๐๐๐๐๐ฏExcellent piece and subject matter. Always a pleasure reading your work Jennifer.๐
GRAS is given by the FDA and various regulatory bodies for a range of chemicals (roughly 900) that have been used for more than 60 years, by large section of the population or an industry. It really doesn't mean a great deal and includes some very questionable, and out right dangerous substances, like sodium aluminium.๐๐คฆโโ๏ธ but somehow "GRAS" was marketed to the public to mean safe and effective. I generally suggest peeps look into any substances themselves and determine their own conclusions. Especially as "The dose makes the poison", for the individual.
BUT, in this in instance, and because essential oils are not patentable, one can largely presume a certain level of safety. If only because they are not profitable for the industry๐
I didn't know about the olfactory information about the violets.๐๐
Makes complete sense re the melanocytes though- our mitochondria use these receptors to bisignal changes in the circaidian rhythms. Like, time to come put of the cave and move the tribe to the plains for summer๐
I would hazard a guess that the receptor in the eye evolved to help us search out the aromatics that help or hinder survival. Another environmental sensor, showing we were made for external life๐ BTJMO ๐ค
Thanks for this Jen. As I am right now in the midst of a 6 - 8" snowfall, my experience of outdoor spring smells will have to wait. So it's gonna be cedarwood / lavender in the diffuser for now! Have a great weekend ๐
Thanks NN. Pick a few if they are being snowed on anyway, another approach.
The endogenous aspect is a new rabbit hole to spend time exploring.
"The term ionone is derived from โionaโ (Greek for violet) which refers to the violet scent and โketoneโ due to its structure. Ionones can either be chemically synthesized or endogenously produced via asymmetric cleavage of ฮฒ-carotene by ฮฒ-carotene oxygenase 2 (BCO2)."
OR - olfactory receptors throughout the body make 'perfume' a potential health product.
"Further studies displayed that OR expression is not constrained to olfactory epithelium, however they are unexpectedly expressed in all human tissues studied to date such as colon, lung, ovary, liver, kidney, lymph node, heart, blood, testis, skeletal muscle, skin, adipose, adrenal, brain, breast, prostate, and thyroid. Over 40 different OR have been identified, which are found to be expressed in more than 45 different human tissues. This ectopic expression of OR suggests that the function of OR is more than odor detection and discrimination [45,52,53,54]. Studies reported various functions of ectopically expressed OR such as regulation of serotonin release in enterochromaffin cells [55], cancer cell proliferation [56], cytokinesis [57], blood pressure, enzyme secretion in kidneys [58,59] and sperm chemotaxis [60,61,62,63]."
Smelling violets to help regulate cancer cell proliferation...
"Violet scent (ionone) is currently used in many commercial products as its price is low. However, before the 1890s violet flower oil was considered the most precious of all essential oils. This is because the production of one kilogram of violet oil requires 33,000 kg of violet flowers [19], which cost approximately 82,500 German gold marks for raw materials. This costly procedure motivated many chemists and industries to find a cost-efficient way to synthesize this oil [20].
Thus in 1893, Tiemann and Krueger investigated the compound responsible for the scent of violets by studying orris root oil; a much cheaper oil with a similar odour principle [20,21]. They achieved the synthesis of ionone in two steps. First, they performed an aldol condensation of citral with acetone (dimethyl ketone) in an alkaline medium to produce pseudoionone. Then pseudoionone was cyclized to ionone upon exposure to acidic conditions (Scheme 1). The type and concentration of acid used determines the ratio of ฮฑ-ionone and ฮฒ-ionone produced in this reaction. For example, phosphoric, fumaric and other weaker acids mainly yield ฮฑ-ionone while concentrated sulfuric acid preferentially yields ฮฒ-ionone [22,23]. This synthesis marked the start of fragrance chemistry (Duftstoff-Chemie) [2]. Today the global usage of ฮฑ-ionone and ฮฒ-ionone is approximately between 100 and 1000 metric tons yearly [10,11]."
Unusual historical use of beta-ionone:
"Pinene is the major constituent of turpentine oil. The turpentine derived from the resin of terbenith tree had been widely used as a medicine and in wine as a preservative agent and taste enhancer. It was noticed that the consumption of turpentine oil alters the urine scent into violet. Anecdotally, turpentine oil was allegedly used by Cleopatra for this purpose. However, mixing turpentine oil with urine doesnโt confer the urine violet-like scent. It was assumed that ionone is the compound accountable for the scent of violet. Thus, it was concluded that pinene (the most prevalent compound in turpentine) should be converted into ionone and then the latter must be renally excreted to produce the violet scent of urine. "
Breaking news - men should sniff more violets or Osmanthus flowers - the main receptor for beta-ionone is widespread in various tissues but is in greatest concencentration in the prostate.
The receptor is called two names - 1) "Several studies showed that ionone binds to OR51E2 [45,49,56,64,65,66,67,68]." 2) "OR51E2 expression is augmented in prostate cancer [54,69]. Thus, it is also identified as prostate-specific G-protein-coupled receptor (PSGR) [45,54] and considered a marker for prostate tumor [70]. However, Cao et al. reported that PSGR expression was high in prostate intraepithelial neoplasia but decreased as the disease progressed to prostate cancer. In prostate cancer patients, low PSGR expression was found to be correlated with poor overall survival [66]."
