Cognitive & Neurological

DDAVP · ADH Synthetic Analog

A synthetic antidiuretic-hormone (vasopressin) V2-receptor analog, FDA-approved for central diabetes insipidus, bedwetting, nocturia due to nocturnal polyuria, and perioperative bleeding control in mild hemophilia A and type 1 von Willebrand disease. It also triggers release of factor VIII and von Willebrand factor. Off-label memory-enhancement use is experimental and rests on limited, dated human data.

ADH Analog / MemoryFDA Approved. Central diabetes insipidus, primary nocturnal enuresis, perioperative hemostasis in mild hemophilia A and type 1/2M von Willebrand disease, and nocturia due to nocturnal polyuria (Noctiva, 2017). NOT approved for memory or cognitive enhancement.

Nine-AA Hypothalamic Neuropeptide

The first peptide ever synthesized, a Nobel Prize, 1955. Now an intranasal favorite.

Social Bonding / NeuromodulatorIV oxytocin (Pitocin) FDA-approved for labor induction/stimulation and postpartum bleeding; intranasal oxytocin NOT approved, compounded off-label

Hydrolyzed Porcine Brain Peptide Complex

An injectable mixture of low-molecular-weight neuropeptides and free amino acids from enzymatically hydrolyzed porcine brain, made by EVER Pharma and approved in over 50 countries for stroke, TBI, and dementia. It is not FDA-approved in the USA, and Cochrane reviews found no benefit for acute ischaemic stroke and only weak, manufacturer-sponsored signals in dementia.

Neurotrophic ComplexNot FDA-approved for any indication; investigational only in the USA (orphan-drug designation for frontotemporal dementia). Approved in Austria, several EU states, Russia, and across Asia.

NAPVSIPQ Neuroprotective Peptide (AL-108)

An eight-amino-acid peptide (NAPVSIPQ) derived from Activity-Dependent Neuroprotective Protein (ADNP), discovered in the Gozes lab and developed as davunetide (AL-108). It reached human trials but its pivotal Phase 2/3 in progressive supranuclear palsy failed on all endpoints, and earlier signals in MCI and schizophrenia were small and mixed; it is now studied as intranasal CP201 for the rare pediatric ADNP syndrome.

NeuroprotectiveInvestigational and not approved for any indication. Its pivotal Phase 2/3 in progressive supranuclear palsy (n=313, 2010 to 2012) was completed and failed on all endpoints, which halted the original program. Intranasal CP201 holds FDA orphan drug and rare pediatric disease designations and entered a pediatric Phase 3 for ADNP syndrome in October 2024, with no efficacy readout yet.

Tuftsin Analog Heptapeptide

Built on a spleen peptide. Anxiety off, without sedation. No Western trial has ever been run.

Anxiolytic / NootropicNot approved (USA). Registered in Russia in 2009 for generalized anxiety disorder. Selank acetate (TP-7) was removed from FDA Category 2 of the interim 503A compounding list on September 20, 2024 after the nominator withdrew, and it is not on the approved 503A bulks list.

Russian nootropic and anti-anxiety peptide pair

russian nootropic pair

Synthetic regulatory peptides (ACTH-fragment analog + tuftsin analog), used intranasallyThe US Food and Drug Administration has not approved Semax or Selank for any use. They are not recognized US medicines. They are registered medicines in Russia.

Vasoactive Intestinal Peptide

The inflammation resolver. The signature of Dr. Shoemaker's mold-illness protocol.

Neuropeptide / Immune RegulatorNo FDA-approved VIP or aviptadil product. FDA declined Emergency Use Authorization for Zyesami (aviptadil) in critical COVID-19 on 4 Nov 2021; holds orphan-drug designation for sarcoidosis (investigational only).

Ala-Glu-Asp-Pro Khavinson Bioregulator

A Khavinson neuropeptide bioregulator targeting nervous-system tissue and peripheral nerve regeneration. Russian clinical data only.

Neuro BioregulatorNot approved (USA); sold as research chemical, not for human consumption

Cerebral Cortex Polypeptide Complex

A complex of polypeptides from bovine cerebral cortex, approved in Russia for stroke, TBI, and cognitive decline. Genuine positive Russian/Eastern European data.

Neuropeptide ComplexNot approved (US); registered prescription drug in Russia and several CIS states

Somatostatin Analog Neuropeptide

A neuropeptide closely related to somatostatin, with anti-inflammatory, immunosuppressive, and neuroprotective properties. Potential for autoimmune, sepsis, and neuroinflammation work.

