Anxiolytic

Bromantane is a lipophilic adamantane stimulant-anxiolytic developed in the Soviet Union and marketed in Russia as Ladasten for asthenic disorders. A 30-person, single-blind placebo trial reported faster and greater symptom relief, while a 728-patient uncontrolled program reported improvement from day 3; neither result has been independently replicated. Its best-supported mechanism is not direct receptor agonism or dopamine transporter blockade, but altered expression of dopamine-synthesis enzymes in animals.

GB-115 is a synthetic glycyl-tryptophan dipeptide analog of cholecystokinin studied as an anxiolytic. A Russian open-label pilot in 31 people with generalized anxiety disorder reported reduced anxiety and fatigue over 21 days, with 6 mg daily selected after a small dose-finding stage. Without a placebo group, efficacy remains uncertain.

L-theanine is an amino acid found almost only in tea. Taken at 200 to 400 mg a day, it may reduce stress and anxiety in people under stressful conditions. Its best-known use is alongside caffeine, where the pair improves attention switching more than either alone. A 2025 meta-analysis found small improvements in subjective sleep.

L-THP (levo-tetrahydropalmatine, or rotundine) is a tetrahydroprotoberberine alkaloid used in China as a sedative and analgesic and investigated for substance-use disorders. One 120-person pilot trial reported less heroin craving and more abstinence, but treatment caused markedly more early dropout. A small phase-I study found 30 mg twice daily tolerable for 3.5 days, not proof of long-term efficacy or safety.

Selank is a synthetic heptapeptide (Thr-Lys-Pro-Arg-Pro-Gly-Pro) described as an analog of tuftsin. It is studied as an anxiolytic. In Russian clinical studies of generalized anxiety and related disorders, it matched the benzodiazepine medazepam on anxiety, and adding it to phenazepam reduced phenazepam's side effects. Proposed mechanisms include slowing enkephalin breakdown and modulating GABA-A receptors.