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Compound guide
PT-141: what the research covers
A melanocortin agonist refined from Melanotan II for central MC4R activity. Why the mechanism is neurological rather than vascular, and what that changed about the research programme.
What PT-141 is
PT-141, also known as bremelanotide, is a cyclic heptapeptide and a metabolite of Melanotan II. It arose from the observation that Melanotan II produced central effects unrelated to pigmentation, and it was developed to isolate that activity: PT-141 retains melanocortin agonism with a profile weighted towards MC4R and away from the MC1R pigmentation pathway.
The mechanistic point that defines the compound is that it acts centrally. Its research interest is in hypothalamic signalling rather than in any peripheral vascular effect, which places it in an entirely different pharmacological category from the phosphodiesterase inhibitors it is sometimes grouped with in non-technical sources. Those act on smooth muscle; this acts on neurons.
What the literature examines
MC4R is expressed densely in the hypothalamus and is implicated in energy homeostasis and in the central component of sexual behaviour. Work on PT-141 is concentrated on the latter, and the compound has the distinction — unusual in this catalogue — of having been through controlled clinical trials as bremelanotide, so the evidence base is not confined to animal models.
Secondary strands cover appetite signalling, which follows from the same receptor, and haemodynamic observations that are characteristic of melanocortin agonism rather than incidental to it. Because MC4R activity and MC1R activity are not fully separable even in a refined analogue, pigmentation-related observations still appear in the literature and are worth accounting for in a study design. Published work is indexed on PubMed.
How Amino Club supplies it
PT-141 is supplied lyophilised in sealed vials as PT-141 and as a metered 15ml intranasal preparation, PT-141 nasal spray. The intranasal route is the one much of the original work used, so the presentation is a design consideration rather than a convenience.
Each batch is specified at 99% purity or better by HPLC with identity confirmed by mass spectrometry, released against the Certificate of Analysis carrying the batch number on the label, by the process on the lab testing page. As with Melanotan II, confirming that the lactam bridge is present and correctly formed is the part of identity testing that matters most for a cyclic peptide.
Reconstitution and storage notes are on the product page; solvents under reconstitution supplies.
Related reading
PT-141 belongs to the sexual health group alongside Kisspeptin, Gonadorelin, HCG, HMG and Oxytocin. Its parent compound Melanotan II sits in skin and cosmetic, and the Melanotan I versus II comparison covers the selectivity question the whole family turns on.
Every guide is indexed in the research library. Certificates and shipping are on the FAQ.
Research use only
PT-141 supplied by Amino Club is a laboratory reference material. It is not a medicine, not a supplement, and not for human or veterinary use, and no dosing guidance or administration protocol is provided. The full terms are in the research use policy.