Ulipristal Acetate

Summary

Ulipristal Acetate (CHEMBL260538) is an approved small-molecule contraceptive drug targeting PGR; indicated across 11 conditions including uterine corpus leiomyoma and leiomyoma.

At a glance

• Status: Approved (max clinical phase 4)
• Modality: Small molecule
• Targets: 1 (PGR)
• Indications: 11 conditions
• Clinical trials: 56
• Chemistry: 475.6 Da · C30H37NO4

Identifiers

Drug identity and classification

Field	Value
ChEMBL ID	CHEMBL260538
Name	Ulipristal Acetate
Type	Small molecule
Max phase	4
FDA approved	yes
PubChem CID	130904
ChEBI	CHEBI:71025
Molecular formula	C30H37NO4
Molecular weight	475.6
InChIKey	OOLLAFOLCSJHRE-ZHAKMVSLSA-N

SMILES: CC(=O)[C@]1(CC[C@@H]2[C@@]1(C[C@@H](C3=C4CCC(=O)C=C4CC[C@@H]23)C5=CC=C(C=C5)N(C)C)C)OC(=O)C

IUPAC name: [(8S,11R,13S,14S,17R)-17-acetyl-11-[4-(dimethylamino)phenyl]-13-methyl-3-oxo-1,2,6,7,8,11,12,14,15,16-decahydrocyclopenta[a]phenanthren-17-yl] acetate

ChEBI definition: A 20-oxo steroid obtained by acetylation of the 17-hydroxy group of (11β,17α)-17-acetyl-11-[4-(dimethylamino)phenyl]-3-oxoestra-4,9-dien-17-ol (ulipristal). A selective progesterone receptor modulator, which is employed as an emergency contraceptive.

Pharmacological roles (ChEBI): contraceptive drug, progestin, progesterone receptor modulator.

Also known as: CDB-2914, Ella, Ellaone, Esmya, PGL-4001, Ulipristal acet, Ulipristal acetate, Ulipristal acetate gedeon richter, VA-2914, VA2914, uliprisnil acetate, ULIPRISTAL ACETATE

Patent coverage: 289 distinct patent families (793 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

Primary targets (GtoPdb curated mechanism): the Cancer dependency column is the DepMap CRISPR fitness signal (% of screened cell lines dependent on the target).

Gene	Target	Action	pAffinity	Cancer dependency	UniProt
PGR	Progesterone receptor	Partial agonist	7	0.1%	P06401

Broader ChEMBL bioactivity targets: 4 (assay-derived). Sample: Androgen receptor, Estrogen receptor, Progesterone receptor, Mu-type opioid receptor.

Bioactivity

ChEMBL activities: 4 potent at pChembl ≥ 5 of 5 total. Top 30 by potency (10 = 0.1 nM, 6 = 1 µM):

Target	pChembl	Type	Value	Unit	Activity ID
PGR	9.7	IC50	0.2	nM	CHEMBL_ACT_2141345
PGR	8.52	AC50	3	nM	CHEMBL_ACT_25204425
AR	7.52	AC50	30	nM	CHEMBL_ACT_25203492
ESR1	5.03	AC50	9290	nM	CHEMBL_ACT_25138992

Target pathways

Aggregated over 1 target gene(s): PGR.

Top Reactome pathways

7 total, by targets touching each:

Pathway	Targets	Genes
Nuclear signaling by ERBB4	1	PGR
HSP90 chaperone cycle for steroid hormone receptors (SHR) in the presence of ligand	1	PGR
Nuclear Receptor transcription pathway	1	PGR
SUMOylation of intracellular receptors	1	PGR
Estrogen-dependent gene expression	1	PGR
Developmental Lineage of Mammary Gland Luminal Epithelial Cells	1	PGR
Developmental Lineage of Mammary Gland Alveolar Cells	1	PGR

Dominant GO biological processes

GO term	Targets
ovulation from ovarian follicle	1
glandular epithelial cell maturation	1
regulation of DNA-templated transcription	1
regulation of transcription by RNA polymerase II	1
signal transduction	1
cell-cell signaling	1
positive regulation of gene expression	1
negative regulation of gene expression	1
nuclear receptor-mediated steroid hormone signaling pathway	1
paracrine signaling	1
positive regulation of transcription by RNA polymerase II	1
lung alveolus development	1
regulation of epithelial cell proliferation	1
progesterone receptor signaling pathway	1
maintenance of protein location in nucleus	1

