alpha-Cadinol is a sesquiterpene alcohol found in several wood and leaf oils, especially hinoki and other cadinol-rich profiles. Its evidence base is stronger than many trace constituents but still mostly preclinical: current sources connect alpha-cadinol with anti-inflammatory cell work, antimicrobial and antimite findings, and a recent in vitro plus in silico ACE-focused paper. Those results are useful for archive context, but they remain early-stage and should not be translated into medical claims.
Chemical identity and composition
PubChem lists alpha-cadinol as CID 10398656 with formula C15H26O and IUPAC name (1R,4S,4aR,8aR)-1,6-dimethyl-4-propan-2-yl-3,4,4a,7,8,8a-hexahydro-2H-naphthalen-1-ol. Synonym data include (-)-alpha-cadinol, l-alpha-cadinol, and Pilgerol. Within the archive, hinoki essential oil lists alpha-cadinol at 12.53%, and leleshwa-camphor-bush lists it at 5.2%, confirming it as more than a trace occurrence marker.
Aroma and practical use
- Use the recorded woody, cedar-like, warm, balsamic descriptors to explore a blend's scent character; perceived strength also depends on the other ingredients.
- Review the flagged use concerns across every contributing oil and the selected dilution.
- Read the route, preparation and experimental context before using a study finding to choose an oil.
Reported benefits and effects
Findings retain their study context. An animal or laboratory result describes that experiment.
A Pharm Biol study reported that T-cadinol and alpha-cadinol were responsible for the nitric-oxide inhibitory activity of the mixed-type Cinnamomum osmophloeum leaf oil in LPS-activated RAW 264.7 macrophages.
A Pharm Biol study reported that T-cadinol and alpha-cadinol were responsible for the nitric-oxide inhibitory activity of the mixed-type Cinnamomum osmophloeum leaf oil in LPS-activated RAW 264.7 macrophages.
This experimental finding does not establish benefit, dose or safety in people using this blend.
A Taiwania cryptomerioides heartwood-oil study reported that alpha-cadinol showed the strongest antimite activity among the tested dominant constituents, reaching 100% rectified mortality against both Dermatophagoides pteronyssinus and D. farinae at 6.3 microg/cm2.
A Taiwania cryptomerioides heartwood-oil study reported that alpha-cadinol showed the strongest antimite activity among the tested dominant constituents, reaching 100% rectified mortality against both Dermatophagoides pteronyssinus and D. farinae at 6.3 microg/cm2.
This experimental finding does not establish benefit, dose or safety in people using this blend.
A 2013 Machilus mushaensis leaf-oil paper reported that alpha-cadinol showed promising anticancer and antimicrobial activities, though the work remained in vitro and occurred in the context of a complex oil analysis.
A 2013 Machilus mushaensis leaf-oil paper reported that alpha-cadinol showed promising anticancer and antimicrobial activities, though the work remained in vitro and occurred in the context of a complex oil analysis.
This experimental finding does not establish benefit, dose or safety in people using this blend.
A recent Journal of Biomolecular Structure and Dynamics paper identified alpha-cadinol from Phaseolus vulgaris volatiles and proposed it as a potential ACE-inhibitory compound through in vitro and in silico analysis.
A recent Journal of Biomolecular Structure and Dynamics paper identified alpha-cadinol from Phaseolus vulgaris volatiles and proposed it as a potential ACE-inhibitory compound through in vitro and in silico analysis.
This experimental finding does not establish benefit, dose or safety in people using this blend.
Use concerns and concentration limits
Sensitization concernFlagged
Flagged in the constituent reference; assess the source, route and finished-product concentration.
Phototoxicity concernNot flagged
Not flagged in the current model. This is not proof of absence or unrestricted safety.
Oxidation concernNot flagged
Not flagged in the current model. This is not proof of absence or unrestricted safety.
Penetration enhancementNot flagged
Not flagged in the current model. This is not proof of absence or unrestricted safety.
No numeric constituent-specific use limit is available here. Missing is not an unrestricted-use clearance.
No authoritative standalone dermal limit or IFRA-style restriction was located for isolated alpha-cadinol in the reviewed public sources.
This reference does not establish a therapeutic result or a safe use level for a custom oil blend.
No direct public citation is attached to this entry.
The located pharmacology is entirely preclinical, so any wellness copy should stay descriptive and avoid blood-pressure, anti-inflammatory, antimicrobial, or anticancer claims.
This reference does not establish a therapeutic result or a safe use level for a custom oil blend.
No direct public citation is attached to this entry.
Constituents it may interact with
No constituent-pair interaction is recorded for this identity. The report does not assume either amplification or incompatibility.
How the effects were investigated
nitric oxide inhibition in activated macrophages
The clearest primary mechanism signal in the located literature is inhibition of nitric oxide production in LPS-activated RAW 264.7 macrophages.
This experimental finding does not establish benefit, dose or safety in people using this blend.
No direct public citation is attached to this entry.
predicted ace binding
A recent in vitro and in silico paper proposed alpha-cadinol as an ACE-inhibitory volatile, with docking stability driven largely by hydrophobic interactions, but this remains preliminary and should be treated as exploratory.
This experimental finding does not establish benefit, dose or safety in people using this blend.
No direct public citation is attached to this entry.
What this report cannot establish
- A reported constituent percentage does not establish an effective human therapeutic dose or the amount absorbed into the body.
- The presence of a constituent does not guarantee a clinical benefit, rash treatment or sleep improvement from a custom blend.
- An unflagged concern or missing use limit does not establish safety for ingestion, inhalation, skin exposure or a particular person.
- A candidate constituent interaction does not establish that two oils amplify one another at the selected proportions.
- Constituent descriptors alone do not establish a precise top, heart or base lifetime in a finished blend.
Known data gaps (5)
- No human clinical data for isolated alpha-cadinol were verified in this pass.
- Several positive activity signals come from whole-oil studies or mixed-assay contexts rather than pure-compound dose-response programs.
- Constituent-specific dermal, inhalation, and long-term toxicology evidence remains limited.
- No constituent-specific numeric dermal reference is available here.
- Some findings do not record an explicit exposure route; consult the linked study before applying them to a use.