Cytarabine

Nucleoside Metabolic Inhibitor — ANTINEOPLASTIC AND IMMUNOMODULATING AGENTS

Key facts

Cytarabine is an ofp drug in the Nucleoside Metabolic Inhibitor class catalogued in DrugCentral. It was first approved by the FDA in 1969. Its mechanism of action is classified as Nucleic Acid Synthesis Inhibitors. DrugCentral lists 5 molecular targets, including MDM2, ACPP and fabI. Recorded indications include Acute lymphoid leukemia, Acute myeloid leukemia, disease, Acute promyelocytic leukemia, FAB M3 and Lymphomatous meningitis.

• Approval status: ofp (first approved 1969 by the FDA).
• Drug class: Nucleoside Metabolic Inhibitor.
• Mechanism of action: Nucleic Acid Synthesis Inhibitors.
• Molecular targets: MDM2, ACPP, fabI and POLB (5 listed in DrugCentral).
• Indications: Acute lymphoid leukemia, Acute myeloid leukemia, disease, Acute promyelocytic leukemia, FAB M3, Lymphomatous meningitis and Meningeal Leukemia.
• ATC code: L01BC01 (Pyrimidine analogues).
• Molecular formula: C9H13N3O5; molecular weight 243.22 g/mol.

Indications & contraindications

Drug–disease relationships curated by DrugCentral (OMOP / SNOMED concepts).

Indications (5)

• Acute lymphoid leukemia
• Acute myeloid leukemia, disease
• Acute promyelocytic leukemia, FAB M3
• Lymphomatous meningitis
• Meningeal Leukemia

Off-label uses (7)

• Adjunct for CNS Disease Prevention in Non-Hodgkin's Lymphoma
• Allogeneic bone marrow transplantation
• Burkitt's lymphoma
• Chronic myeloid leukemia
• Diffuse non-Hodgkin's lymphoma, large cell
• Myelodysplastic syndrome
• Progressive Diffuse Large B-Cell Lymphoma

Contraindications (28)

• Acute cerebellar syndrome
• Acute pancreatitis
• Adult respiratory distress syndrome
• Anemia
• Bacterial infectious disease
• Bone marrow depression
• Breastfeeding (mother)
• Cardiomyopathy
• Coma
• Diarrhea
• Disease of liver
• Gastrointestinal ulcer
• Granulocytopenic disorder
• Hyperuricemia
• Infectious disease of central nervous system
• Intestinal Ischemic Necrosis
• Kidney disease
• Leukopenia
• Mycosis
• Necrotizing enterocolitis in fetus OR newborn
• Peripheral nerve disease
• Pregnancy, function
• Protozoal Infection
• Pulmonary edema
• Stomatitis
• Thrombocytopenic disorder
• Viral disease
• Vomiting

Mechanism & targets

• Mechanism of action (MoA): Nucleic Acid Synthesis Inhibitors
• Established pharmacologic class: Nucleoside Metabolic Inhibitor

Molecular targets (5)

Target	Gene	Action	Activity
E3 ubiquitin-protein ligase Mdm2	MDM2	unknown	IC50 7.70
Prostatic acid phosphatase	ACPP	unknown	GI50 7.00
Enoyl-[acyl-carrier-protein] reductase [NADH]	fabI	unknown	IC50 4.23
DNA polymerase beta	POLB	unknown	—
DNA polymerase (alpha/delta/epsilon)	POLA1|POLD1|POLE	inhibitor	—

Regulatory approvals (3)

Date	Agency	Marketed as	Applicant	Orphan
2020-08-21	PMDA	—	Nippon Shinyaku Co., Ltd.
2001-07-11	EMA	—	PACIRA LIMITED
1969-06-17	FDA	—	—

ATC classification

ATC code	Therapeutic hierarchy
L01BC01	ANTINEOPLASTIC AND IMMUNOMODULATING AGENTS › ANTINEOPLASTIC AGENTS › ANTIMETABOLITES › Pyrimidine analogues
L01XY01	ANTINEOPLASTIC AND IMMUNOMODULATING AGENTS › ANTINEOPLASTIC AGENTS › OTHER ANTINEOPLASTIC AGENTS › Combinations of antineoplastic agents

Reported adverse-event signals

Strongest FDA FAERS disproportionality signals (log-likelihood ratio). A signal is a statistical association in spontaneous reports, not proof that the drug causes the event.

MedDRA term	LLR
Febrile neutropenia	12168.2
Myelosuppression	3390.9
Neutropenia	2787.3
Mucosal inflammation	2446.3
Disease progression	2354.7
Bone marrow failure	2249.0
Thrombocytopenia	2092.4
Sepsis	2026.2
Febrile bone marrow aplasia	1911.0
Septic shock	1828.7
Pancytopenia	1821.4
Venoocclusive liver disease	1716.2

Chemical structure

Full physicochemical, ADMET and 3D-structure analysis of Cytarabine is on its molecule page.

• Molecular formula: C₉H₁₃N₃O₅
• Molecular weight: 243.22 g/mol
• CAS number: 147-94-4
• InChIKey: UHDGCWIWMRVCDJ-CCXZUQQUSA-N
• PubChem CID: 6253

NC1=NC(=O)N(C=C1)[C@@H]1O[C@H](CO)[C@@H](O)[C@@H]1O

Frequently asked questions

Answers are generated from the structured data on this page, not written by hand.

What is Cytarabine used for?

DrugCentral lists the following indications for Cytarabine: Acute lymphoid leukemia, Acute myeloid leukemia, disease, Acute promyelocytic leukemia, FAB M3, Lymphomatous meningitis and Meningeal Leukemia.

How does Cytarabine work?

Cytarabine is classified as Nucleic Acid Synthesis Inhibitors; its molecular targets in DrugCentral include MDM2, ACPP, fabI and POLB.

When was Cytarabine first approved?

Cytarabine was first approved by the FDA in 1969.

What drug class does Cytarabine belong to?

Cytarabine is in the Nucleoside Metabolic Inhibitor class.

What is the chemical formula of Cytarabine?

Cytarabine has the molecular formula C9H13N3O5 and a molecular weight of 243.22 g/mol.

Sources

• DrugCentral drug card 770 — structure, indications, targets, approvals, pharmacologic classes (CC BY-SA 4.0)
• ChEMBL CHEMBL1256472 — compound record and bioactivity
• PubChem CID 6253 — chemical identifiers
• DrugBank DB00987 — drug record
• FDA UNII 04079A1RDZ — substance identity
• DailyMed: FDA labels for Cytarabine — current prescribing information (label search)
• UniProt Q00987 (MDM2) — target protein
• UniProt P15309 (ACPP) — target protein
• UniProt P06746 (POLB) — target protein
• FDA Adverse Event Reporting System (openFDA FAERS) — adverse-event signals, as aggregated by DrugCentral

How this page is built: methodology · editorial policy & corrections.