Melanotan I & II

Afamelanotide (Scenesse) · MT-II · S-tier (Dr. Alex Tatem) · Limited evidence

Synthetic versions of the hormone that triggers tanning. Melanotan I became an approved drug for a rare sun-sensitivity disease; melanotan II — more potent and acting on brain receptors too — is sold unapproved for tanning and libido.

Dr. Tatem’s take

S tier for the melanotan family: “extremely effective at what they do” with “an extremely positive safety profile… we just won’t talk about the nausea, vomiting, or the 8-hour erection.”

In Dr. Tatem’s tier list

• Investigated as an injectable tanning agent at the University of Arizona in the 1980s–90s; activating the melanocortin receptor raises melanin.
• Researchers then found more potent compounds — melanotan II — and the urban legend of a researcher’s accidental double dose producing an eight-hour erection and severe nausea.
• That accident pointed to sexual-function uses and eventually PT-141 (Vyleesi).
• Verdict: S tier — effective, “really no competition for it,” and a good safety profile apart from nausea and prolonged erections.

History & background

In 1980 Tomi Sawyer, Victor Hruby, Mac Hadley and colleagues at the University of Arizona described a super-potent, long-acting version of α-MSH — later called melanotan I — while looking for a way to tan skin and protect against sunburn without UV. The group then developed the smaller, cyclic melanotan II and tested it for erectile dysfunction.

Melanotan I was licensed to the company now called Clinuvel and became afamelanotide (Scenesse), approved in Europe and by FDA in October 2019 for erythropoietic protoporphyria. Melanotan II led to Palatin’s PT-141 (bremelanotide). Unlicensed melanotan II has been sold online as a “tanning injection” since the mid-2000s, prompting regulator warnings.

Benefits

• Afamelanotide: more pain-free time in sunlight for people with EPP (approved trials).
• Melanotan II: produced erections in 8 of 10 men with ED in a small 1998 study.
• Tanning without UV exposure.

Risks

• New or darkening moles; isolated reports of melanoma in melanotan users (causation not established).
• Nausea, flushing, spontaneous erections; priapism in case reports.
• Blood-pressure effects; rare case reports of kidney injury and muscle breakdown.
• Gray-market purity and dosing uncertainty.

Dosing protocols (informational, labeled by evidence)

• Clinical trial / label: Melanotan II: Pilot phase 1 (3 men) — 0.01 mg/kg escalated to 0.025–0.03 mg/kg (0.025 recommended), SubQ, Weekdays (or every other day), 2 wk
• Community (bro science): Melanotan II: Community loading/maintenance — Load 0.25–0.5 mg (start at 0.25); maintain 0.5–1 mg, SubQ, Load daily; maintain 1–2x/wk, Load 2–4 wk, then ongoing

Status: Afamelanotide (Scenesse) is FDA-approved (2019) for erythropoietic protoporphyria, a rare light-sensitivity disorder. Melanotan II is unapproved; removed from FDA’s Category 2 list in April 2026 but not approved for compounding.

Grade and commentary: Dr. Alex Tatem. Watch: Truth About More Popular Peptides (What Works, What’s Overhyped) | Peptide Tier List pt.2. Subscribe: @DrAlexTatem.