- Source: Tiratricol
Tiratricol (also known as TRIAC or triiodothyroacetic acid) is a thyroid hormone analogue. Triiodothyroacetic acid is also a physiologic thyroid hormone that is present in the normal organism in low concentrations. Tiratricol is an analogue of a naturally circulating metabolite of the active thyroid hormone T3. MCT8 is a specific thyroid hormone transporter. While T3 and T4 thyroid hormones rely on MCT8 to enter several tissues such as the brain, tiratricol can enter cells independently of MCT8. Once inside cells, tiratricol activates the thyroid hormone receptor in a similar way to endogenous T3.
The most common side effects are excessive sweating, irritability, anxiety and nightmares.
Medical uses
Tiratricol is indicated in the management of thyroid hormone resistance syndrome.
Society and culture
= Legal status
=Tiratricol is not approved for sale in Canada or the United States. It was once an approved medication in Brazil, but its marketing authorization was suspended in 2003, effectively prohibiting its sale. Tiratricol is available in France for therapy of thyroid hormone resistance and adjuvant therapy of thyroid cancer.
In December 2024, the Committee for Medicinal Products for Human Use of the European Medicines Agency adopted a positive opinion, recommending the granting of a marketing authorization for the medicinal product Emcitate, intended for the treatment of MCT8 deficiency (Allan-Herndon-Dudley syndrome). The applicant for this medicinal product is Rare Thyroid Therapeutics International AB. Emcitate is a hybrid medicine of Téatrois, which has been authorized in France. Emcitate contains the same active substance as Téatrois but has a different indication.
Research
Tiratricol has been investigated for use in reducing goiter.
It has also shown some effectiveness in reducing the atrophy caused when using corticosteroids.
Tiratricol has also been widely marketed, under various trade names, as a weight loss aid. In 1999 and 2000, the United States Food and Drug Administration and Health Canada both issued warnings to the public regarding the use of dietary supplements containing tiratricol.