Sexual Health · 10mg × 10 vials
In plain terms: Melanotan I (Afamelanotide) is a research compound - injectable, fast-acting and well studied.
Melanotan I (afamelanotide, brand name Scenesse) is a synthetic 13-amino-acid linear analog of endogenous alpha-melanocyte stimulating hormone (alpha-MSH), built off the [Nle4, D-Phe7]-alpha-MSH scaffold first published by Mac Hadley and Victor Hruby's lab at the University of Arizona, Tucson in the early 1980s. Unlike the cyclic 7-amino-acid MT2 that came out of the same program, MT1 is the longer linear analog that retains a much stronger selectivity for the MC1R (melanocortin-1 receptor) on melanocytes. MC1R activation drives the cAMP-PKA cascade in pigment cells, upregulating tyrosinase and MITF and shifting the melanocyte's output from the lighter pheomelanin to the darker eumelanin. UV exposure still has to do the actual triggering of the tan formation cascade; MT1 turns up the gain on melanocyte response so users build pigmentation faster and deeper than baseline with less cumulative UV dose. Because MT1 is MC1R-dominant with far weaker affinity at MC3R, MC4R, and MC5R compared to MT2, the central nervous system effects that drive MT2's nausea, flushing, yawning, and spontaneous-erection signal are minimal or absent. This is what gives MT1 its "clean tanning peptide" positioning in the community. Afamelanotide is the only melanocortin analog to make it through full regulatory approval: FDA approval came in October 2019 (EMA 2014) as Scenesse for prevention of phototoxicity in adult patients with erythropoietic protoporphyria (EPP), administered as a 16 mg subcutaneous controlled-release implant placed by a physician every two months. The off-label tanning use through the gray peptide market uses reconstituted injectable lyophilized powder rather than the implant, but the molecule and the mechanism are identical to the approved product.
Typical dose ranges by experience level - educational reference. Message us and we tailor it to you.
250 mcg is the entry dose that matches MT2's starter dose but lands quieter because MC1R-selective dosing skips the MC3R/MC4R side effect crossover. Jordan's verbatim starter line from DM consults: "0.25mg 30 minutes before sun exposure is typical, can be done multiple times a week or weekly." For customers without immediate sun access, daily bedtime dosing during loading and sun exposure 2-4× per week is the practical pattern.
Maintenance phase is where MT1 holds its value, you stop pinning daily and shift to 1-2 pins per week to hold the tan. Sun exposure is still required to keep pigmentation alive. MT1 maintenance often runs lighter than MT2 maintenance because the tan tends to plateau a touch lighter and more even, so customers need slightly less compound to hold what they have.
Advanced seasonal users running MT1 (often after migrating off MT2 specifically to lose the nausea, libido, and mole-darkening effects) know their personal loading floor and time the cycle to start 4-6 weeks before peak UV exposure. Cosmetic side effect profile is much lighter than MT2 at equivalent dose, so the same customer often runs higher MT1 doses with fewer downstream issues than they tolerated on MT2.
Straight talk - what people actually report, and what the studies measured.
Peer-reviewed studies and clinical guidelines - tap any to read the source.
original Hadley/Levine UA Tucson phase 1 in humans, NDP-alpha-MSH (MT1) dose-response established 250-500 mcg range
Read study ↗PubMedDorr RT, Dvorakova K, Brooks C, et al, Increased eumelanin expression and tanning is induced by an infusion of afamelanotide, Photochem Photobiol 2004eumelanin shift mechanism confirmed in human subjects
Read study ↗PubMedLim HW et al, Afamelanotide and narrowband UV-B phototherapy for the treatment of vitiligo, JAMA Dermatol 2015vitiligo Phase 2, off-EPP indication data
Read study ↗PubMedLangendonk JG et al, Afamelanotide for erythropoietic protoporphyria, NEJM 2015pivotal Phase 3 efficacy for FDA submission, AE profile
Read study ↗PubMedBiolcati G et al, Long-term observational study of afamelanotide in 115 EPP patients, Br J Dermatol 2015long-term safety, melanoma rate not elevated vs background
Read study ↗PubMedMinder EI, Schneider-Yin X, A safety profile of afamelanotide-based therapy, Expert Opin Drug Saf 2015safety review across approved indication
Read study ↗Aggregated sentiment from public forums & socials - real-world reports, not individual endorsements.
Nausea: minimal to absent for most users, occasional first-dose mild nausea that tachyphylaxes within 1-2 doses
- Divergence: literature pegs nausea at 19% in Phase 3 trials, community reports closer to 5-10% of MT1 first-timers feel anything at all. The clinical signal looks higher than community reports because trial AE capture is comprehensive (every reported headache counts) while forum reports filter to "did it bother me enough to mention". Net: MT1 is the…
Slower onset vs MT2: universal community complaint. Users who switch from MT2 to MT1 routinely report the tan taking 2-3 weeks longer to build at equivalent doses. Worth the wait for the side effect tradeoff per community consensus but not the "instant gratification" compound MT2 is.
More even / natural-looking tan: community-reported visual difference, MT1 tends to build a smoother gold-brown tone vs MT2's tendency to muddy gray-brown at high doses or with insufficient UV
No libido bump / no spontaneous erections: this is the headline community talking point on r/Melanotan, the absence of MT2's CNS effects is what drives MT1 adoption among people who specifically don't want them
No appetite suppression: another absence, MT1 users don't report the 5-10 lb side-bonus weight drop MT2 users describe during loading
Route: SubQ injection
Injection site: lower abdomen, outer thigh, or love-handle pinch. Rotate sites. Pinch-and-pin, 90-degree, standard SubQ technique.
Storage: refrigerated, stable 30-45 days reconstituted. Unmixed vials stable at room temp short-term; refrigerate for long storage. Light-sensitive, keep in original box.
Notes: Pin 30-60 minutes before UV exposure (sun or tanning bed) so MT1 is circulating when UV hits the skin. Without UV exposure during loading the tan will not build, MT1 amplifies the response to UV rather than producing pigmentation on its own. Bedtime dosing is less useful on MT1 than on MT2 because nausea is minimal, the pre-sun timing matters more.