Colchicine
Colchicine is a medication used to treat gout and Behçet's disease. For gout, it is less preferred than nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) or steroids. Other uses for colchicine include the management of pericarditis and familial Mediterranean fever. Colchicine is taken by mouth.
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| Pronunciation | /ˈkɒltʃɪsiːn/ KOL-chiss-een |
| Trade names | Colcrys, Mitigare, others |
| AHFS/Drugs.com | Monograph |
| MedlinePlus | a682711 |
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| Routes of administration | By mouth |
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| Bioavailability | 45% |
| Protein binding | 35-44% |
| Metabolism | Metabolism, partly by CYP3A4 |
| Elimination half-life | 26.6-31.2 hours |
| Excretion | Feces (65%) |
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| ECHA InfoCard | 100.000.544 |
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| Formula | C22H25NO6 |
| Molar mass | 399.443 g·mol−1 |
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Colchicine has a narrow therapeutic index, so overdosing is a significant risk. Common side effects of colchicine include gastrointestinal upset, particularly at high doses. Severe side effects may include pancytopenia (low blood cell counts) and rhabdomyolysis, and the medication can be deadly in overdose. Whether colchicine is safe for use during pregnancy is unclear, but its use during breastfeeding appears to be safe. Colchicine works by decreasing inflammation via multiple mechanisms.
Colchicine, in the form of the autumn crocus (Colchicum autumnale), was used as early as 1500 BC to treat joint swelling. It was approved for medical use in the United States in 1961. It is available as a generic medication. In 2021, it was the 184th most commonly prescribed medication in the United States, with more than 2 million prescriptions.
Colchicine is widely used in plant breeding to induce polyploidy, in which the number of chromosomes in plant cells are doubled. This frequently results in larger, hardier, faster-growing, and in general more desirable plants than the normally diploid parents.