Pepper Peppermint

Jordt, S. E., McKemy, D. D. and Julius, D. Lessons from peppers and peppermint the molecular logic of thermosensation. Curr. Opin. Neurobiol. 13 487-492, 2003. 

Oils may contain toxic compounds. For example, Myristicin is the compound that flavors nutmeg and mace it is also found in black pepper and carrot, parsley, and celery seeds. Used in culinary quantities, myristicin is only a flavoring. In massive doses, it causes hallucination. Thujone, the anise-flavored oil in wormwood, caused an epidemic of brain disease in drinkers addicted to the now-banned liquor absinthe. Sassafras contains a toxic oil similar to thujone, which is why it is no longer used to make root beer. Very high doses of menthol, from peppermint, may cause dangerous irregularities in the heart s rhythm (Weiss, 1997)... 

Solid-liquid extraction is applied on an industrial scale to produce oils and fats from oil-bearing seeds. In the food and flavour industry, extracts and resins, such as hop, chamomile, peppermint, valerian, vanilla, red pepper and liquorice, are obtained from herbs, roots, seeds and drugs. The technology has also found application in the pharmaceutical industry for the extraction of antibiotics, alkaloids and caffeine. 

Flavor of Microbial Transformation Products. The flavor of terpenoids produced by microbial transformation was evaluated. (-)-Carvone (1) is well known as a spearmint flavor component. Transformation products (4 - 7) of 1 had peppermint-like flavor although these are slightly different to each other in terms of the odor quality. The metabolites, bottrospicatols (10a and 10b) Streptomyces species did not have a characteristic flavor but quite different activities (Figure 8). (+)-Bottrospicatal (15) which was produced by the oxidative reaction of (+)-bottrospicatol (10a) with CrOa in pyridine had a weak spice-flavor (slightly black-pepper like). The ester derivatives (13 in Figure 7) had a weak medicinal flavor. The flavor of acetyl ester (13a) was the strongest of all. 

Chlorodyne. Mix together 6 fluid acbms chloroform, 1 fluid drachm chloric ether, i fluid drachm tincture of cayenne pepper, 2 drops oil of peppermint, 8 grains muriate of morphia, 24 drops dilute hydrocyanic acid, 20 drops perchloric acid, 1 fluid drachm tincture of Indian hemp, and 1 fluid drachm molasses. Dose, 20 drops, as a soporific 30 drops to 1 fluid drachm, as an anodyne in cholera or violent paroxysms of pain. (Coohi/.)... 

Caxmlnatiwes. Mcdicinea that allay flatulency and spasmodic pains. Among tho principal carminatives are aniseed, cara way-seed, cardamoms, cassia, cinnamon, gin-gcr. peppermint and the peppers inclnding ardent spirits and most aromatic essences ana Unctitrcs. 

Herbs claimed or shown to have antispasmodic effects, in vitro and/or in vivo, and to be antitussive, include Adhartoda vasica (malibar nut), Petasites hybridus (butterbur). Ephedra sinica (ephedra), Mentha peperita (peppermint), Atropa species (atropine). Curcuma longa (turmeric), Ocimum sanctum (basil), and Piper longum (pepper). 

Separation of peppermint essential oil GCxGC-qMS and GCxGC-FID Characterisation of pepper volatiles... 

About 50 elemanes known to date comprise p-elemenone from the oil of myrrh, representing the Cope rearrangement product of germacrone, (-)-bicycloelemene from peppermint oils of various provenance (e.g. Mentha piperita or Mentha ar-vensis), and p-elemol which is not only a minor component of Javanese oil of citro-nella but is also found in the elemi oil with an odor like pepper and lemon, expressed from the Manila elemi resin of the tree Canarum luzonicum (Burseraceae). 

Thermoreceptors of the mucous membranes may also be subjected to irritation by chemicals. They react, e.g., to pepper, paprika, carbon dioxide, and alcohol. Menthol and peppermint act on cold receptors. The thermoreceptors transmit their stimulation to the temperature control center and thus trigger further regulatory processes like being cold and shivering, goose pimples, contractions of blood vessels, or closeness with sweating and dilatation of blood vessels. 

The most important alcohols of this series are the diastereoisomeric sabinene hydrates (115)/(116). ( + )-rra 5-Sabinene hydrate (116) was found in nature for the first time in American peppermint oil (0.8%) (95). The content of (+)-cw-sabinene hydrate (115) in marjoram oils is as high as 40% 351). Alcohol (115), purified by sublimation, is reported to have a strong spicy marjoram-like odor 349). In other spices such as black pepper (509), basil 337) and nutmeg 24), the mixture of the two diastereoisomeric alcohols (115)/(116) seems to have a flavor-forming function. 

Jones DA (1988) Cyanogenesis in animal-plant interactions. Ciba Found Symp 140 151-170 Jones DA (1998) Why are so many food plants cya-nogenic Phytochemistry 47 155-162 Jordan MA, Thrower D, Wilson L (1991) Mechanism of inhibition of cell proliferation by Vinca alkaloids. Cancer Res 51 2212-2222 Jordt SE, McKemy DD, Julius D (2003) Lessons from peppers and peppermint the molecular logic of thermosensation. Curr Opin Neurobiol 13 487-492... 

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