Melanotan 1 is the research name for afamelanotide, a synthetic analog of alpha-melanocyte-stimulating hormone. Afamelanotide is FDA approved only as Scenesse, a 16 mg implant placed under the skin every 2 months for erythropoietic protoporphyria (EPP), a rare light-sensitivity disorder.
Also known as: Afamelanotide, MT-1, Scenesse.
Scenesse is a solid implant inserted by a trained clinician, with nothing to mix. Powder vials sold as Melanotan 1 are usually labeled 10 mg.
Water and syringe-unit charts by vial size: 10 mg
Here is the math for a 10 mg vial mixed with 2 mL of bacteriostatic water, drawing 500 mcg with a U-100 insulin syringe (1 mL = 100 units).
10 mg ÷ 2 mL = 5 mg/mL500 mcg ÷ 5 mg/mL = 0.1 mL0.1 mL × 100 = 10 units| Amount | Volume | U-100 syringe |
|---|---|---|
| 250 mcg | 0.05 mL | 5 units |
| 500 mcg | 0.1 mL | 10 units |
| 1 mg | 0.2 mL | 20 units |
Adding more water doesn't change how much Melanotan 1 is in the vial. It only spreads it over more liquid, so each draw is bigger and easier to read.
| Water added | Concentration | Volume | U-100 syringe |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 mL | 10 mg/mL | 0.05 mL | 5 units |
| 2 mL | 5 mg/mL | 0.1 mL | 10 units |
| 3 mL | 3.33 mg/mL | 0.15 mL | 15 units |
| 5 mL | 2 mg/mL | 0.25 mL | 25 units |
For any other vial size or amount, the free peptide reconstitution calculator works backwards from the amount you want and suggests a water volume that lands on a clean syringe mark.
The trial evidence is for the implant in EPP. In two randomized trials (Langendonk, NEJM 2015; 74 and 94 patients), a 16 mg implant every 60 days increased the hours patients could spend in direct sunlight without pain compared with placebo. In 26 EPP patients treated for up to 6 years, no new antibodies against the drug were found.
Unlicensed Melanotan 1 and 2 powders sold for tanning are a different matter: a 2009 BMJ article looked at their use in the general population. Those products are not the approved implant.
The only FDA-labeled figures are for Scenesse, the slow-release implant: an apparent half-life of about 15 hours and a median time to peak of 36 hours. Those reflect the implant's slow release, not powder injected under the skin, so we do not list them for Melanotan 1.