General Description
Crystals or white powder.
Air & Water Reactions
Insoluble in water.
Fire Hazard
Flash point data for this compound are not available but SULFAMETHOXAZOLE is probably non-flammable.
Description
Like sulfisoxazole, this drug is effective in treating infections caused by streptococci,
gonococci, pneumococci, staphylococci as well as colon bacillus. Unlike sulfisoxazole,
only about 70% of it binds with proteins in the plasma after oral administration, and it
diffuses mostly to tissues and tissue fluids. However, since it is removed much slower
than sulfisoxazole, it does not require frequent administration and is also the drug of
choice for many systemic infections. Moreover, it is an ingredient of a combined drug
named bactrim, biseptol, and so on (which will be examined later on), which has a fixed
correlation with trimethoprim. Synonyms of this drug are gantanol, sinomin, sulfisomezole,
and others.
Definition
ChEBI: An isoxazole (1,2-oxazole) compound having a methyl substituent at the 5-position and a 4-aminobenzenesulfonamido group at the 3-position.
Brand name
Gantanol (Roche); Urobak (Shionogi).
Antimicrobial activity
The intrinsic activity is similar to that of sulfadiazine.
Pharmaceutical Applications
This is the sulfonamide component of co-trimoxazole.
It is slightly soluble in water.
Pharmacokinetics
Oral absorption: 85%
Cmax 800 mg oral: c.50 mg/L after 3–6 h
Plasma half-life: 6–20 h
Volume of distribution: 12–18 L
Plasma protein binding: 65%
Penetration of extravascular sites, including the CSF, is good.
It crosses the placenta and achieves levels in breast milk of
about 10% of the simultaneous plasma concentration. It is
extensively metabolized, but about 30% of the dose is excreted
unchanged in urine so that high concentrations are achieved.
Clinical Use
Sulfamethoxazole is used only in combination with the
diaminopyrimidine trimethoprim.
Side effects
Unwanted effects are those common to sulfonamides. In addition,
benign intracranial hypertension has been reported in
children. Most side effects of co-trimoxazole are thought to
be attributable to the sulfonamide component.
Synthesis
Sulfamethoxazole, N1
-(5-methyl-3-isoxazolyl)sulfanilamide (33.1.20),
is synthesized by a completely analogous scheme, except by using 3-amino-5-methylisoxazol as the heterocyclic component.