MOLECULE

alpha-Cadinene

Alpha-Cadinene, also known as Cadinene, belongs to the class of organic compounds known as sesquiterpenoids. Alpha-cadinene is a naturally occurring sesquiterpene found in trace amounts in cannabis plants (PMID: 6991645). Sesquiterpenes are terpenes that contain 15 carbon atoms and are comprised of three isoprene units. The biosynthesis of sesquiterpenes is known to occur mainly through the mevalonic acid pathway (MVA), in the cytosol. However, recent studies have found evidence of pathway crosstalk with the methyl-eritritol-phosphate (MEP) pathway in the plastid (PMID: 19932496, 17710406). Farnesyl diphosphate (FPP) is a key intermediate in the biosynthesis of cyclic sesquiterpenes. FPP undergoes several cyclization reactions to yield a diverse number of cyclic arrangements. Alpha-Cadinene is possibly neutral. Alpha-Cadinene is a colorless liquid with a woody dry odor. It is one of the four isomers of Cadinene including β-Cadinene, γ-Cadinene and δ-Cadinene. Cadinene is the trivial chemical name of a number of isomeric hydrocarbons that occur in a wide variety of essential oil-producing plants.