Medetomidine

Medetomidine
Clinical data
AHFS/Drugs.comMonograph
ATCvet code
Legal status
Legal status
  • Veterinary use only
Identifiers
  • (RS)-4-[1-(2,3-Dimethylphenyl)ethyl]-3H-imidazole
CAS Number
PubChem CID
DrugBank
ChemSpider
UNII
KEGG
ChEBI
ChEMBL
CompTox Dashboard (EPA)
ECHA InfoCard100.242.450 Edit this at Wikidata
Chemical and physical data
FormulaC13H16N2
Molar mass200.285 g·mol−1
3D model (JSmol)
ChiralityRacemic mixture
  • n1cc([nH]c1)C(c2c(c(ccc2)C)C)C
  • InChI=1S/C13H16N2/c1-9-5-4-6-12(10(9)2)11(3)13-7-14-8-15-13/h4-8,11H,1-3H3,(H,14,15) checkY
  • Key:CUHVIMMYOGQXCV-UHFFFAOYSA-N checkY
 ☒NcheckY (what is this?)  (verify)

Medetomidine is a veterinary anesthetic drug with potent sedative effects and emerging illicit drug adulterant.[1]

It is a racemic mixture of two stereoisomers, levomedetomidine and dexmedetomidine, the latter being the isomer with the pharmacologic effect as an alpha 2- adrenergic agonist. Effects can be reversed using atipamezole.

It was developed by Orion Pharma.[2] It is approved for dogs in the United States, and distributed in the United States by Pfizer Animal Health and by Novartis Animal Health in Canada under the product name Domitor. Starting in 2022 Medetomidine has been detected in the US in samples of illicit drugs and associated with overdoses.

The free base form of medetomidine is sold as an antifouling substance for marine paints.[3]

  1. ^ de Andrade Horn P, Berida TI, Parr LC, Bouchard JL, Jayakodiarachchi N, Schultz DC, Lindsley CW, Crowley ML (October 2024). "Classics in Chemical Neuroscience: Medetomidine". ACS Chem Neurosci. doi:10.1021/acschemneuro.4c00583.
  2. ^ "Achievements". Orion Corporation. Archived from the original on March 15, 2013.
  3. ^ Chaabane P. "The Selektope Story" (PDF). PCI Magazine. Retrieved 12 December 2018.