International nonproprietary name (revision 12)
Old revision·12:56, 17 Mar 2025·TirzTaxonomist
| International nonproprietary nameDrug nomenclature | |
|---|---|
| Abbreviation | INN |
| Assigned by | World Health Organization |
| Property | Public; not trademarkable |
| Structure | Random prefix plus a class stem |
| Topic infobox · conventions | |
An international nonproprietary name (INN) is the unique generic name assigned to a pharmaceutical substance by the World Health Organization. It is public property, cannot be trademarked, and is intended to be usable in any language.[1]
INNs are constructed from a distinctive prefix, chosen to be pronounceable and unlike existing names, and a stem indicating pharmacological class. The stem is the informative part: -glutide denotes a GLP-1 analogue, and -tide more broadly denotes a peptide.[1]
The name of a substance is therefore not arbitrary. Semaglutide, liraglutide, dulaglutide and tirzepatide all carry information about what kind of molecule they are, which is the point of the system.[1]
Stems relevant here
[edit]| Stem | Meaning | Examples |
|---|---|---|
| -tide | Peptide | Many |
| -glutide | GLP-1 analogue | Semaglutide, Liraglutide, Dulaglutide |
| -dutide | Dual or multi-receptor glucagon-family agonist | Survodutide, Efinopegdutide |
| -tirzepatide | Assigned individually | Tirzepatide |
| -glipron | Non-peptide GLP-1 receptor agonist | Orforglipron |
| -lintide | Amylin analogue | Cagrilintide |
The distinction between -glutide and -dutide encodes the difference between a GLP-1 analogue and a multi-receptor glucagon-family agonist, which is a real pharmacological distinction rather than a naming convenience. See Dual incretin agonist.[1]
Stems are extended and refined as classes proliferate, so a newly assigned name may use a stem that did not exist a decade earlier.[1]
Relationship to trade and chemical names
[edit]A substance has one INN, potentially several trade names, and a systematic chemical name that is unambiguous and unusable in conversation. The INN sits between them: unique, public, and short enough to speak.[1]
Trade names are trademarks, differ between jurisdictions, and are chosen for marketing rather than for information. A trade name conveys nothing about pharmacological class by design, since a trademark resembling an INN stem would be refused.
Development codes — LY3437943, BI 456906 — precede the INN and appear in the early literature. A compound may be discussed under a code, then an INN, then a trade name, and secondary sources do not always connect them. See Retatrutide and Survodutide.[1]