Indications & clinical

Indications

11 indications (4 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
uterine corpus leiomyoma	4	MONDO:0007886	EFO:0000731
leiomyoma	4	MONDO:0001572	MONDO:0001572
adenomyosis	2	MONDO:0010888	EFO:1001757
breast neoplasm	2	MONDO:0021100	MONDO:0007254
depressive disorder	2	MONDO:0002050	MONDO:0002050
premenstrual tension	2	MONDO:0004169	MONDO:0004169
Charcot-Marie-Tooth disease	2	MONDO:0015626	MONDO:0007309

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

Clinical trials

Total trials: 56.

Phase distribution

Phase	Trials
PHASE4	18
PHASE2	12
PHASE3	9
Not specified	7
PHASE1	5
EARLY_PHASE1	3
PHASE2/PHASE3	1
PHASE1/PHASE2	1

Top trials by phase / activity

NCT	Phase	Status	Title
NCT05674513	PHASE4	RECRUITING	Disparities in Emergency Contraceptive Metabolism Dictate Efficacy
NCT01569113	PHASE4	COMPLETED	Assessment of Effects on Ovarian Activity of a Combined Oral Contraceptive Pill When Preceded by the Intake of ellaOne® or Placebo.
NCT02213081	PHASE4	COMPLETED	Ulipristal for Endometriosis-related Pelvic Pain
NCT02288130	PHASE4	UNKNOWN	Ulipristal vs. GnRHa Prior to Laparoscopic Myomectomy
NCT02357563	PHASE4	UNKNOWN	Ulipristal Acetate Versus GnRH Analogue and Myometrial Preservation
NCT02361879	PHASE4	UNKNOWN	Ulipristal Acetate Versus GnRH Analogue Treatment Before Hysteroscopic Resection of Uterine Leiomyoma
NCT02361892	PHASE4	UNKNOWN	The Effect of Ulipristal Acetate (UPA) on Women Ovarian Reserve
NCT02361905	PHASE4	UNKNOWN	Ulipristal Acetate for the Preoperative Management of Hypoechoic Cellular Leiomyomas
NCT02440750	PHASE4	UNKNOWN	Endometrial Preparation Before Operative Hysteroscopy in Premenopausal Women
NCT02577601	PHASE4	COMPLETED	Impact of Combined Hormonal Contraceptives on UPA
NCT02601196	PHASE4	UNKNOWN	IVF Outcome Following Treatment With Ulipristal Acetate for Myomatous Uterus After at Least One IVF Failure
NCT02825719	PHASE4	TERMINATED	Ulipristal Use in Chinese Population
NCT03186586	PHASE4	UNKNOWN	Ulipristal Versus Placebo for Women With Bleeding Induced by Mirena
NCT03325868	PHASE4	WITHDRAWN	Effect of Ulipristal Acetate on Bleeding Patterns and Dysmenorrhea in Women With Adenomyosis
NCT03537768	PHASE4	TERMINATED	Study Comparing Emergency Contraception Effectiveness in Women Who Weight ≥ 80 kg
NCT04132349	PHASE4	TERMINATED	Ulipristal Acetate in Symptomatic Uterine Fibroid
NCT04832906	PHASE4	COMPLETED	UA Versus UAE in Treatment of Fibroids
NCT04989400	PHASE4	COMPLETED	Use of Ulipristal Acetate in Induction of Second Trimester Missed Abortion
NCT06727734	PHASE3	RECRUITING	Levonorgestrel-piroxicam Versus Ulipristal Acetate for Emergency Contraception
