Melanotan I

Melanotan I, known clinically as afamelanotide, is a synthetic analog of the natural hormone alpha-MSH that stimulates the skin's pigment cells through the melanocortin-1 receptor. It is supplied here as an analytical-grade reference material for laboratory research use only.

Melanotan I is a linear peptide that acts fairly selectively on the melanocortin-1 (pigment) pathway. Melanotan II is a ring-shaped analog that engages several melanocortin receptors, giving it broader and less predictable effects. Only Melanotan I, as afamelanotide, has become an approved clinical therapy.

As afamelanotide (marketed as Scenesse), it has been approved for erythropoietic protoporphyria, a rare disorder in which light causes severe pain, where trials showed it increased pain-free light exposure. In this listing, however, it is a research reference material, not a medicine, and is not intended for human use.

The rigorous human evidence is about photoprotection in a specific rare disease, not cosmetic tanning. Framing it as a research tool for pigmentation and melanocortin biology reflects the literature far better than any cosmetic claim.

Melanotan I is supplied as a lyophilized powder for laboratory research use only, with identity and purity verified by third-party testing through Vanguard. As sold here it is not a cosmetic, drug, or supplement and is not intended for human or veterinary use.