Glyceryl trinitrate 6.4mg modified-release tablets
Nitrates, calcium-channel blockers, and other antianginal drugs
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Yellow Card reports
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Suspected adverse reactions reported for Glyceryl trinitrate
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Data from the MHRA Yellow Card scheme. A reported reaction does not necessarily mean the medicine caused it. Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.
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Suspected adverse reactions reported for Glyceryl trinitrate
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1 branded products available
WHO defined daily dose (DDD)
5 mg
Not a recommended dose. The DDD is the assumed average maintenance dose per day for a drug used for its main indication in adults. It is a statistical measure used for research and comparison purposes only.
Source: WHO Collaborating Centre for Drug Statistics Methodology, distributed via NHS dm+d BNF mapping files. Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.
Therapeutically similar medicines
Similarity based on WHO Anatomical Therapeutic Chemical (ATC) classification and NHS BNF section grouping. Source data: NHS dm+d via TRUD (OGL v3.0), WHO ATC/DDD Index.
NHS prescribing volume and spending trends
Clinical guidelines and formulary information
British National Formulary
Glyceryl trinitrate
Source: British National Formulary, NICE. Joint Formulary Committee. Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.
NICE clinical guidance(4)
Chronic anal fissure: 0.2% topical glyceryl trinitrate ointment (ESUOM7)
Chronic anal fissure: botulinum toxin type A injection (ESUOM14)
Recent-onset chest pain of suspected cardiac origin: assessment and diagnosis (CG95)
Low-energy contact X-ray brachytherapy for rectal cancer (HTG763)
Source: National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE). Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.
Check stock at pharmacies and supply information
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Supply & product information
Official product databases and supply status monitoring
Pharmacy links redirect to the retailer's own search and do not represent real-time stock levels. emc (electronic medicines compendium) is operated by Datapharm Ltd. Shortage information sourced from NHS Specialist Pharmacy Service (SPS), sps.nhs.uk.
Codes for healthcare professionals and prescribing systems
These codes are used by healthcare IT systems and prescribers to identify this medicine.
NHS UK identifiers
Browse tools
SNOMED CT and dm+d codes from NHS TRUD (Technology Reference data Update Distribution), licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. BNF codes from NHS Business Services Authority (NHSBSA). ATC codes from the WHO Collaborating Centre for Drug Statistics Methodology (whocc.no).
Active and completed clinical studies from ClinicalTrials.gov
Source: ClinicalTrials.gov, a database of the U.S. National Library of Medicine (NLM), National Institutes of Health (NIH). Data accessed via ClinicalTrials.gov API v2. Trial information is provided for research purposes and does not constitute medical advice.
Pharmacology and chemical data from DrugBank
Key facts
Drug status
Approved
Major interactions
18 found
Half-life
32 to 26 minutes
Mechanism
Nitroglycerin is converted by mitochondrial aldehyde dehydrogenase in smooth mus…
Food interactions
1 warning
Human targets
4 targets
Data: DrugBank · CC BY-NC 4.0
Pharmacokinetics at a glance
Absorption
0.5 mg
[A249970]…
Half-life
32 to 26 minutes
[A180178][L7099]…
Protein binding
50 to 500 ng/mL
Volume of distribution
3 L/kg
[L7099]
Metabolism
Elimination
[L38369]
Clearance
1 L/kg
[L7099]…
Pharmacokinetic data: DrugBank · CC BY-NC 4.0
Nitroglycerin is used in a variety of different conditions, including angina pectoris due to coronary artery disease,[L7102][L7141][L38369][L42320] peri-operative hypertension, congestive heart failure,[L7099] and chronic anal fissure.[L42445] It is also used to induce intraoperative hypotension.[L7099]
[L7102][L38369][L42320]
Transdermal nitroglycerin is indicated for the prevention of angina pectoris due to coronary artery disease.
[L7141]
Intravenous nitroglycerin is indicated for the treatment of peri-operative hypertension; for control of congestive heart failure in the setting of acute myocardial infarction; for treatment of angina pectoris in patients who have not responded to sublingual nitroglycerin and beta (β)-blockers; and for induction of intraoperative hypotension.