NCT00271583	PHASE2/PHASE3	COMPLETED	Efficacy Trial of CDB 2914 for Emergency Contraception
NCT00411684	PHASE3	COMPLETED	Safety and Efficacy of CDB-2914 for Emergency Contraception
NCT00551616	PHASE3	COMPLETED	Safety and Efficacy of CDB-2914 in Comparison to Levonorgestrel for Emergency Contraception
NCT01553123	PHASE3	WITHDRAWN	Efficacy and Safety Study of Ulipristal Acetate in Females With Anemia Associated With Uterine Leiomyoma
NCT01642472	PHASE3	COMPLETED	PGL4001 Efficacy Assessment in Reduction of Symptoms Due to Uterine Leiomyomata
NCT02147158	PHASE3	COMPLETED	A Study of the Efficacy and Safety of Ulipristal Acetate Intermittent Treatment for Abnormal Uterine Bleeding Associated With Leiomyomas
NCT02147197	PHASE3	COMPLETED	A Study of the Efficacy and Safety of a 3-month Treatment Course of Ulipristal Acetate for the Treatment of Abnormal Uterine Bleeding Associated With Leiomyomas
NCT02425878	PHASE3	TERMINATED	Ulipristal Acetate 10 mg and Asisted Reproduction
NCT03118297	PHASE3	COMPLETED	Intervention to End Recurrent Unscheduled Bleeding Trial
NCT07434128	PHASE2	NOT_YET_RECRUITING	Mammogram Pretreatment With Ulipristal Acetate
NCT00044876	PHASE2	COMPLETED	Treatment of Uterine Fibroids With CDB-2914, an Experimental Selective Progesterone Receptor Antagonist
NCT00290251	PHASE2	COMPLETED	Treatment of Uterine Fibroids With the Selective Progesterone Receptor Modulator CDB-2914
NCT00456924	PHASE2	COMPLETED	Low Dose Continuous Administration of the Progesterone Receptor Modulator VA2914
NCT00791297	PHASE2	COMPLETED	Study to Evaluate the Safety and Efficacy of Two Contraceptive Vaginal Rings Delivering a Daily Dose of 1500 or 2500 μg of CDB-2914
NCT01953679	PHASE2	COMPLETED	Efficacy Study of Two Continuous Regimens of Oral Daily 5 mg or 10 mg of Ulipristal Acetate (UPA), Versus a Dose of 5.0mg UPA for 24/4 Days
NCT02408770	PHASE2	COMPLETED	Breast Cancer - Anti-Progestin Prevention Study 1
NCT02451826	PHASE1/PHASE2	UNKNOWN	A Study to Evaluate the Effect of a Contraceptive Vaginal Ring Delivering Ulipristal Acetate Combined With a Single or Repeated Levonorgestrel on Inhibition of Ovulation, Endometrial Changes and Bleeding Patterns in Normal Cycling Women
NCT02465814	PHASE2	COMPLETED	Assess Safety and Efficacy of Vilaprisan in Patients With Uterine Fibroids
NCT02587000	PHASE2	COMPLETED	Adenomyosis and Ulipristal Acetate
NCT02600286	PHASE2	TERMINATED	Ulipristal Acetate In Disease Charcot-Marie-Tooth Type of 1A
NCT03296098	PHASE2	WITHDRAWN	Study of the Safety and Efficacy of Ulipristal Acetate (UPA) Used Daily as a Contraceptive

