Piperitone (Synonyms: 3-Carvomenthenone, NSC 251528)

Piperitone is a monoterpenoid that has been found in Mentha and has diverse biological activities.^1,2,3,4 It is active against E. coli, P. aeruginosa, S. typhimurium, S. aureus, R. leguminosarum, and B. subtilis in agar diffusion assays.¹ Piperitone enhances the antibacterial activity of nitrofurantoin against several nitrofurantoin-resistant species of Enterobacteriaceae, including C. freundii, E. coli, and S. marcescens, by 3- to 20-fold.² It exhibits feeding deterrent and repellent activities against ants (Crematogaster) with 80% deterrence index (D₈₀) and 80% repellent index (R₈₀) values of 0.13 µg/µl and 8.9 µg/cm², respectively.³ Piperitone is insecticidal against C. maculatus eggs, larvae, and adults.⁴

1.Sivropoulou, A., Kokkini, S., Lanaras, T., et al.Antimicrobial activity of mint essential oilsJ. Agric. Food Chem.43(9)2384-2388(1995) 2.Shahverdi, A.R., Rafii, F., Tavassoli, F., et al.Piperitone from Mentha longifolia var. chorodictya Rech F. reduces the nitrofurantoin resistance of strains of EnterobacteriaceaePhytother. Res.18(11)911-914(2004) 3.Bowers, W.S., Ortego, F., You, X., et al.Insect repellents from the Chinese prickly ash Zanthoxylum bungeanumJ. Nat. Prod.56(6)935-938(1993) 4.Ketoh, G.K., Koumaglo, H.K., Glitho, I.A., et al.Comparative effects of Cymbopogon schoenanthus essential oil and piperitone on Callosobruchus maculatus developmentFitoterapia77(7-8)506-510(2006)