Sumatriptan vs Naratriptan: what is the difference?

How they differ

Both are triptans, agonists at serotonin 5-HT1B and 1D receptors, and both act on migraine by constricting cranial vessels and damping the trigeminal signalling that carries the pain. Sumatriptan was the first of the class and acts fast; naratriptan is slower to take effect and lasts considerably longer, with a half-life around 6 hours against sumatriptan's 2.5. That makes naratriptan the one aimed at long or recurring attacks and sumatriptan the one aimed at speed. Naratriptan is also generally the better tolerated of the two, with fewer reports of the chest tightness triptans are known for. Sumatriptan is available over the counter in some countries and naratriptan mostly is not.

Side by side

Structural similarity 0.42 of 1, computed as a Morgan fingerprint Tanimoto coefficient. It measures shape, not effect.

Common questions

What is the difference between Sumatriptan and Naratriptan?

Both are triptans, agonists at serotonin 5-HT1B and 1D receptors, and both act on migraine by constricting cranial vessels and damping the trigeminal signalling that carries the pain. Sumatriptan was the first of the class and acts fast; naratriptan is slower to take effect and lasts considerably longer, with a half-life around 6 hours against sumatriptan's 2.5. That makes naratriptan the one aimed at long or recurring attacks and sumatriptan the one aimed at speed.

Is Sumatriptan bigger than Naratriptan?

Naratriptan is the heavier molecule, 335.5 g/mol against 295.4 g/mol for Sumatriptan. Sumatriptan is C14H21N3O2S and Naratriptan is C17H25N3O2S.