Beta-ionone seems protective against cancer but not all prostate cancer studies showed similar benefit. It can increase metastasis. It can increase intracellular calcium because of linked TRPV or TRPM channels or calcium channels. That is seen with bitter taste receptors in functional locations too.
It helps other types of cancer by affecting p53 & mAPK.
conclusion
"ฮฒ-Ionone, whether of an endogenous or exogenous origin, possess anticancer, chemopreventive, cancer promoting, melanogenesis, anti-inflammatory and antimicrobial activity. ฮฒ-Ionone mediates these effects via activation of OR51E2 and modulation of HMG CoA reductase, cell cycle regulatory proteins, pro- and anti- apoptotic pathways, pro-inflammatory cytokines and anti-oxidant enzymes. The activation of OR51E2 causes regulation of the activity of various kinases and an increase in intracellular calcium. OR51E2 activation results in anti-proliferative effect and metastasis in prostate cancer cells, anti-proliferative effect and melanogenesis in melanocytes and proliferation and metastasis in retinal pigment epithelial cells."
Sweet little violet - revered by ancient kings. Like pomegranate.
JD - Leave the turpentine oil, "Turpentine oil is POSSIBLY SAFE when adults use it on their skin or inhale it appropriately....Turpentine oil is UNSAFE when taken by mouth or used over a large area of skin."
Take what makes it worthy... "Pinene is the major constituent of turpentine oil."
Pinene regarded as the most commonly found terpene in cannabis and the natural world. Also present in orange peel, dill, parsley, rosemary and basil.
๐๐๐๐๐ฏExcellent piece and subject matter. Always a pleasure reading your work Jennifer.๐
GRAS is given by the FDA and various regulatory bodies for a range of chemicals (roughly 900) that have been used for more than 60 years, by large section of the population or an industry. It really doesn't mean a great deal and includes some very questionable, and out right dangerous substances, like sodium aluminium.๐๐คฆโโ๏ธ but somehow "GRAS" was marketed to the public to mean safe and effective. I generally suggest peeps look into any substances themselves and determine their own conclusions. Especially as "The dose makes the poison", for the individual.
BUT, in this in instance, and because essential oils are not patentable, one can largely presume a certain level of safety. If only because they are not profitable for the industry๐
I didn't know about the olfactory information about the violets.๐๐
Makes complete sense re the melanocytes though- our mitochondria use these receptors to bisignal changes in the circaidian rhythms. Like, time to come put of the cave and move the tribe to the plains for summer๐
I would hazard a guess that the receptor in the eye evolved to help us search out the aromatics that help or hinder survival. Another environmental sensor, showing we were made for external life๐ BTJMO ๐ค
"Grandfathered in Regardless of Safety"
Yeah, but in this in case, I see a loophole - Food first! And flavor is part of food!
Thanks for this Jen. As I am right now in the midst of a 6 - 8" snowfall, my experience of outdoor spring smells will have to wait. So it's gonna be cedarwood / lavender in the diffuser for now! Have a great weekend ๐
I picked 3 daffodil because they were being snowed on, and now it has melted again, at least. Happy rewinter to you!
What a great article! Thank you for all the links too!๐๐๐ป
Thanks and you are very welcome ๐ค
JD - Excellent work on Beta-ionone, get out and smell the flowers indeed.
Thanks NN. Pick a few if they are being snowed on anyway, another approach.
The endogenous aspect is a new rabbit hole to spend time exploring.
"The term ionone is derived from โionaโ (Greek for violet) which refers to the violet scent and โketoneโ due to its structure. Ionones can either be chemically synthesized or endogenously produced via asymmetric cleavage of ฮฒ-carotene by ฮฒ-carotene oxygenase 2 (BCO2)."
OR - olfactory receptors throughout the body make 'perfume' a potential health product.
"Further studies displayed that OR expression is not constrained to olfactory epithelium, however they are unexpectedly expressed in all human tissues studied to date such as colon, lung, ovary, liver, kidney, lymph node, heart, blood, testis, skeletal muscle, skin, adipose, adrenal, brain, breast, prostate, and thyroid. Over 40 different OR have been identified, which are found to be expressed in more than 45 different human tissues. This ectopic expression of OR suggests that the function of OR is more than odor detection and discrimination [45,52,53,54]. Studies reported various functions of ectopically expressed OR such as regulation of serotonin release in enterochromaffin cells [55], cancer cell proliferation [56], cytokinesis [57], blood pressure, enzyme secretion in kidneys [58,59] and sperm chemotaxis [60,61,62,63]."
Smelling violets to help regulate cancer cell proliferation...
"Violet scent (ionone) is currently used in many commercial products as its price is low. However, before the 1890s violet flower oil was considered the most precious of all essential oils. This is because the production of one kilogram of violet oil requires 33,000 kg of violet flowers [19], which cost approximately 82,500 German gold marks for raw materials. This costly procedure motivated many chemists and industries to find a cost-efficient way to synthesize this oil [20].
