Bicyclogermacrene is a sesquiterpene hydrocarbon found across many herb, leaf, and wood essential oils. In the AromaForge archive it is best supported as a recurring compositional marker in oils such as davana, St. John's wort leaf, lemon verbena, and some chamomile lots. Direct constituent-level pharmacology remains limited; the clearest public evidence is for identity, occurrence, biosynthetic relevance, and a small amount of early-stage laboratory work rather than human clinical use.
Chemical identity and composition
PubChem and NIST both identify bicyclogermacrene as C15H24. NIST lists the bicyclogermacrene CAS registry entry as 24703-35-3, and The Good Scents Company classifies it as a natural substance and extractive with a green odor profile. Recent biosynthesis and oxidation papers also treat (+)-bicyclogermacrene as a useful sesquiterpene scaffold and precursor for oxidized derivatives.
Aroma and practical use
- Use the recorded green, woody, herbal, spicy, herbaceous 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 2008 davana oil GC-MS paper identified bicyclogermacrene at 9.6% as one of the main secondary constituents of the Indian steam-distilled oil.
The paper links bicyclogermacrene to davana's quantitative profile while antimicrobial testing in the same study was reported for the oil and fractions rather than for isolated bicyclogermacrene.
This reference does not establish a therapeutic result or a safe use level for a custom oil blend.
A 2020 Hypericum perforatum study reported bicyclogermacrene as a notable leaf-oil constituent and found that leaf oil inhibited human neutrophil functional responses, including chemotaxis-related outcomes.
The article and search-indexed abstract tie the activity to the essential oil mixture; bicyclogermacrene is part of that sesquiterpene profile but was not established as the sole active principle.
This experimental finding does not establish benefit, dose or safety in people using this blend.
A 2024 oxidation paper reported that P450 BM3-139-3 converted (+)-bicyclogermacrene into a novel oxidized product, (+)-3,6-epoxymaaliane, in vitro.
The abstract supports bicyclogermacrene as a realistic precursor for oxidized sesquiterpene derivatives and reports antibacterial testing on the derivative rather than the parent hydrocarbon itself.
This experimental finding does not establish benefit, dose or safety in people using this 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.
No numeric constituent-specific use limit is available here. Missing is not an unrestricted-use clearance.
No constituent-specific IFRA standard, dermal maximum, or dedicated human safety trial was located for isolated bicyclogermacrene in this research 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.
The Good Scents Company lists toxicity fields as not determined and does not provide a fragrance-use recommendation, which is a data-limitation signal rather than proof of hazard.
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
substrate for enzymatic oxidation
A 2024 enzymatic study used (+)-bicyclogermacrene as a substrate for P450 BM3-139-3 oxidation and generated a novel oxidized derivative, showing that the hydrocarbon can participate in selective oxidative biotransformation.
This experimental finding does not establish benefit, dose or safety in people using this blend.
predicted but unconfirmed immune-target interactions
A Hypericum essential-oil immunology paper reported reverse pharmacophore mapping that suggested possible protein targets for bicyclogermacrene, but a follow-up kinase affinity assay did not support those predictions.
This experimental finding does not establish benefit, dose or safety in people using this blend.
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)
- This pass did not verify a human clinical paper focused on isolated bicyclogermacrene.
- Most accessible activity literature places bicyclogermacrene inside complex oil mixtures or evaluates downstream oxidized derivatives instead of the parent hydrocarbon alone.
- Direct constituent-specific dermal irritation, sensitization, and phototoxicity data were not located in the reviewed public sources.
- No IFRA Standard, Tisserand monograph, or RIFM safety assessment specific to Bicyclogermacrene (CAS 24703-35-3) was located; accessible sources (ChemicalBook, LookChem, Chemsrc, GoodScentsCompany EPI system) provide identity/occurrence data only. sensitizing:true has been corrected to null (unsupported guess) pending real citation.
- 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.