Prednisone

Chemical Properties

White or almost white, crystalline powder.

Uses

Prednisone is used for the same indications as cortisone for inflammatory processes, allergies, and adrenal gland insufficiency; however, it is somewhat more active than cortisone and has less of an effect on mineral volume.

Uses

Downregulates TNF-α production and NF-κB expression

Uses

Adrenocortical steroid. Glucocorticoid, antiinflammatory.

Definition

ChEBI: A synthetic glucocorticoid drug that is particularly effective as an immunosuppressant, and affects virtually all of the immune system. Prednisone is a prodrug that is converted by the liver into prednisolone (a beta-hydroxy group instead f the oxo group at position 11), which is the active drug and also a steroid.

Indications

Prednisone 2.5 to 7.5 mg, administered at night or dexamethasone 0.25 to 0.75 mg are useful in female patients, with severe acne unresponsive to conventional therapy, who suffer from adrenal gland overproduction of androgens such as congenital adrenal hyperplasia.

brand name

Cortan (Halsey); Delta-Dome (Bayer); Deltasone (Pharmacia & Upjohn); Liquid Pred (Muro); Meticorten (Schering); Orasone (Solvay Pharmaceuticals); Paracort (Parke-Davis).

General Description

Odorless white crystalline powder.

General Description

Prednisone, Δ¹-cortisone, 17,21-dihydroxypregna-1,4-diene-3,11,20-trione, has systemic activityvery similar to that of prednisolone, and because of itslower salt-retention activity, it is often preferred over cortisoneor hydrocortisone. Prednisone must be reduced in vivoto prednisolone to provide the active GC.

Air & Water Reactions

Very slightly water soluble .

Hazard

Questionable carcinogen.

Safety Profile

Poison by intraperitoneal and subcutaneous routes. Moderately toxic by intramuscular route. Human systemic effects: sensory change involving peripheral nerves, dermatitis. Experimental reproductive effects. Questionable carcinogen with experimental tumorigenic data. Mutation data reported. Has been implicated in aplastic anemia.

Synthesis

Prednisone is 17|á,21-dihydroxypregna-1,4-dien-3,11-20-trione (27.1.31). Prednisone differs from cortisone in the presence of an additional double bond between C1 and C2. There are various ways of synthesizing it. In one of these, as is in the case when synthesizing cortisone, it is synthesized from dihydrocortisone acetate. However, in the given example, this compound undergoes dibromination by molecular bromine, giving 2,4-dibromo-derivative of dihydrocortisone 27.1.30. Dehydrobromination with 3,5-lutidine, followed by subsequent hydrolysis of the acetyl group using potassium bicarbonate gives the desired prednisone (27.1.31). Prednisone is also synthesized by microbiological dehydrogenation of cortisone.

Purification Methods

Crystallise prednisone from acetone/hexane, then recrystallise it from Me2CO. The monoacetate crystallises from Me2CO/hexane with m 227-233o(dec), [] D +186o (c 1, dioxane), and the diacetate crystallises from 25Me2CO/hexane with m 219-221o(dec), [] D +125o (c 1, CHCl3). [Hertzog et al. Tetrahedron 18 581 1962, Beilstein 8 IV 3531.]