Melitracen (brand names Melixeran) is a
tricyclic antidepressant
Tricyclic antidepressants (TCAs) are a class of medications that are used primarily as antidepressants, which is important for the management of depression. They are second-line drugs next to SSRIs. TCAs were discovered in the early 1950s and wer ...
(TCA), for the treatment of
depression and
anxiety
Anxiety is an emotion which is characterized by an unpleasant state of inner turmoil and includes feelings of dread over anticipated events. Anxiety is different than fear in that the former is defined as the anticipation of a future threat wh ...
.
In addition to single drug preparations, it is also available as
Deanxit, marketed by
Lundbeck
H. Lundbeck A/S (commonly known simply as Lundbeck) is a Danish international pharmaceutical company engaged in the research, development, manufacturing, marketing and sale of pharmaceuticals across the world. The company’s products are target ...
, a combination product containing both melitracen and
flupentixol
Flupentixol (INN), also known as flupenthixol (former BAN), marketed under brand names such as Depixol and Fluanxol is a typical antipsychotic drug of the thioxanthene class. It was introduced in 1965 by Lundbeck. In addition to single drug pre ...
.
The
pharmacology
Pharmacology is a branch of medicine, biology and pharmaceutical sciences concerned with drug or medication action, where a drug may be defined as any artificial, natural, or endogenous (from within the body) molecule which exerts a biochemica ...
of melitracen has not been properly investigated and is largely unknown, but it is likely to act in a similar manner to other TCAs. Indeed, melitracen is reported to have
imipramine
Imipramine, sold under the brand name Tofranil, among others, is a tricyclic antidepressant (TCA) mainly used in the treatment of depression. It is also effective in treating anxiety and panic disorder. The drug is also used to treat bedwetting. ...
and
amitriptyline
Amitriptyline, sold under the brand name Elavil among others, is a tricyclic antidepressant primarily used to treat cyclic vomiting syndrome (CVS), major depressive disorder and a variety of pain syndromes from neuropathic pain to fibromyalgi ...
-like effects and efficacy against depression and anxiety, though with improved
tolerability
Tolerability refers to the degree to which overt adverse effects of a drug can be tolerated by a patient. Tolerability of a particular drug can be discussed in a general sense, or it can be a quantifiable measurement as part of a clinical study. U ...
and a somewhat faster
onset of action
Onset of action is the duration of time it takes for a drug's effects to come to prominence upon administration. With oral administration, it typically ranges anywhere from 20 minutes to over an hour, depending on the drug in question. Other meth ...
.
See also
*
Fluotracen
*
Litracen
Litracen (N-7,049) is a tricyclic antidepressant which was never marketed.
See also
* Fluotracen
* Melitracen
Melitracen (brand names Melixeran) is a tricyclic antidepressant (TCA), for the treatment of depression and anxiety. In addition ...
*
Dimetacrine
References
Dimethylamino compounds
Anthracenes
Tricyclic antidepressants
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