alpha-Guaiene is a sesquiterpene hydrocarbon best known in the AromaForge archive as a major patchouli constituent and as a biosynthetic precursor to rotundone, the peppery aroma molecule discussed in grape and wine chemistry. Live-source checking supports its identity, patchouli occurrence, and a small but growing preclinical literature that includes a recent direct antifungal paper. Human clinical evidence, constituent-specific safety review, and robust mechanism-of-action work remain limited, so archive copy should keep claims narrow and evidence-tiered.
Chemical identity and composition
PubChem lists alpha-guaiene as CID 5317844 with formula C15H24 and IUPAC name (1S,4S,7R)-1,4-dimethyl-7-prop-1-en-2-yl-1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8-octahydroazulene. NIST WebBook lists CAS 3691-12-1. Within the archive, patchouli oil is explicitly typed as a patchoulol / alpha-bulnesene / alpha-guaiene chemotype, and the cited GC/MS report lists alpha-guaiene at 14.01%, making it a meaningful marker rather than a trace constituent.
Aroma and practical use
- Use the recorded woody, spicy, peppery, earthy descriptors to explore a blend's scent character; perceived strength also depends on the other ingredients.
- 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 2024 study reported that alpha-guaiene isolated from patchouli oil inhibited four tested fungi, with MIC and MFC values reported for Candida albicans, Aspergillus niger, Microsporum gypseum, and Trichophyton mentagrophytes.
A 2024 study reported that alpha-guaiene isolated from patchouli oil inhibited four tested fungi, with MIC and MFC values reported for Candida albicans, Aspergillus niger, Microsporum gypseum, and Trichophyton mentagrophytes.
This experimental finding does not establish benefit, dose or safety in people using this blend.
An Aquilaria cultured-cell study found methyl-jasmonate-induced production of alpha-guaiene, alpha-humulene, and delta-guaiene, supporting alpha-guaiene as part of inducible sesquiterpene defense chemistry in agarwood-forming systems.
An Aquilaria cultured-cell study found methyl-jasmonate-induced production of alpha-guaiene, alpha-humulene, and delta-guaiene, supporting alpha-guaiene as part of inducible sesquiterpene defense chemistry in agarwood-forming systems.
This reference does not establish a therapeutic result or a safe use level for a custom oil blend.
A Stellera chamaejasme terpene-synthase paper characterized guaiene synthases and then co-expressed a guaiene synthase with alpha-guaiene 2-oxidase in yeast to reconstruct the pathway toward (-)-rotundone production.
A Stellera chamaejasme terpene-synthase paper characterized guaiene synthases and then co-expressed a guaiene synthase with alpha-guaiene 2-oxidase in yeast to reconstruct the pathway toward (-)-rotundone production.
This reference does not establish a therapeutic result or a safe use level for a custom oil blend.
Use concerns and concentration limits
Sensitization concernNot flagged
Not flagged in the current model. This is not proof of absence or unrestricted safety.
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.
A recorded constituent reference, not a recommended oil dilution. Product category, source applicability and all contributing oils must be checked before use.
unverified reference · No source provenance attachedPubChem search-result hazard text flags alpha-guaiene with an aspiration-hazard warning, but a constituent-specific public fragrance-safety review with practical dermal guidance was not verified in this pass.
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.
A RIFM fragrance ingredient safety assessment for guaiene (CAS 88-84-6, PubMed 27884792) explicitly includes alpha-guaiene (CAS 3691-12-1) and alpha-bulnesene (CAS 3691-11-0) as isomers covered by the same read-across evaluation. It reports no sensitization reactions in an HRIPT at 10% (5510 mcg/cm2) in 107 subjects and no reactions in a human maximization test at 2% (1380 mcg/cm2), and concludes the isomer group is not phototoxic/photoallergenic based on UV/Vis absorption below the benchmark of concern.
The source assessment applies to its specified exposure and preparation; this entry is not an unrestricted-use clearance.
No direct public citation is attached to this entry.
The located benefit-oriented evidence is preclinical only, so copy should avoid antifungal or infection-related therapeutic 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
terpene synthase and rotundone pathway context
Multiple plant and microbial biosynthesis papers place alpha-guaiene in terpene-synthase pathways and identify it as the substrate context for downstream rotundone formation.
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.
possible direct antifungal action
The located antifungal paper established growth-inhibition endpoints against fungi but did not verify a detailed molecular target, so any direct antimicrobial mechanism remains provisional.
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.
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 studies for isolated alpha-guaiene were verified in this pass.
- Direct mechanism-of-action evidence behind the reported antifungal effects remains limited.
- Long-term inhalation and reproductive toxicology data specific to alpha-guaiene are sparse beyond the RIFM isomer-group dermal and phototoxicity review.
- The numeric dermal reference lacks source provenance; a verified flag alone is insufficient.
- Some findings do not record an explicit exposure route; consult the linked study before applying them to a use.