Pharmacodynamics
Afoxolaner is an insecticide and acaricide belonging to the isoxazoline family. Afoxolaner acts at ligand-gated chloride channels, in particular those gated by the neurotransmitter gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA), thereby blocking pre- and post-synaptic transfer of chloride ions across cell membranes. This results in uncontrolled activity of the central nervous system and death of insects or acarines. The selective toxicity of afoxolaner between insect/acarines and mammals may be inferred by the differential sensitivity of the insect/acarines’ GABA receptors versus mammalian receptors.
Afoxolaner is active against adult fleas as well as several tick species such as Dermacentor reticulatus and D. variabilis, Ixodes ricinus, Ixodes hexagonus and I. scapularis, Rhipicephalus sanguineus, Amblyomma americanum, Haemaphysalis longicornis, and Hyalomma marginatum.
The veterinary medicinal product kills fleas within 8 hours and ticks within 48h.
The veterinary medicinal product kills fleas before egg production and therefore prevents household contamination.