Thus in 1893, Tiemann and Krueger investigated the compound responsible for the scent of violets by studying orris root oil; a much cheaper oil with a similar odour principle [20,21]. They achieved the synthesis of ionone in two steps. First, they performed an aldol condensation of citral with acetone (dimethyl ketone) in an alkaline medium to produce pseudoionone. Then pseudoionone was cyclized to ionone upon exposure to acidic conditions (Scheme 1). The type and concentration of acid used determines the ratio of ฮฑ-ionone and ฮฒ-ionone produced in this reaction. For example, phosphoric, fumaric and other weaker acids mainly yield ฮฑ-ionone while concentrated sulfuric acid preferentially yields ฮฒ-ionone [22,23]. This synthesis marked the start of fragrance chemistry (Duftstoff-Chemie) [2]. Today the global usage of ฮฑ-ionone and ฮฒ-ionone is approximately between 100 and 1000 metric tons yearly [10,11]."
Unusual historical use of beta-ionone:
"Pinene is the major constituent of turpentine oil. The turpentine derived from the resin of terbenith tree had been widely used as a medicine and in wine as a preservative agent and taste enhancer. It was noticed that the consumption of turpentine oil alters the urine scent into violet. Anecdotally, turpentine oil was allegedly used by Cleopatra for this purpose. However, mixing turpentine oil with urine doesnโt confer the urine violet-like scent. It was assumed that ionone is the compound accountable for the scent of violet. Thus, it was concluded that pinene (the most prevalent compound in turpentine) should be converted into ionone and then the latter must be renally excreted to produce the violet scent of urine. "
They walk you through the chemistry if interested in synthesis of beta-ionone. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7764282/
Breaking news - men should sniff more violets or Osmanthus flowers - the main receptor for beta-ionone is widespread in various tissues but is in greatest concencentration in the prostate.
The receptor is called two names - 1) "Several studies showed that ionone binds to OR51E2 [45,49,56,64,65,66,67,68]." 2) "OR51E2 expression is augmented in prostate cancer [54,69]. Thus, it is also identified as prostate-specific G-protein-coupled receptor (PSGR) [45,54] and considered a marker for prostate tumor [70]. However, Cao et al. reported that PSGR expression was high in prostate intraepithelial neoplasia but decreased as the disease progressed to prostate cancer. In prostate cancer patients, low PSGR expression was found to be correlated with poor overall survival [66]."
Beta-ionone seems protective against cancer but not all prostate cancer studies showed similar benefit. It can increase metastasis. It can increase intracellular calcium because of linked TRPV or TRPM channels or calcium channels. That is seen with bitter taste receptors in functional locations too.
It helps other types of cancer by affecting p53 & mAPK.
conclusion
"ฮฒ-Ionone, whether of an endogenous or exogenous origin, possess anticancer, chemopreventive, cancer promoting, melanogenesis, anti-inflammatory and antimicrobial activity. ฮฒ-Ionone mediates these effects via activation of OR51E2 and modulation of HMG CoA reductase, cell cycle regulatory proteins, pro- and anti- apoptotic pathways, pro-inflammatory cytokines and anti-oxidant enzymes. The activation of OR51E2 causes regulation of the activity of various kinases and an increase in intracellular calcium. OR51E2 activation results in anti-proliferative effect and metastasis in prostate cancer cells, anti-proliferative effect and melanogenesis in melanocytes and proliferation and metastasis in retinal pigment epithelial cells."
Sweet little violet - revered by ancient kings. Like pomegranate.
JD - Spectacular. That comment is deserving of its own pheromone & exosome laced missive.
I agree. I thought that as I gathered the excerpts. ๐ค๐ฑ
Is turpentine oil safe? Appears to be yes https://www.rxlist.com/supplements/turpentine_oil.htm#:~:text=Turpentine%20oil%20is%20applied%20to,is%20used%20as%20a%20flavoring.
JD - Leave the turpentine oil, "Turpentine oil is POSSIBLY SAFE when adults use it on their skin or inhale it appropriately....Turpentine oil is UNSAFE when taken by mouth or used over a large area of skin."
Take what makes it worthy... "Pinene is the major constituent of turpentine oil."
Pinene regarded as the most commonly found terpene in cannabis and the natural world. Also present in orange peel, dill, parsley, rosemary and basil.
Brings this to mind... https://youtu.be/c_T7HgZKZjo?t=60
https://leafwell.com/blog/pinene
I love that song and hadn't heard the version with the third voice added in a round, so lovely. Thanks NN
I have been enjoying Dill. I was given a bottle.
Checking safety was more about what to mention in a blog. Wise or unwise? Precautions?
Frances Leader Judy wrote about it for antiparasitic treatment. I mentioned the violet trivia. Thanks NN I have not looked at the links yet.
What a very informative article Jennifer. Thank you! ๐
Also, thanks for that recent link to Pioneer Books. I picked up that copy of Medical Aromatherapy.
Great book and quick shipping from Pioneer. I will utilize them again. Have a lovely weekend!
Very welcome and I hope you have a nice weekend!
I do like that book.