Oxantel

Oxantel
Systematic (IUPAC) name
3-[(E)-2-(1-Methyl-5,6-dihydro-4H-pyrimidin-2-yl)ethenyl]phenol
Clinical data
Identifiers
68813-55-8 Yes
P02CC02 QP52AF03
PubChem CID 5281087
ChemSpider 4444540 
UNII 94AJJ30D9E Yes
KEGG D00806 Yes
Chemical data
Formula C13H16N2O
216.28 g/mol
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Oxantel is an anthelmintic. It has typically been used human and animal use as a standard treatment for intestinal worms.

Oxantel is currently being experimented with for the treatment of periodontal disease by the Cooperative Research Centre for Oral Health Science (CRC). Professor Eric Reynolds (also the head of Dental School at the University of Melbourne, Australia) and his Associate Professor Stuart Dashper are currently testing its ability as a Fumarate reductase inhibitor.

Fumarate reductase is an enzyme that has been found in the pathogenic bacteria in the biofilm in periodontal pockets. This bacteria has the ability to convert blood components into energy and for the bacteria to be virulent. Such bacteria would starve without this enzyme. As such, the role of the Oxantel as a fumarate reductase inhibitor would be to kill the bacteria responsible for periodontal disease.