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Peptides / Melanotan II

Review scheduledAlpha-MSH analogueNot FDA approved

Melanotan II

Melanotan II is a synthetic version of alpha-MSH, the hormone that tells skin to make pigment. It was developed in the 1980s and 1990s as a sunless tanning agent and is sold online as a tanning and libido injection.

Main use
Tanning, libido
Committee review
Review by Feb 2027
Strongest evidence
Small human studies
Legal to compound in the US
Not yet

Effects studied or claimed

What it is promoted for, and where each effect has actually been seen

  • Darker skin without sunSmall human trials
  • Higher sex drive and erectionsSmall human trials
  • Less appetiteSmall human trials

How it is thought to work

It activates melanocortin receptors in skin, which trigger pigment production, and in the brain, which affect sexual arousal and appetite.

What the evidence shows

In animals and the lab

Extensive animal work on pigmentation and appetite.

In people

Small early trials only. Related drugs are approved for narrower uses: bremelanotide (Vyleesi) for low sexual desire in women, and afamelanotide (Scenesse) for a rare light-sensitivity disorder.

Safety and unknowns

Nausea, flushing and new or darkening moles are common. There are case reports of melanoma and of painful, prolonged erections. Regulators in several countries have warned the public against it.

FDA review

Scheduled for review by the FDA's compounding advisory committee before the end of February 2027.

Committee votes are advice to the FDA. A peptide can only be compounded legally once the FDA adds it to the 503A bulks list through formal rulemaking, which has no fixed deadline.

Sources

Analysis

From tanning experiment to an approved libido drug

Peptide Evidence IndexBiology 8/10In people 5.5/10Index 6.1, rank 1 of 15See the full index

Melanotan II was created at the University of Arizona around 1990 as a sunless tanning agent that might protect fair-skinned people from skin cancer. It copies alpha-MSH, the hormone that tells skin cells to make pigment, but it also acts on brain receptors that influence appetite and sexual arousal.

That side effect became the main story. In a placebo-controlled study of 20 men with erectile dysfunction, Melanotan II produced erections in 17 of them without sexual stimulation and raised sexual desire, though nausea and yawning were common (Wessells and colleagues, 2000). The work led to bremelanotide, a close relative approved by the FDA in 2019 as Vyleesi for low sexual desire in premenopausal women. Melanotan II itself was never approved and is sold online as a tanning injection.

Our view. Melanotan II works, which is part of the problem. Doctors have reported rapidly darkening and newly appearing moles in users, which can make melanoma harder to spot, along with nausea and prolonged erections. Tanning is not a medical need that justifies those risks.

Studies and reports cited

  1. Wessells H et al. Melanocortin receptor agonists, penile erection, and sexual motivation: human studies with Melanotan II. Int J Impot Res, 2000
  2. Cardones AR, Grichnik JM. Alpha-melanocyte-stimulating hormone-induced eruptive nevi. Arch Dermatol, 2009

Summary of published research for general information. It is not medical advice and not a recommendation to use this substance.

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General information, not medical advice. Do not buy or inject unregulated peptides.