nepetalactonen.
/nᵻˌpiːtəˈlaktəʊn/, U.S. /nəˌpidəˈlækˌtoʊn/ Chemistry.
A monoterpenoid lactone containing a methylcyclopentane ring, C10H14O2, which is found in some plants of the mint family (esp. the catmint Nepeta cataria), and has a scent that is strongly attractive to many cats and repellent to many insects.Naturally occurring nepetalactone is a mixture of cis-trans and trans-cis isomers.
ΚΠ
1941 S. M. McElwain et al. in Jrnl. Amer. Chem. Soc. 63 1560/1 The unsaturated lactone X, for which the name, nepetalactone, is proposed, is a limpid liquid with a mint-like odor that boils at 71–72° (0.05mm.).
1964 Science 4 Dec. 1318/3 When a droplet of nepetalactone was placed on the trail, the ants stopped abruptly.
1974 M. W. Fox Understanding your Cat v. 109 Catnip (containing the chemical cis-trans-nepetalactone) has been thought to be a feline aphrodisiac.
1987 New Scientist 24 Dec. 43/1 In the early 1940s, biochemists extracted this substance from oil of catnip and discovered that nepetalactone carried the odour of the plant.
1999 New Scientist 28 Aug. 22/1 Catnip contains two forms of nepetalactone, with the same atoms arranged in different configurations.
This is a new entry (OED Third Edition, September 2003; most recently modified version published online March 2022).
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