Article · Wikipedia archive · Last revised Jun 11, 2026

Testosterone palmitate

Testosterone palmitate, also known as testosterone hexadecanoate, testosterone 17β-palmitate, and androst-4-en-17β-ol-3-one 17β-palmitate, is an anabolic-androgenic steroid (AAS) and an androgen ester – specifically, the C17β palmitate (hexadecanoate) ester of testosterone – which was never marketed. It is a prodrug of testosterone and, when administered via intramuscular injection, is associated with a long-lasting depot effect and extended duration of action.

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Jun 11, 2026
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Testosterone palmitate
Clinical data
Other namesTestosterone hexadecanoate; Testosterone 17β-palmitate; Androst-4-en-17β-ol-3-one 17β-palmitate
Routes of
administration		Oral, intramuscular injection
Identifiers
  • [(8R,9S,10R,13S,14S,17S)-10,13-Dimethyl-3-oxo-1,2,6,7,8,9,11,12,14,15,16,17-dodecahydrocyclopenta[a]phenanthren-17-yl] hexadecanoate
CAS Number
PubChem CID
ChemSpider
UNII
CompTox Dashboard (EPA)
Chemical and physical data
FormulaC35H58O3
Molar mass526.846 g·mol−1
3D model (JSmol)
  • CCCCCCCCCCCCCCCC(=O)O[C@H]1CC[C@@H]2[C@@]1(CC[C@H]3[C@H]2CCC4=CC(=O)CC[C@]34C)C
  • InChI=1S/C35H58O3/c1-4-5-6-7-8-9-10-11-12-13-14-15-16-17-33(37)38-32-21-20-30-29-19-18-27-26-28(36)22-24-34(27,2)31(29)23-25-35(30,32)3/h26,29-32H,4-25H2,1-3H3/t29-,30-,31-,32-,34-,35-/m0/s1
  • Key:OKFBXYQPCPWWRP-SHDAAXGTSA-N

Testosterone palmitate, also known as testosterone hexadecanoate, testosterone 17β-palmitate, and androst-4-en-17β-ol-3-one 17β-palmitate, is an anabolic-androgenic steroid (AAS) and an androgen ester – specifically, the C17β palmitate (hexadecanoate) ester of testosterone – which was never marketed.123 It is a prodrug of testosterone and, when administered via intramuscular injection, is associated with a long-lasting depot effect and extended duration of action.1

Testosterone palmitate is a longer-chain ester of testosterone compared to testosterone undecanoate.1 Relative to testosterone undecanoate, testosterone palmitate shows higher oral bioavailability.1 However, no free testosterone was observed after administration of testosterone palmitate, suggesting that it is not hydrolyzed as efficiently as testosterone undecanoate.1 On the other hand, another study found that testosterone palmitate was hydrolyzed in humans.4

See also

See also

References

References

  1. Touitou E, Barry BW (27 November 2006). Enhancement in Drug Delivery. CRC Press. pp. 122–. ISBN 978-1-4200-0481-6.
  2. Josephy E, Radt F (1 December 2013). Elsevier's Encyclopaedia of Organic Chemistry: Series III: Carboisocyclic Condensed Compounds. Springer. pp. 3048–. ISBN 978-3-662-25863-7.
  3. United States. Environmental Protection Agency. Office of Toxic Substances (1977). Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA): PL 94-469 : Candidate List of Chemical Substances. Environmental Protection Agency, Office of Toxic Substances. pp. 315–.
  4. Dissertation Abstracts International: The sciences and engineering. University Microfilms. 1990. p. 4857.