Neuropeptide / Anti-InflammatoryNo FDA approval; investigational neuropeptide studied only in preclinical animal and in-vitro models, sold where available as a research chemical not for human use

PNB-0408 Nootropic Peptide

Seven orders of magnitude more potent than BDNF, in mice. Human data: none.

Cognitive Enhancement / NeurotrophinNot FDA approved; dihexa itself has never been in a human trial. Its prodrug fosgonimeton (ATH-1017, Athira Pharma) reached human testing but failed the Phase 2/3 LIFT-AD Alzheimer's trial in September 2024.

Delta Sleep-Inducing Peptide

A nonapeptide isolated in the mid-1970s by the Schoenenberger-Monnier group from the cerebral venous blood of rabbits in induced sleep, and named for the delta (slow-wave) sleep it appeared to promote. Despite the name, that sleep-promoting role was never robustly confirmed, and the human evidence stays sparse, old, and inconsistent. It is sold as an unapproved research chemical for sleep and is now under FDA advisory-committee review under the name Emideltide, which is a compounding review rather than an approval.

Sleep / NeuromodulatoryNot FDA approved. Nominated to the Section 503A bulk drug substances list as Emideltide (DSIP); scheduled for Pharmacy Compounding Advisory Committee review July 23-24, 2026, for opioid withdrawal, chronic insomnia, and narcolepsy. Review only, not an approval.

NAPVSIPQ-derived Neurogenic Peptide

A peptide derived from the CNTF/NAP family with proposed BDNF-mimetic and neurogenesis-promoting properties. Early research; growing nootropic community interest for neuroplasticity.

Neurogenesis / BDNF-AdjacentNot FDA approved. No IND-stage registered human clinical trial identified; preclinical (animal and in-vitro) only. Sold as a research chemical labeled not for human consumption.

Pituitary Adenylate Cyclase-Activating Polypeptide

A neuropeptide encoded by ADCYAP1, present as PACAP-38 and PACAP-27, that signals through the PAC1 receptor with neuroprotective, neurotrophic, and vasodilatory activity in preclinical models. In humans it is studied mainly as a migraine and post-traumatic-headache TARGET: infused PACAP-38 provokes migraine attacks, and the therapeutics in development are anti-PACAP antibodies that block it, not the peptide as an intervention.

Neuroprotective / VasodilatoryNo approved PACAP product. PACAP itself is a research reagent and migraine-provocation probe, not an FDA-approved or investigational therapeutic for administration; the investigational agents are anti-PACAP antibodies (Lu AG09222/bocunebart, Phase 2/2b) that block the peptide.

PNX-14 Anorexigenic Neuropeptide

A hypothalamic neuropeptide first identified in 2013, cleaved from the SMIM20 precursor and signaling through the orphan receptor GPR173. In animal and cell studies it is associated with reduced anxiety-like behavior, positive regulation of the reproductive axis, and metabolic and anti-inflammatory signaling. Human data are limited to observational associations of circulating phoenixin-14 with conditions such as PCOS, obesity and type 2 diabetes, with no human intervention trials.

Neuropeptide / ReproductiveNot FDA approved; no marketing application. Human work to date is observational measurement of endogenous levels, not administration.

Glu-Asp-Arg Khavinson Pineal Tripeptide

A short synthetic Khavinson tripeptide targeting pineal function and neuronal protection. Russian data suggests sleep and cognitive benefits in aging.

Pineal BioregulatorNot FDA approved for any human indication; not on the FDA 503A/503B category 1 bulk drug substance compounding list. Sold research-use-only outside Russia.

Extended Pineal Cognitive Tripeptide

A research variant in the pineal-bioregulator family targeting cognitive protection and circadian regulation. Minimal published data.

Pineal Bioregulator VariantUnapproved; sold for research use only / not for human consumption, no FDA-approved human indication and not an established compounding bulk substance

ACTH(4-10) Synthetic Analog Heptapeptide

Soviet Cold War neuropharmacology. Designed for astronauts. Approved and sold in Russia, where the nasal spray is approved to treat stroke recovery and cognitive disorders, but it lacks approval from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and large-scale Western studies have never been performed.

Cognitive / NeuroprotectiveNot FDA approved. Not EMA approved. Sold in the West as a research chemical / not for human consumption; included among peptides reviewed by an FDA compounding advisory panel. Registered and marketed in Russia (and Ukraine) since the 1990s.