Data edition of
Residue An evidence-graded reference for peptide science

Afamelanotide research

What PubMed holds on Afamelanotide, sorted by study design: the papers this site relies on, every clinical-trial publication PubMed tags, and the newest additions.

PubMed records
121
Trial publications
124 randomized
Reviews
48
Human-subject tagged
84
Animal-only
4
  • Clinical-trial publications 12
  • Reviews 48
  • Animal-only studies 4
  • Other (in vitro, chemistry, commentary, unindexed) 57
Figure 1. Composition of the Afamelanotide literature by PubMed publication type and MeSH tags. Categories come from separate PubMed filters and can overlap; “animal-only” means tagged Animals and not Humans. Query: (afamelanotide[tiab] OR "melanotan I"[tiab] OR "melanotan-I"[tiab]).
0917 2000: 2 records 2000 2001: 0 records 2002: 0 records 2003: 0 records 2004: 0 records 2005: 0 records 2005 2006: 1 records 2007: 1 records 2008: 0 records 2009: 3 records 2010: 4 records 2010 2011: 2 records 2012: 5 records 2013: 6 records 2014: 5 records 2015: 8 records 2015 2016: 6 records 2017: 8 records 2018: 3 records 2019: 4 records 2020: 9 records 2020 2021: 9 records 2022: 5 records 2023: 17 records 2024: 14 records 2025: 13 records 2025 2026: 11 records (year to date) 2026
Figure 2. PubMed records per publication year matching (afamelanotide[tiab] OR "melanotan I"[tiab] OR "melanotan-I"[tiab]) — 121 in total; peak 17 in 2023. The 2026 bar is year-to-date (hatched). Volume of literature is not evidence of efficacy. Run this query on PubMed.

Studies this site relies on

Ordered by strength of design. Conclusions are quoted verbatim from each abstract as indexed by PubMed; read the full paper before relying on any of them.

  1. Randomized trial N Engl J Med · 2015 PMID 26132941

    Afamelanotide for Erythropoietic Protoporphyria

    Langendonk JG, Balwani M, Anderson KE, et al.

    Afamelanotide had an acceptable side-effect and adverse-event profile and was associated with an increased duration of sun exposure without pain and improved quality of life in patients with erythropoietic protoporphyria. (Funded by Clinuvel Pharmaceuticals and others; ClinicalTrials.gov numbers, NCT01605136 and NCT00979745.).

  2. Primary study Life (Basel) · 2024 PMID 38929673

    Afamelanotide for Treatment of the Protoporphyrias: Impact on Quality of Life and Laboratory Parameters in a US Cohort

    Leaf RK, Naik H, Jiang PY, et al.

    This study highlights a dramatic clinical benefit of afamelanotide in relation to light tolerance and QoL in protoporphyria, albeit without improvement in protoporphyrin levels or measures of liver function.

  3. Review Expert Rev Clin Pharmacol · 2021 PMID 33507118

    Afamelanotide for prevention of phototoxicity in erythropoietic protoporphyria

    Wensink D, Wagenmakers MAEM, Langendonk JG

    The 60-day interval period was not based on effectiveness studies, and therefore for some of the patients the maximum of four implants per year with the 60-day interval is insufficient. Afamelanotide is well tolerated; common adverse events were headache, fatigue, and nausea.

  4. Review Clin Pharmacokinet · 2017 PMID 28063031

    Pharmacokinetics and Pharmacodynamics of Afamelanotide and its Clinical Use in Treating Dermatologic Disorders

    Minder EI, Barman-Aksoezen J, Schneider-Yin X

    No late effects were reported in volunteers 25 years after the first exposure or after continuous long-term application of up to 8 years in EPP patients, and an immunogenic potential has been excluded. Generally, adverse effects were benign in all trials.

  5. Review Int J Dermatol · 2017 PMID 28266027

    Risks of unregulated use of alpha-melanocyte-stimulating hormone analogues: a review

    Habbema L, Halk AB, Neumann M, et al.

    Although conclusive evidence linking these phenomena is lacking, publications have stressed the importance of awareness that melanotan is a part of a 'tanning culture' in certain subpopulations. Multiple national health organizations have issued safety warnings regarding the use of melanotan I and II.

  6. Review Am J Clin Dermatol · 2016 PMID 26979527

    Afamelanotide: A Review in Erythropoietic Protoporphyria

    Kim ES, Garnock-Jones KP

    Efficacy and safety data from earlier phase III trials are consistent with those from the CUV039 trial. Afamelanotide, approved in the EU for the prevention of EPP phototoxicity, represents a useful addition to the management of the disorder.

Clinical-trial publications in PubMed

12 records carry PubMed’s clinical-trial publication type. Tagging is done by NLM indexers and occasionally includes secondary analyses.

Clinical-trial publications on Afamelanotide
YearTitleJournalDesign
2026Adjunctive use of Polypodium leucotomos extract in patients with erythropoietic protoporphyria: An exploratory studyPhotochem PhotobiolClinical trial
2023A feasibility and safety study of afamelanotide in acute stroke patients - an open label, proof of concept, phase iia clinical trialBMC NeurolPhase 2 trial
2020Afamelanotide implants and narrow-band ultraviolet B phototherapy for the treatment of nonsegmental vitiligo in AsiansJ Am Acad DermatolRandomized trial
2015Afamelanotide for Erythropoietic ProtoporphyriaN Engl J MedRandomized trial
2015Evaluation of the immunogenicity of the synthetic α-melanocyte-stimulating hormone (α-MSH) analogue afamelanotide ([Nle4-D-Phe7]-α-MSH, Scenesse®) in erythropoietic protoporphyria patients by ELISA detecting both anti-afamelanotide and anti-α-MSH antibodiesSkin Pharmacol PhysiolPhase 3 trial
2015Afamelanotide and narrowband UV-B phototherapy for the treatment of vitiligo: a randomized multicenter trialJAMA DermatolRandomized trial
2014Efficacy of the melanocortin analogue Nle4-D-Phe7-α-melanocyte-stimulating hormone in the treatment of patients with Hailey-Hailey diseaseClin Exp DermatolPhase 2 trial
2014Beneficial effects of the melanocortin analogue Nle4-D-Phe7-α-MSH in acne vulgarisJ Eur Acad Dermatol VenereolPhase 2 trial
2011Systemic photoprotection in solar urticaria with α-melanocyte-stimulating hormone analogue [Nle4-D-Phe7]-α-MSHBr J DermatolPhase 2 trial
2009Mitigating photosensitivity of erythropoietic protoporphyria patients by an agonistic analog of alpha-melanocyte stimulating hormonePhotochem PhotobiolClinical trial
2000Increased eumelanin expression and tanning is induced by a superpotent melanotropin [Nle4-D-Phe7]-alpha-MSH in humansPhotochem PhotobiolClinical trial
1997Skin pigmentation and pharmacokinetics of melanotan-I in humansBiopharm Drug DisposRandomized trial

Newest records

The most recent PubMed additions for this query at the data-edition date, regardless of design.

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