General Description
Synonyms: 1-Mercaptoglycerol; 1-mercapto-2,3-propanediol; monothioglycerin; a-monothioglycerol; thioglycerin; 1-thioglycerol.
Description: Monothioglycerol occurs as a colorless or pale-yellow colored, viscous, hygroscopic liquid with a slight odor of sulfide.
Chemical Name: 3-Mercapto-1,2-propanediol
Functions
Antimicrobial preservative; antioxidant.
Uses
Monothioglycerol is used as an antioxidant in pharmaceutical formulations, mainly in parenteral preparations.
Monothioglycerol is reported to have some antimicrobial activity.
It is also widely used in cosmetic formulations such as depilating agents.
Therapeutically, monothioglycerol has been used in a 0.02% w/w aqueous solution to stimulate wound healing, and as a 0.1% w/w jelly in atrophic rhinitis.
Incompatibilities
Monothioglycerol can react with oxidizing materials.
Safety
Monothioglycerol is generally regarded as a relatively nontoxic and nonirritant material at the concentrations used as a pharmaceutical excipient. It is used in topical and injectable preparations
Handling Precautions
Observe normal precautions appropriate to the circumstances and quantity of material handled. Monothioglycerol is flammable when exposed to heat or flame; when heated to decomposition it emits toxic fumes of SOx.