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Chemical substance record

Oxymetazoline

1491-59-4C16H24N2O260.381 g/mol
Organic/Inorganic Small MoleculeChEBI source record

A member of the class of phenols that is 2,4-dimethylphenol which is substituted at positions 3 and 6 by 4,5-dihydro-1H-imidazol-2-ylmethyl and tert-butyl groups, respectively. A direct-acting sympathomimetic with marked α-adrenergic activity, it is a vasoconstrictor that is used (generally as the hydrochloride salt) to relieve nasal congestion. — ChEBI

Safety references

Safety documents & references

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Identity & molecular properties

Source-linked values
CAS number1491-59-4ChEBI ↗
Molecular formulaC16H24N2OChEBI ↗
Molar mass260.381 g/molChEBI ↗
Monoisotopic mass260.18886 DaChEBI ↗
Formal charge0ChEBI ↗
ChEBI identifierCHEBI:7862ChEBI ↗

Cross-source molecular data

PubChem
Molar mass260.37 g/molPubChem ↗
Exact mass260.188863393 DaPubChem ↗
Computed XLogP2.9PubChem ↗
Topological polar surface area (Ų)44.6PubChem ↗
H-bond donors2PubChem ↗
H-bond acceptors2PubChem ↗
Rotatable bonds3PubChem ↗

PubChem computed values are shown separately from the ChEBI record. An exact InChIKey match was used to connect the records. Molecular descriptors do not describe a supplied product’s purity, particle size or performance.

Names & structural identifiers

Copy any identifier
oxymetazoline
6-tert-butyl-3-(4,5-dihydro-1H-imidazol-2-ylmethyl)-2,4-dimethylphenol
WYWIFABBXFUGLM-UHFFFAOYSA-N
Cc1cc(C(C)(C)C)c(O)c(C)c1CC1=NCCN1
InChI=1S/C16H24N2O/c1-10-8-13(16(3,4)5)15(19)11(2)12(10)9-14-17-6-7-18-14/h8,19H,6-7,9H2,1-5H3,(H,17,18)

Names & synonyms

6-tert-butyl-3-(4,5-dihydro-1H-imidazol-2-ylmethyl)-2,4-dimethylphenoloxymetazolinaoxymetazolinum

Names are supplied by ChEBI. Trade names and related synonyms may describe a broader product context.

Classification & relationships

ChEBI ontology
phenolsChEBI parent class · 33853 ↗carboxamidineChEBI parent class · 35359 ↗imidazolinesChEBI parent class · 53095 ↗
phenolsorganic heterocyclic compoundorganic molecular entity

Roles recorded in ChEBI

sympathomimetic agentalpha-adrenergic agonistvasoconstrictor agentophthalmology drugnasal decongestant

Database role annotations describe reported biological or chemical roles; they are not product approvals or recommendations for use.

Mass ↔ amount of substance

Calculated from sourced mass
Equivalent amount
0.00384053 mol

Uses 260.381 g/mol from ChEBI. Assumes the substance described by this record; no purity or concentration correction is applied.

Elemental composition

Theoretical mass fractions
C
Carbon · 16 atoms
73.81%
N
Nitrogen · 2 atoms
10.76%
H
Hydrogen · 24 atoms
9.29%
O
Oxygen · 1 atom
6.14%

Calculated theoretical mass fractions from the reported formula and PubChem periodic-table atomic masses. These are not assay or purity results.

Research & patent references

Selected source associations
Oxymetazoline in the treatment of posterior epistaxis. ↗Hawaii medical journal · 1999 Aug · PMID 10487000
In vitro metabolism of oxymetazoline: evidence for bioactivation to a reactive metabolite. ↗Drug metabolism and disposition: the biological fate of chemicals · 2011 Apr · PMID 21177487
DE1117588 · Patent reference ↗Patent cross-reference supplied by ChEBI. Association alone does not establish claim scope.
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Sources & record history

Checked 27 Sep 2026
EMBL-EBI ChEBI · CHEBI:7862

Release 255, 9 September 2026. ChEBI three-star (manually annotated) source entry. View original record ↗ · CC BY 4.0

NCBI PubChem · CID 4636 · retrieved 2026-09-27

PubCAS formats source data, connects references and computes explicitly labelled conversions. CAS cross-references are supplied by ChEBI; they do not constitute CAS verification or endorsement.

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