的一段序列人工设计的分子，天然蛋白质中找不到与之完全相同的七肽。名称属于研究代号，而非天然物质名。
Semax 对应 ACTH 第 4 至第 10 位的片段，并在两端做了替换与延长，使其不再具备促肾上腺皮质激素的典型内分泌活性。这一改动同时改变了它在体内的稳定性与分布特征。
俄罗斯将其列为处方药物，需要医生开具处方。多数其他国家把它当作研究化合物，不能作为药品销售或宣称疗效。具体合法性取决于当地法规。
It originated at the Institute of Molecular Genetics in Moscow during the 1980s. The work was carried out by a Russian research group that specialized in peptide neuropharmacology.