[1] Common side effects include allergic reactions, nausea, diarrhea, headache, trouble sleeping, and feeling tired.

The drug reaches its site of action only when hair or skin is replaced by the keratin-griseofulvin complex.

Griseofulvin then enters the dermatophyte through energy-dependent transport processes and binds to fungal microtubules.

This alters the processing for mitosis and also underlying information for deposition of fungal cell walls.

The 14-carbon poly-β-keto chain undergoes cyclization/aromatization, using cyclase/aromatase, respectively, through a Claisen and aldol condensation to form the benzophenone intermediate.

[14] The newly formed grisan skeleton with a spiro center is then O-methylated by SAM to generate dehydrogriseofulvin.