MOLECULE

alpha-Methylcinnamaldehyde

α-Methylcinnamaldehyde belongs to the class of organic compounds known as cinnamaldehydes. These are organic aromatic compounds containing a cinnamlaldehyde moiety, consisting of a benzene and an aldehyde group to form 3-phenylprop-2-enal. α-Methylcinnamaldehyde has a cinnamon, balsamic odor with a spicy, sweet and woody taste. α-Methylcinnamaldehyde is a methylated, more stable, derivative of cinnamaldehyde. Cinnamaldehyde is a pale yellow, viscous liquid which occurs in the bark of cinnamon trees and other species of the genus Cinnamomum. The essential oil of cinnamon bark is about 90 % cinnamaldehyde. Cinnamaldehyde was first isolated from cinnamon essential oil in 1834 and was first synthesized in the laboratory by the Italian chemist Luigi Chiozza in 1854. α-Methylcinnamaldehyde has also been detected in the volatile fraction of Cannabis sativa samples obtained from police seizures (PMID: 26657499)