Ethyl laurate is the common flavor-fragrance name for ethyl dodecanoate, a long-chain fatty-acid ethyl ester with light fruity-floral and waxy character. Live sources support its chemical identity, regulatory flavoring status, and occurrence in fermented aroma systems, while direct biological literature is strongest in insect courtship and olfactory studies rather than in human-use pharmacology. Archive copy should therefore treat ethyl laurate primarily as an aroma ester with limited standalone human evidence and no medical-use implication.
Aroma and practical use
- Use the recorded waxy, fruity-floral, fatty, soft winey, light fruity-floral, winey 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 2023 Bactrocera dorsalis study identified ethyl laurate among four female-specific semiochemicals that stimulated male courtship while reducing female receptivity.
A 2023 Bactrocera dorsalis study identified ethyl laurate among four female-specific semiochemicals that stimulated male courtship while reducing female receptivity.
This experimental finding does not establish benefit, dose or safety in people using this blend.
A 2024 follow-up reported strong antennal and behavioral responses in male Bactrocera dorsalis and implicated OBP83b and OBP49a in perception of pheromones including ethyl laurate.
A 2024 follow-up reported strong antennal and behavioral responses in male Bactrocera dorsalis and implicated OBP83b and OBP49a in perception of pheromones including ethyl laurate.
This experimental finding does not establish benefit, dose or safety in people using this blend.
A 2019 Queensland fruit fly study reported ethyl dodecanoate, the same molecule, among the main esters in female rectal gland extracts and emitted volatiles.
A 2019 Queensland fruit fly study reported ethyl dodecanoate, the same molecule, among the main esters in female rectal gland extracts and emitted volatiles.
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.
JECFA lists ethyl dodecanoate / ethyl laurate as a flavouring agent and states that the older 0-1 mg/kg body weight ADI was maintained while also concluding no safety concern at current intake levels used for flavouring.
The source assessment applies to its specified exposure and preparation; this entry is not an unrestricted-use clearance.
FDA's Substances Added to Food inventory lists ethyl laurate as a flavoring agent or adjuvant under 21 CFR 172.515.
The source assessment applies to its specified exposure and preparation; this entry is not an unrestricted-use clearance.
The older toxicology monograph explicitly says further biochemical and metabolic studies were needed, so safety framing should stay modest and context-specific.
The source assessment applies to its specified exposure and preparation; this entry is not an unrestricted-use clearance.
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
probable esterase hydrolysis
The older JECFA toxicology evaluation states that ethyl laurate is probably hydrolyzed into ethyl alcohol and lauric acid before normal downstream metabolism.
This reference does not establish a therapeutic result or a safe use level for a custom oil blend.
OBP-mediated olfactory recognition in insects
Recent Bactrocera dorsalis evidence links OBP83b and OBP49a to perception of female-derived pheromones that include ethyl laurate, giving a direct mechanistic anchor for the semiochemical literature.
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 (5)
- This record and ethyl_dodecanoate describe the same molecule under different common names because both IDs are already in archive scope.
- No human clinical outcome studies focused on isolated ethyl laurate were verified in this pass.
- No dedicated RIFM fragrance safety assessment or IFRA Standard was located, so sensitization status for fragrance-style dermal use remains unverified; public evidence is better for flavoring review and insect semiochemistry.
- 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.