Many species within the Nepeta genus, commonly referred to as catnip, biosynthetically produce a mixture of diastereomeric monoterpenes, known as nepetalactones. Deep Water Culture and Flood and Drain hydroponic systems were constructed and five Nepeta species—N. cataria, N. citriodora, N. clarkei, N. faassenii, and N. parnassica—were grown from seed. Each cultivar was subjected to sonication in hexanes for terpene extraction, and potential nepetalactones identified via gas chromatography in tandem with mass spectrometry (GCMS). The trans-cis and cis-trans nepetalactones were extracted via steam distillation and separated from N. cataria. A nepetalactone with unknown stereochemistry was extracted via steam distillation from N. citirodora and purified. The isolated nepetalactones were subjected to CHN elemental analysis to be used as analytical standards. A dynamic through-space NMR NOESY experiment was conducted to determine the stereochemistry of the unknown nepetalactone isomer. Nepetalactone was quantified via GCMS for each Nepeta species, and multiple extraction techniques were tested for maximization. Multiple N. cataria cultivars were subjected to varying pH conditions for evaluating the effect of pH on nepetalactone expression.

Unknown nepetalactone isomer elucidated from Nepeta citriodora extract

Macromolecular Chemistry: The Second Century

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ACS Spring 2020 National Meeting & Expo

The official archive and repository for all ACS Meetings & Expositions abstracts and select posters or presentations.