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

Molecules sharing ≥1 of this drug’s curated primary targets, merged from two biobtree sources and ranked by shared-target count, then clinical phase: ChEMBL clinical-stage candidates (development phase ≥2) and PubChem drug-class bioactivity (approved / known drugs acting on the target). Deduplicated by drug name; the drug’s own salt forms are excluded. Note: for a drug with few primary targets a shared-target match can reflect off-target / promiscuous binding rather than the same therapeutic mechanism — the phase ordering surfaces bona-fide therapeutics first.

290 molecules share ≥1 primary target. Top 60 by shared-target count:

Molecule	Source	Status	Shared targets
FIDAXOMICIN	ChEMBL + PubChem	Phase 4 (approved)	PGR
FULVESTRANT	ChEMBL + PubChem	Phase 4 (approved)	PGR
GENTIAN VIOLET	ChEMBL + PubChem	Phase 4 (approved)	PGR
ABIRATERONE	ChEMBL	Phase 4 (approved)	PGR
ACETYLCHOLINE	ChEMBL	Phase 4 (approved)	PGR
ADAPALENE	ChEMBL	Phase 4 (approved)	PGR
ALCLOMETASONE DIPROPIONATE	ChEMBL	Phase 4 (approved)	PGR
ALECTINIB	ChEMBL	Phase 4 (approved)	PGR
AMCINONIDE	ChEMBL	Phase 4 (approved)	PGR
APOMORPHINE	ChEMBL	Phase 4 (approved)	PGR
ARFORMOTEROL	ChEMBL	Phase 4 (approved)	PGR
ARIPIPRAZOLE	ChEMBL	Phase 4 (approved)	PGR
AZATHIOPRINE	ChEMBL	Phase 4 (approved)	PGR
BECLOMETHASONE DIPROPIONATE	ChEMBL	Phase 4 (approved)	PGR
BENPERIDOL	ChEMBL	Phase 4 (approved)	PGR
BENZBROMARONE	ChEMBL	Phase 4 (approved)	PGR
BENZIODARONE	ChEMBL	Phase 4 (approved)	PGR
BETAMETHASONE	ChEMBL	Phase 4 (approved)	PGR
BETAMETHASONE DIPROPIONATE	ChEMBL	Phase 4 (approved)	PGR
BETAMETHASONE VALERATE	ChEMBL	Phase 4 (approved)	PGR
BEXAROTENE	ChEMBL	Phase 4 (approved)	PGR
BICALUTAMIDE	ChEMBL	Phase 4 (approved)	PGR
BIFONAZOLE	ChEMBL	Phase 4 (approved)	PGR
BITHIONOL	ChEMBL	Phase 4 (approved)	PGR
BOSUTINIB	ChEMBL	Phase 4 (approved)	PGR
BUDESONIDE	ChEMBL	Phase 4 (approved)	PGR
BUTOCONAZOLE	ChEMBL	Phase 4 (approved)	PGR
CABOZANTINIB	ChEMBL	Phase 4 (approved)	PGR
CALCIPOTRIENE	ChEMBL	Phase 4 (approved)	PGR
CALCITRIOL	ChEMBL	Phase 4 (approved)	PGR
CANDESARTAN CILEXETIL	ChEMBL	Phase 4 (approved)	PGR
CANRENONE	ChEMBL	Phase 4 (approved)	PGR
CARBARIL	ChEMBL	Phase 4 (approved)	PGR
CASPOFUNGIN	ChEMBL	Phase 4 (approved)	PGR
CEFAMANDOLE	ChEMBL	Phase 4 (approved)	PGR
CEFMENOXIME	ChEMBL	Phase 4 (approved)	PGR
CEFTAZIDIME	ChEMBL	Phase 4 (approved)	PGR
CEFTIZOXIME	ChEMBL	Phase 4 (approved)	PGR
CEFTRIAXONE	ChEMBL	Phase 4 (approved)	PGR
CEFUROXIME	ChEMBL	Phase 4 (approved)	PGR
CEPHRADINE	ChEMBL	Phase 4 (approved)	PGR
CHLORHEXIDINE	ChEMBL	Phase 4 (approved)	PGR
CHLORMADINONE	ChEMBL	Phase 4 (approved)	PGR
CHOLECALCIFEROL	ChEMBL	Phase 4 (approved)	PGR
CICLESONIDE	ChEMBL	Phase 4 (approved)	PGR
CLOBETASOL PROPIONATE	ChEMBL	Phase 4 (approved)	PGR
CLOCORTOLONE PIVALATE	ChEMBL	Phase 4 (approved)	PGR
CLOMIPHENE	ChEMBL	Phase 4 (approved)	PGR
CYCLOFENIL	ChEMBL	Phase 4 (approved)	PGR
DANAZOL	ChEMBL	Phase 4 (approved)	PGR
DAUNORUBICIN	ChEMBL	Phase 4 (approved)	PGR
DEFLAZACORT	ChEMBL	Phase 4 (approved)	PGR
DEQUALINIUM	ChEMBL	Phase 4 (approved)	PGR
DESOGESTREL	ChEMBL	Phase 4 (approved)	PGR
DESONIDE	ChEMBL	Phase 4 (approved)	PGR
DESOXIMETASONE	ChEMBL	Phase 4 (approved)	PGR
DESOXYCORTICOSTERONE PIVALATE	ChEMBL	Phase 4 (approved)	PGR
DEXAMETHASONE	ChEMBL	Phase 4 (approved)	PGR
DIETHYLPROPION	ChEMBL	Phase 4 (approved)	PGR
DIETHYLSTILBESTROL	ChEMBL	Phase 4 (approved)	PGR