What is Alpha-melanocyte-stimulating hormone (α-MSH)?

The core melanocortin ligand — pigment, appetite, inflammation. Structurally it is POMC-derived peptide (13 aa).

How strong is the evidence for α-MSH?

PeptideHormone grades α-MSH at the "Established" evidence tier — its mechanism and core effects are settled across the peer-reviewed literature. It is catalogued as an endogenous signal the body produces itself, and the tier is an editorial judgment about the public literature that can change as the science does.

What is the half-life of α-MSH?

The reported circulating half-life of α-MSH is ~minutes (very short).

Alpha-melanocyte-stimulating hormoneα-MSH

The core melanocortin ligand — pigment, appetite, inflammation.

EndogenousEstablishedCompare lineage

One short peptide the body uses to colour, to calm, and to say enough — the melanocortin system's oldest sentence, spoken wherever a receptor is listening.

Identity

Class: POMC-derived peptide (13 aa)
Source: Pituitary and hypothalamic POMC neurons; skin
Receptor: Melanocortin receptors MC1R, MC3R, MC4R, MC5R

Key properties

Evidence floorClinicalREF1CLIN1

Molecular weight

~1,664.9 Da

REF

Half-life (native)

~minutes (very short)

CLIN

Model dosing

Approximate values for the native hormone; engineered analogs are often deliberately larger and far longer-acting. Each figure carries its own provenance tier, and the floor is the weakest of them - the Standard.

Mechanism

Cleaved from pro-opiomelanocortin (POMC), α-MSH activates several melanocortin receptors with strikingly different physiology by tissue: pigmentation via MC1R on melanocytes, energy balance via hypothalamic MC4R, and anti-inflammatory signaling more broadly.

Reference notes

The same ligand family produces different effects purely by which receptor it reaches.
POMC is processed tissue-specifically into α-MSH, ACTH, and other active peptides.
Receptor selectivity across MC1R–MC5R is the central design question for any melanocortin agonist.

Common questions

What is Alpha-melanocyte-stimulating hormone (α-MSH)?: The core melanocortin ligand — pigment, appetite, inflammation. Structurally it is POMC-derived peptide (13 aa).
How does α-MSH work?: Cleaved from pro-opiomelanocortin (POMC), α-MSH activates several melanocortin receptors with strikingly different physiology by tissue: pigmentation via MC1R on melanocytes, energy balance via hypothalamic MC4R, and anti-inflammatory signaling more broadly.
How strong is the evidence for α-MSH?: PeptideHormone grades α-MSH at the "Established" evidence tier — its mechanism and core effects are settled across the peer-reviewed literature. It is catalogued as an endogenous signal the body produces itself, and the tier is an editorial judgment about the public literature that can change as the science does.
What is the half-life of α-MSH?: The reported circulating half-life of α-MSH is ~minutes (very short).

Selected literature

Curated peer-reviewed reviews, sourced from PubMed. Selected for relevance, not exhaustive — open any entry on PubMed for the full record and its primary citations.

1.Ligands for Melanocortin Receptors: Beyond Melanocyte-Stimulating Hormones and Adrenocorticotropin · Biomolecules, 2022 · PMID 36291616
2.Alpha-melanocyte-stimulating hormone and behavior · Neuroscience and biobehavioral reviews, 1982 · PMID 6294567

External references

α-MSH in the public knowledge graph — the same entity resolved across the authoritative chemistry and protein databases.