The literature / sources

PT-141 References and Sources

Every claim on this site maps to one of these sources — peer-reviewed studies, reviews, and the FDA prescribing information, with PMIDs and DOIs.

How to read this list

These are the sources cited across the site, numbered to match the inline markers. They include the founding melanocortin pharmacology, the two Phase 3 RECONNECT trials and their long-term extension, the human fMRI mechanism study, the FDA prescribing information, regulatory and review articles, and a forensic study on unregulated supply. Where a study is paywalled, the PubMed or DOI link still resolves to the abstract and metadata. PT-141 references here are the bremelanotide research record; nothing on this site relies on a claim absent from this list.

  1. Molinoff PB, Shadiack AM, Earle D, Diamond LE, Quon CY. PT-141: a melanocortin agonist for the treatment of sexual dysfunction. Ann N Y Acad Sci. 2003;994:96-102.
  2. Pfaus J, Shadiack A, Van Soest T, Tse M, Molinoff P. Selective facilitation of sexual solicitation in the female rat by a melanocortin receptor agonist. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 2004;101:10201-10204.
  3. Kingsberg SA, Clayton AH, Portman D, Williams LA, Krop J, Jordan R, Lucas J, Simon JA. Bremelanotide for the Treatment of Hypoactive Sexual Desire Disorder: Two Randomized Phase 3 Trials. Obstet Gynecol. 2019;134(5):899-908.
  4. Simon JA, Kingsberg SA, Portman D, Williams LA, Krop J, Jordan R, Lucas J, Clayton AH. Long-Term Safety and Efficacy of Bremelanotide for Hypoactive Sexual Desire Disorder. Obstet Gynecol. 2019;134(5):909-917.
  5. Thurston L, Hunjan T, Mills EG, et al. Melanocortin 4 receptor agonism enhances sexual brain processing in women with hypoactive sexual desire disorder. J Clin Invest. 2022;132(19):e152341.
  6. Borland JM, Kohut-Jackson AL, Peyla AC, Hall MA, Mermelstein PG, Meisel RL. Female Syrian hamster analyses of bremelanotide, a US FDA approved drug for the treatment of female hypoactive sexual desire disorder. Neuropharmacology. 2025;267:110299.
  7. U.S. Food and Drug Administration / DailyMed. Bremelanotide Injection — US Prescribing Information. 2019.
  8. Hedlund P. PT-141 Palatin. Curr Opin Investig Drugs. 2004.
  9. Al Shaer D, Al Musaimi O, Albericio F, de la Torre BG. 2019 FDA TIDES (Peptides and Oligonucleotides) Harvest. Pharmaceuticals (Basel). 2020;13(3):40.
  10. Dhillon S, Keam SJ. Bremelanotide: First Approval. Drugs. 2019;79:1599-1606.
  11. Croft HA. Understanding the Role of Serotonin in Female Hypoactive Sexual Desire Disorder and Treatment Options. J Sex Med. 2017.
  12. Aughton KL, Hamilton-Smith K, Gupta J, Morton JS, Wayman CP, Jackson VM. Pharmacological profiling of neuropeptides on rabbit vaginal wall and vaginal artery smooth muscle in vitro. Br J Pharmacol. 2008.
  13. Mestria S, Odoardi S, Frison G, Strano Rossi S. LC-HRMS characterization of the skin pigmentation and sexual enhancers melanotan II and bremelanotide sold on the black market of performance and image enhancing drugs. Drug Test Anal. 2021.