[L7099]
Topical nitroglycerin ointment is used to treat moderate to severe pain associated with chronic anal fissure.
[L42445]
Known interactions with other medications. Always consult a healthcare professional.
Showing 50 of 722 interactions
[L7105]
Nitrate overdosage can result in following conditions: severe hypotension, persistent throbbing headache, vertigo, palpitation, visual disturbance, flushing and perspiring skin (later becoming cold and cyanotic), nausea and vomiting (possibly with colic and even bloody diarrhea), syncope (especially in the upright posture), methemoglobinemia with cyanosis and anorexia, initial hyperpnea, dyspnea and slow breathing, slow pulse (dicrotic and intermittent), heart block, increased intracranial pressure with cerebral symptoms of confusion and moderate fever, paralysis and coma followed by clonic convulsions, and possibly death due to circulatory collapse.
[L38369]
Methemoglobinemia can rarely occur at conventional doses of organic nitrates. This condition is dose-related and it can be even more pronounced in patients with genetic abnormalities of hemoglobin that favor methemoglobin formation. Methemoglobinemia can be managed with the administration of methylene blue unless the patient has a known G-6-PD deficiency.
[L38369]
There are no known antidotes to an overdose of nitroglycerin, and it is not known whether its metabolites can be removed from the circulation.
[L38369][L7099]
Hypotension associated with nitroglycerin overdose can be managed with different symptomatic and supportive measures, including the elevation of the lower limbs, administration of intravenous saline or other fluids to maintain central fluid volume, and administration of oxygen and artificial ventilation.
Gastric lavage may be used in case of ingestion of excess nitroglycerin.
[L38369]
Like other organic nitrates, repeated and prolonged administration of nitroglycerin can lead to the development of tolerance or desensitization of vascular smooth muscle to further nitroglycerin-induced vasorelaxation. This loss of efficacy may be associated with the inhibition of mitochondrial aldehyde dehydrogenase, which is an important enzyme involved in the bioactivation of nitroglycerin.[A180166][A180169][A180172] Nitroglycerin tolerance may be accompanied by pro-oxidant effects, endothelial dysfunction, and increased sensitivity to vasoconstrictors.[A180172]
How the body processes this drug — absorption, distribution, metabolism, and elimination
[A249970]
After a sublingual dose of 0.5 mg of nitroglycerin in patients with ischemic heart disease, the peak concentration (Cmax) was 2.56 ng/mL and the mean Tmax was 4.4 minutes.
[A180175]
The Cmax following a 0.6mg dose of sublingual nitroglycerin was 2.1 ng/mL and the Tmax was 7.2 minutes.
[L38369]
The absolute bioavailability following sublingual administration was about 40%. The bioavailability of nitroglycerin depends on several factors, such as mucosal metabolism and hydration status, which both affect the absorption of sublingual drugs.
[L38369]
[A180178][L7099]
The estimated plasma half-life following sublingual administration is approximately six minutes.
[A180175]
The elimination half-lives of metabolites 1,2-dinitroglycerin and 1,3-dinitroglycerin range between 32 to 26 minutes.
[L38369]
[L38369]
[L7099]
[A180166][A180265][L7099]
Nitrite is further metabolized to nitric oxide. 1,2- and 1,3-dinitroglycerols are less biologically active than nitroglycerin but they have longer half-lives, which explains some prolonged effects of nitrates. Both dinitrates are finally metabolized to glycerol, carbon dioxide, and mononitrates that do not have vasodilatory actions.
[A180184][L7099]
Nitroglycerin can also chemically react with a thiol to generate an intermediate S-nitrosothiol, which resulted in further production of nitric oxide.
[A180166][A180172][A180265]
[L38369]
[L7099]
The apparent clearance after a sublingual dose was 21.9 L/min in a pharmacokinetic study of patients with ischemic heart disease and angina.
[A180175]
Proteins and enzymes this drug interacts with in the body
PMID:10805725 PMID:27153536 PMID:2790960 PMID:35538033
Known ligands include EGF, TGFA/TGF-alpha, AREG, epigen/EPGN, BTC/betacellulin, epiregulin/EREG and HBEGF/heparin-binding EGF .
