A compound comprising the amino acid sequence HKSRALLIFQKIMWLRRQ (SEQ ID No : 1) or comprising a part of said amino acid sequence of 7 or more amino acids, or comprising a variant of said amino acid sequence or said part thereof in which from 1 to 5 amino acids have been altered, wherein the compound binds to MAP kinase p38α. The compounds are useful in binding to and inhibiting MAP kinase p38α, and are useful as research tools, in drug discovery, medicine, particularly for treating inflammatory conditions.