Knowra Coumarin Coumarin Coumarin is a naturally occurring aromatic organic compound found in many plants. Its sweet, hay-like scent has made it useful in fragrances, while its use as a food flavoring is restricted in many countries.
Benzopyrone : Benzopyrones are compounds built from a benzene ring fused to a pyrone ring. Coumarin is the simplest member of this structural family.
Perfumery : Perfumery is the art and industry of composing fragrant products from aromatic materials. Coumarin is a familiar sweet, warm fragrance ingredient, especially in fougère accords.
Phenylpropanoid pathway : The phenylpropanoid pathway converts phenylalanine into diverse plant compounds, including pigments, defenses, and fragrances. Plant coumarin production draws on this broader route of aromatic compound biosynthesis.
Melilotus : Melilotus is a genus of flowering plants, commonly called sweetclovers, that contain coumarin. Sweetclover’s characteristic aroma helped lead to coumarin’s discovery.
Toxicology : Toxicology studies the harmful effects of chemicals on living organisms and how those effects depend on exposure. Coumarin’s risks depend on dose, duration, and individual susceptibility.
Lactone : A lactone is a cyclic ester formed by an intramolecular reaction of a hydroxy acid. Coumarin’s oxygen-containing ring is a lactone.
Fougère : Fougère is a perfume family traditionally built around lavender, oakmoss, and coumarin-like notes. Coumarin helps give this fragrance family its characteristic sweet, hay-like base.
Phenylalanine : Phenylalanine is an essential amino acid and a starting material for many plant phenylpropanoids. Plants can channel it into the precursors used to make coumarin.
Dipteryx odorata : Dipteryx odorata is a tropical tree whose seeds are known as tonka beans. Its coumarin-rich seeds were an early commercial source of the compound.
Acceptable daily intake : An acceptable daily intake is an estimate of a substance’s amount that can be consumed daily over a lifetime without appreciable health risk. Food regulators use an intake limit to manage coumarin exposure.
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