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Protocol library
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Melanotan 2

An unapproved cyclic melanocortin analogue with very small early human studies. The published schedules are phase 1 experiments, not a validated tanning protocol.

Evidence context, not a personal protocol

Quantities below reproduce their stated source context—label, human study, laboratory work or educational guide. They do not assess suitability, product equivalence or individual risk.

Community-reported schedule

Community-reported · not a validated schedule

Community dose schedule

A community-provenance subcutaneous loading-then-maintenance tanning pattern from authenticated forum archives, dosed with sun exposure. Community reports only, not a validated or trial-verified schedule.

Evidence source
Reported maximum quantity
Loading then maintenance (forum)
Choose the maximum quantity reported by this community line. Any earlier phase can be selected below for its arithmetic.

Reported quantities by phase

Select a point for its calculation examples
  1. Test dose (days 1-3)
    75-100 mcg
    Reports use a 75-100 mcg test dose first because nausea is dose-limiting.
  2. Loading with sun (5-10 days)
    200 mcg
    +100 mcg
    Daily loading clusters near 200 mcg (some run 350-500 mcg) with UV exposure.
  3. Maintenance (weekly)
    150 mcg
    step down; weekly
    Maintenance is about 100-150 mcg weekly or twice weekly, titrated to the tan.

Vial-aware arithmetic

Reconstitution examples, up to 3 mL

Choose the vial quantity and BAC water first. The diagram and results below update for the selected 75-100 mcg reported quantity. Higher-strength vials may naturally land outside the 20-30 unit band.

Vial quantity

Choose the quantity printed on the vial.

BAC water added

Use 1, 2 or 3 mL, or enter a custom volume up to 3 mL.

Open the full reverse calculator
Three millilitre research vial, diluent vial and capped U-100 syringe on an ink-blue surface
One small vial, one measured diluent volume and one U-100 scale. The arithmetic connects all three.
BAC water selected
3 mL

Basic example limit: 3 mL maximum. Check the actual vial and product-specific limits.

1 mL BAC
1 units

resulting U-100 draw

Concentration
10 mg/mL
BAC added
1 mL
2 mL BAC
2 units

resulting U-100 draw

Concentration
5 mg/mL
BAC added
2 mL
3 mL BAC
3 units

resulting U-100 draw

Concentration
3.333 mg/mL
BAC added
3 mL

Shown in the diagram. Closest of these examples to 25 units.

Formula: draw units = selected mg × BAC mL ÷ vial mg × 100. The 20-30 unit band is a measurement reference, not a recommendation. Results are mathematical examples, not preparation instructions.

Dosage and protocol evidence

Each card states what the quantities are based on. A third-party or animal schedule is not a validated human dose.

Human StudySubcutaneousFive alternating-day exposures
Three healthy male volunteers in a phase 1 pilot

Subcutaneous study doses began at 0.01 mg/kg and escalated on alternating study days

Only five active injections were given in a tiny monitored experiment; this cannot establish a routine protocol.

View source
Human StudySubcutaneousTwo monitored exposures
Ten men with organic erectile dysfunction

Two monitored subcutaneous administrations of 0.025 mg/kg in a crossover study

This experiment measured erectile response over six hours and does not establish chronic or cosmetic use.

View source
Community GuideSubcutaneous in guideDaily, then weekly in guide
Third-party educational schedule for a 10 mg research vial

250 mcg daily in week 1, 500 mcg in week 2, 750 mcg in week 3 and 1 mg daily in weeks 4-8; the guide then describes 0.5-1 mg once or twice weekly

This escalation is a community convention, not a validated tanning regimen. It must remain separate from the tiny weight-based phase 1 experiments above.

View source
Community GuideSubcutaneous in reportsDaily loading; maintenance varies
online research community reports

The channel spotlight starts at 0.25 mg subcutaneously daily and describes 0.5-1 mg daily, while a lower community titration uses 150 mcg daily for five days then 300 mcg daily

Loading duration and maintenance are not standardised. Reports also describe marked nausea and flushing after small changes, including severe symptoms after an accidental 750 mcg exposure; raw/peptide-education/pe-melanotan-ii.md:20-23, 77-102 and 265-270.

View source
Community GuideSubcutaneous in reportsDaily loading, then weekly maintenance
authenticated research-forum (Peppys) Melanotan II reports

Subcutaneous reports use a low 75-100 mcg test dose, then a daily loading phase of about 200 mcg (some 350-500 mcg) with sun or UV exposure for roughly five to ten days, dropping to a weekly or twice-weekly maintenance dose of about 100-150 mcg titrated to the tan

Forum provenance from an authenticated archive with usernames omitted, describing the unapproved Melanotan II and kept separate from the small phase 1 weight-based experiments above. Nausea is near-universal and dose-limiting, mole darkening is reported, and loading duration and maintenance are not standardised.

View source

Evidence summary

An unapproved cyclic melanocortin analogue with very small early human studies. The published schedules are phase 1 experiments, not a validated tanning protocol.

Protocol basis

The only directly matched human protocols are small, short, monitored experiments from the 1990s and 2000. They support an early-human tag but not a general-use schedule.

Community provenance (Peppys)

An authenticated research-forum archive records subcutaneous use of the unapproved Melanotan II, kept separate from the small phase 1 weight-based experiments cited above. Reports describe a low 75-100 mcg test dose, a daily loading phase near 200 mcg - some running 350-500 mcg - taken with sun or UV exposure for roughly five to ten days, then a weekly or twice-weekly maintenance dose of about 100-150 mcg titrated to the tan achieved. Nausea is near-universal and the main reason quantities stay low, and darkening of moles and freckles is repeatedly noted. Loading duration and maintenance are not standardised, usernames and post numbers are omitted, and the figures are logged as community provenance without endorsement. The planner above reproduces the arithmetic of these reported quantities; it does not validate them.

What remains uncertain

There is no authorised vial, validated long-term regimen or adequate evidence for cosmetic self-administration.

Warnings and contraindications

Melanotan II is not an authorised tanning medicine.
Early studies enrolled only a few participants and reported nausea, fatigue, yawning and prolonged erections.
Unregulated products add unresolved identity, purity, sterility and dose-accuracy risks.
Organised research bench with labelled storage tray, vial rack, notebook and thermometer
A clean workspace supports traceability. It does not establish sterility.

Shared across protocols

Supplies and general handling

Keep the universal checklist short. Product-specific labelling and source documentation always take priority over a general guide.

Research vial

Select the labelled vial quantity used in the calculation.

View Peppys vial

Bacteriostatic water

Use only a diluent appropriate to the research method and formulation.

View Peppys BAC water

U-100 measuring syringe

Use a new sterile device for every entry. Source locally.

Source locally

Wipes and sharps container

Plan clean handling and immediate sharps disposal. Source locally.

Source locally

Storage follows the label

Do not apply a universal refrigerator rule. Follow the product, diluent and study documentation for temperature, light and expiry.

Use sterile equipment once

CDC injection-safety guidance calls for a new sterile needle and syringe for each injection and entry into a medication container.

Stability is formulation-specific

Do not infer a post-mixing lifetime from BAC water alone. Discard material when identity, integrity or sterility is in doubt.

General references: CDC injection safety, NHS medicine storage and DailyMed BAC water labelling.