trans-beta-Ocimene is the (E)-isomer of beta-ocimene, a floral-green monoterpene that recurs in lavender, petitgrain, neroli, St. John's wort, and related aroma materials. The strongest live evidence is not clinical or therapeutic. Instead, public sources consistently support its role as a plant volatile and insect-facing signal, including a well-studied honey-bee brood-pheromone function for E-beta-ocimene. Safety coverage is better than efficacy coverage because RIFM has assessed the broader 3,7-dimethyl-1,3,6-octatriene substance family, while isolated human outcome data for trans-beta-ocimene remain sparse.
Chemical identity and composition
PubChem resolves trans-beta-Ocimene to CID 5281553 with formula C10H16, IUPAC name (3E)-3,7-dimethylocta-1,3,6-triene, and InChIKey IHPKGUQCSIINRJ-CSKARUKUSA-N. NIST and Good Scents align on the same E-configured monoterpene identity. In the local archive, this exact constituent ID appears in lavender, English lavender, petitgrain, opopanax, cape may, St. John's wort, and other floral-green top-note profiles.
Aroma and practical use
- Use the recorded floral, green, sweet, fresh 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 2010 PLOS One study identified E-beta-ocimene as a volatile brood pheromone in honey bees and reported that exposure caused nest workers to begin foraging earlier.
A 2010 PLOS One study identified E-beta-ocimene as a volatile brood pheromone in honey bees and reported that exposure caused nest workers to begin foraging earlier.
This experimental finding does not establish benefit, dose or safety in people using this blend.
A 2016 Scientific Reports study found that starving honey bee larvae produced more E-beta-ocimene and that added E-beta-ocimene increased worker visitation to cells and larvae.
A 2016 Scientific Reports study found that starving honey bee larvae produced more E-beta-ocimene and that added E-beta-ocimene increased worker visitation to cells and larvae.
This experimental finding does not establish benefit, dose or safety in people using this blend.
A 2015 Journal of Plant Physiology paper reported that beta-ocimene-enriched tobacco volatiles made receiver tomato plants less suitable for aphids and more attractive to the parasitoid Aphidius ervi.
A 2015 Journal of Plant Physiology paper reported that beta-ocimene-enriched tobacco volatiles made receiver tomato plants less suitable for aphids and more attractive to the parasitoid Aphidius ervi.
This experimental finding does not establish benefit, dose or safety in people using this blend.
Use concerns and concentration limits
Sensitization concernNot assessed
Not assessed in the available record.
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.
No numeric constituent-specific use limit is available here. Missing is not an unrestricted-use clearance.
The most directly usable safety source located in this pass is the RIFM assessment for 3,7-dimethyl-1,3,6-octatriene rather than a trans-beta-ocimene-only clinical dossier.
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 2024 RIFM update reports no genotoxic concern and no current skin-sensitization safety concern at declared use levels for 3,7-dimethyl-1,3,6-octatriene, while also noting insufficient repeated-dose and reproductive target data and relying on TTC-based risk assessment for those endpoints.
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.
No isolated human clinical safety or efficacy study specific to trans-beta-ocimene was 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.
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
volatile brood pheromone signaling
Honey-bee studies support E-beta-ocimene as a larval airborne signal that changes worker behavior and resource-allocation patterns.
This experimental finding does not establish benefit, dose or safety in people using this blend.
No direct public citation is attached to this entry.
odor mediated plant defense signaling
Plant-system studies support beta-ocimene as part of herbivory-linked volatile communication that can reduce aphid suitability and increase parasitoid attraction.
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 isolated trans-beta-ocimene human clinical literature was verified in this pass.
- The strongest direct evidence concerns ecological and insect-signaling roles rather than human-use efficacy.
- A trans-beta-ocimene-only dermal-limit source was not directly verified apart from the broader 3,7-dimethyl-1,3,6-octatriene safety assessment.
- 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.