Cefotaxime

Summary

Cefotaxime (CHEMBL1730) is an approved small-molecule antibacterial drug (ATC J01DD01); indicated across 5 conditions including bacterial infectious disease and infectious peritonitis.

At a glance

• Status: Approved (max clinical phase 4)
• Modality: Small molecule
• ATC class: J01DD01
• Indications: 5 conditions
• Clinical trials: 19
• Chemistry: 455.5 Da · C16H17N5O7S2

Identifiers

Drug identity and classification

Field	Value
ChEMBL ID	CHEMBL1730
Name	Cefotaxime
Type	Small molecule
Max phase	4
FDA approved	yes
PubChem CID	5742673
ChEBI	CHEBI:204928
ATC	J01DD01
Molecular formula	C16H17N5O7S2
Molecular weight	455.5
InChIKey	GPRBEKHLDVQUJE-QSWIMTSFSA-N

SMILES: CC(=O)OCC1=C(N2[C@@H]([C@@H](C2=O)NC(=O)/C(=N\OC)/C3=CSC(=N3)N)SC1)C(=O)O

IUPAC name: (6R,7R)-3-(acetyloxymethyl)-7-[[(2Z)-2-(2-amino-1,3-thiazol-4-yl)-2-methoxyiminoacetyl]amino]-8-oxo-5-thia-1-azabicyclo[4.2.0]oct-2-ene-2-carboxylic acid

ChEBI definition: A cephalosporin compound having acetoxymethyl and [2-(2-amino-1,3-thiazol-4-yl)-2-(methoxyimino)acetyl]amino side groups.

Pharmacological roles (ChEBI): antibacterial drug, drug allergen.

Also known as: Cefotaxim hikma, Cefotaxima, Cefotaxime, cefotaxime, cefotaxim, SID26753348, SID90340932, SID50105699, Cefotaxim, CEFOTAXIME

Parent form; salt/anhydrous children: CHEMBL1010

Patent coverage: 275 distinct patent families (480 SureChEMBL compound mentions), from 1 matched compound structure(s). Mentions count patents naming the compound (not distinct inventions), so promiscuous / reference molecules inflate the mention figure — families are the dedup metric.

Targets

Targets

Broader ChEMBL bioactivity targets: 9 (assay-derived). Sample: Microtubule-associated protein tau, Fructose-bisphosphate aldolase, 4’-phosphopantetheinyl transferase ffp, Solute carrier family 22 member 6, Organic anion transporter 3, Solute carrier family 22 member 11, Peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor gamma, Albumin, Nuclear receptor subfamily 1 group I member 2.

Bioactivity

ChEMBL activities: 3 potent at pChembl ≥ 5 of 10 total. Top 30 by potency (10 = 0.1 nM, 6 = 1 µM):

Target	pChembl	Type	Value	Unit	Activity ID
SLC22A8	6.54	Ki	290	nM	CHEMBL_ACT_11002273
SLC22A6	5.5	Ki	3130	nM	CHEMBL_ACT_11002858
SLC22A11	5.21	Ki	6150	nM	CHEMBL_ACT_11003211

Target pathways

No target-pathway data for this drug (no mapped target genes).

Indications & clinical

Indications

5 indications (1 at ChEMBL trial phase 4). Phase below is the highest clinical-trial phase recorded for this drug against each disease — not the molecule’s overall approval status (that is in the Summary).

Indication	Trial phase	MONDO	EFO
bacterial infectious disease	4	MONDO:0005113	EFO:0000771
infectious peritonitis	3	MONDO:0004522	EFO:0008588
appendicitis	2	MONDO:0005649	EFO:0007149
osteomyelitis	0	MONDO:0005246	EFO:0003102

1 further indication record had no mapped disease name (EFO/MeSH-only) or were duplicates, and are omitted.

Clinical trials

Total trials: 19.

Phase distribution

Phase	Trials
PHASE4	8
Not specified	5
PHASE3	3
PHASE1	2
PHASE2	1

Top trials by phase / activity

NCT	Phase	Status	Title
NCT06712641	PHASE4	RECRUITING	Aminoglycosides in Early Sepsis
NCT01265173	PHASE4	COMPLETED	Comparison of Efficacy of Cefotaxime, Ceftriaxone, and Ciprofloxacin for the Treatment of SBP in Patients With LC
NCT01559753	PHASE4	COMPLETED	Early-onset Ventilator-associated Pneumonia in Adults: Comparison of 8 Versus 15 Days of Antibiotic Treatment
NCT01820026	PHASE4	UNKNOWN	Empirical vs 2nd Line Antibiotic Therapy in Health-care Associated Infections in Cirrhosis
NCT02560207	PHASE4	COMPLETED	Randomized Trial of Continuous Versus Intermittent Cefotaxime Infusion on ICU.
NCT02959957	PHASE4	COMPLETED	Disturbance of the Intestinal Microbiota by Temocillin vs Cefotaxime in Treatment of Febrile Urinary Tract Infections
NCT03922919	PHASE4	UNKNOWN	Effect of Administration of 3rd Generation Cephalosporin on the Digestive Carrying of 3rd Generation Cephalosporin-resistant Enterobacteriaceae (CEF-IMPACT)
NCT05427747	PHASE4	UNKNOWN	Meropenem vs Cefotaxime as Empirical Treatment of SBP
NCT04168099	PHASE3	RECRUITING	Oral Gemifloxacin Versus Intravenous Cefotaxime in Treatment of Spontaneous Bacterial Peritonitis
NCT02443285	PHASE3	UNKNOWN	Is Spontaneous Bacterial Peritonitis Still Responding to 3rd Generation Cephalosporins?
NCT02659033	PHASE3	COMPLETED	Impact of the Choice of 3rd Generation Cephalosporins on the Emergence of Resistance in the Microbiota Intestinal.
NCT00469430	PHASE2	COMPLETED	Study of Conservative Versus Surgical Treatment of Appendicitis
NCT00187655	PHASE1	COMPLETED	Effect of, OAT3, on the Renal Secretion of Cefotaxime
NCT01059890	PHASE1	COMPLETED	Cerebral Antibiotics Distribution After Acute Brain Injury
NCT01828892	Not specified	UNKNOWN	Glue Application in the Treatment of Low-Output Fistulas
NCT02388035	Not specified	COMPLETED	Cefotaxime Resistance in Treatment of Spontaneous Bacterial Peritonitis
NCT02800785	Not specified	COMPLETED	The Comparison of Outcomes of Antibiotic Drugs and Appendectomy (CODA) Trial
NCT03903783	Not specified	COMPLETED	Impact of Cefotaxime and Ceftriaxone on the Emergence and Carrying of Multidrug-Resistant Bacteria
NCT05804123	Not specified	COMPLETED	LiveSpo Navax® Supports the Treatment of Acute Rhinosinusitis and Otitis Media

Clinical evidence (CIViC)

No CIViC predictive evidence (expected for non-precision-medicine drugs).

Pharmacology

Pharmacogenomics

No PharmGKB pharmacogenomic data curated for this drug.

Related molecules

Related molecules

No competitor molecules sharing a primary target (ChEMBL phase ≥2 or PubChem drug-class).