alpha-Muurolene is a sesquiterpene hydrocarbon that appears in woody, leaf, and rhododendron-style essential-oil profiles, including several oils already cataloged in the AromaForge archive. The live literature check found stronger support for alpha-muurolene as an identity and occurrence marker than as a standalone wellness-active. Direct constituent research does exist, but it is still preclinical: one older isolation paper reported antifungal and brine-shrimp activity, while newer mixture-level work has discussed docking or screening signals. That makes alpha-muurolene useful archive context, but not a basis for medical claims.
Chemical identity and composition
PubChem resolves alpha-muurolene to CID 12306047 with formula C15H24 and IUPAC name (1S,4aS,8aR)-4,7-dimethyl-1-propan-2-yl-1,2,4a,5,6,8a-hexahydronaphthalene. NIST also lists alpha-muurolene under CAS 10208-80-7. Within the archive, alpha-muurolene is already reported in hinoki and anthopogon profiles, including 3.97% in one hinoki GC/MS report and 1.76% in one anthopogon COA, which supports its role as a recurrent sesquiterpene marker rather than a one-off trace constituent.
Aroma and practical use
- Use the recorded woody, terpenic, dry 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 2000 natural-products paper isolated (+)-alpha-muurolene from Heteroxenia soft coral and reported activity against the phytopathogenic fungus Cladosporium cucumerinum plus activity in a brine shrimp lethality test.
A 2000 natural-products paper isolated (+)-alpha-muurolene from Heteroxenia soft coral and reported activity against the phytopathogenic fungus Cladosporium cucumerinum plus activity in a brine shrimp lethality test.
This experimental finding does not establish benefit, dose or safety in people using this blend.
A 2022 Schinus molle essential-oil study reported that alpha-muurolene and gamma-cadinene had the best docking energy against mosquito juvenile hormone-binding protein, with a reported delta G of -9.7 kcal/mol.
A 2022 Schinus molle essential-oil study reported that alpha-muurolene and gamma-cadinene had the best docking energy against mosquito juvenile hormone-binding protein, with a reported delta G of -9.7 kcal/mol.
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 assessed
Not assessed in the available record.
Penetration enhancementNot assessed
Not assessed in the available record.
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 attachedNo authoritative constituent-specific dermal limit, IFRA restriction, or human tolerability study was located for isolated alpha-muurolene 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.
Because the located activity data are limited to preclinical or computational models, archive copy should avoid antifungal, insecticidal, or broader therapeutic claims for the isolated constituent.
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
fungal growth inhibition signal
The clearest direct mechanism-style evidence located for isolated alpha-muurolene is simple preclinical antifungal activity against Cladosporium cucumerinum, without a deeper molecular mechanism established in the reviewed public sources.
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 binding to mjhb protein
Docking work in a Schinus molle essential-oil paper suggested strong theoretical binding of alpha-muurolene to mosquito juvenile hormone-binding protein, but this remains a computational hypothesis.
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 (6)
- No human clinical evidence for isolated alpha-muurolene was verified in this pass.
- The direct bioactivity literature located for alpha-muurolene is sparse and mostly older or non-human.
- Publicly accessible constituent-specific safety and toxicology data remain limited.
- A targeted 2026-07-13 search of Tisserand & Young Essential Oil Safety references, IFRA Standards, EU Cosmetics Regulation Annex III, and peer-reviewed toxicology literature found no authoritative constituent-specific dermal limit, phototoxicity, sensitization, or skin-penetration-enhancement data for alpha-muurolene (CAS 10208-80-7); the existing dermal_limit_pct/sensitizing/phototoxic values are unverified estimates and should not be treated as sourced.
- 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.