Selectivity · by receptor
MC4R: ligand selectivity
Melanocortin 4 receptor · appetite · satiety
8 catalogued melanocortin ligands bind MC4R with a curated affinity. The tightest is Bremelanotide (≈0.25 nM). The most MC4R-selective is AgRP, which prefers MC4R by 40× — because the five receptors share one binding core, a ligand that truly prefers MC4R is the exception, not the rule.
Most MC4R-selective
Ligands whose tightest target of the five receptors is MC4R — ranked by selectivity window (how cleanly they prefer it).
- AgRP40×Selective · blocker
- Bremelanotide25×Selective
- Setmelanotide2.0×Broadly non-selective
Everything that binds MC4R
Ranked by binding strength. Filled bars are agonists; blue bars are blockers. Select a ligand for its full fingerprint across all five receptors.
Binding is not the whole story: these bars show how tightly each ligand holds MC4R, not what the receptor then does once bound. For the receptor's own biology — where it sits, what it controls, and what breaks when it fails — see the MC4R page. To put any one ligand next to the others, use the selectivity visualizer; for every value with its citation, the binding matrix.
Affinity values from the IUPHAR/BPS Guide to PHARMACOLOGY; selectivity is derived from them. Educational resource, not medical advice — see the editorial standards.