PMID:12297049 PMID:15611079 PMID:17909029 PMID:20837704 PMID:27153536 PMID:2790960 PMID:7679104 PMID:8144591 PMID:9419975
Ligand binding triggers receptor homo- and/or heterodimerization and autophosphorylation on key cytoplasmic residues. The phosphorylated receptor recruits adapter proteins like GRB2 which in turn activates complex downstream signaling cascades. Activates at least 4 major downstream signaling cascades including the RAS-RAF-MEK-ERK, PI3 kinase-AKT, PLCgamma-PKC and STATs modules .
PMID:27153536
May also activate the NF-kappa-B signaling cascade .
PMID:11116146
Also directly phosphorylates other proteins like RGS16, activating its GTPase activity and probably coupling the EGF receptor signaling to the G protein-coupled receptor signaling .
PMID:11602604
Also phosphorylates MUC1 and increases its interaction with SRC and CTNNB1/beta-catenin .
PMID:11483589
Positively regulates cell migration via interaction with CCDC88A/GIV which retains EGFR at the cell membrane following ligand stimulation, promoting EGFR signaling which triggers cell migration .
PMID:20462955
Plays a role in enhancing learning and memory performance (By similarity).
Plays a role in mammalian pain signaling (long-lasting hypersensitivity) (By similarity)
PMID:39543315
Plays an essential role in the regulation of endothelial cell senescence and vascular aging .
PMID:36016499
Upon activation by ANP or BNP, stimulates the production of cyclic guanosine monophosphate (cGMP) that promotes vascular tone and volume homeostasis by activation of protein kinase cGMP-dependent 1/PRKG1 and subsequently PRKAA1, thereby controlling blood pressure and maintaining cardiovascular homeostasis PMID:36016499
Enzymes involved in drug metabolism — important for understanding drug interactions
ATC C01DA02
ATC C01DA52
ATC C05AE01
Chemical identifiers
CAS, UNII, InChI Key and database cross-references
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Chemical identifiers
CAS, UNII, InChI Key and database cross-references
Linked compound data from DrugBank Open Data (CC BY-NC 4.0)
Nitroglycerin
Matched from: Glyceryl trinitrate
Additional database identifiers
Drugs Product Database (DPD)
9412
ChemSpider
4354
PDB
TNG
ZINC
ZINC000008214625
HUGO Gene Nomenclature Committee (HGNC)
HGNC:4687
GeneCards
GUCY1B1
Guide to Pharmacology
1290
UniProt Accession
GCYB1_HUMAN
HUGO Gene Nomenclature Committee (HGNC)
HGNC:4685
GeneCards
GUCY1A1
Guide to Pharmacology
1288
UniProt Accession
GCYA1_HUMAN
HUGO Gene Nomenclature Committee (HGNC)
HGNC:3236
GenAtlas
EGFR
GeneCards
EGFR
GenBank Gene Database
X00588
GenBank Protein Database
757924
Guide to Pharmacology
1797
UniProt Accession
EGFR_HUMAN
HUGO Gene Nomenclature Committee (HGNC)
HGNC:7943
GenAtlas
NPR1
GeneCards
NPR1
GenBank Gene Database
X15357
GenBank Protein Database
28230
Guide to Pharmacology
1747
UniProt Accession
ANPRA_HUMAN
HUGO Gene Nomenclature Committee (HGNC)
HGNC:404
GenAtlas
ALDH2
GeneCards
ALDH2
GenBank Gene Database
X05409
GenBank Protein Database
28606
Guide to Pharmacology
2595
UniProt Accession
ALDH2_HUMAN
International reference pricing
Reference pricing from DrugBank. Prices are indicative and may not reflect current UK costs.
Source: DrugBank. Used under CC BY-NC 4.0 academic licence for non-commercial purposes.
Patent information
2 active patents, 3 expired
Source: DrugBank · CC BY-NC 4.0. Patent data sourced from national patent offices. Expiry dates may not reflect extensions, regulatory exclusivity periods, or legal challenges.
DrugBank citations
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