N/A — synthetic aroma chemical (naturally occurring in Jasminum grandiflorum)
Appearance
Colourless to pale yellow liquid with a jasmine-like, fruity-floral odour
Odor Strength
Medium (recommend smelling in a 10% solution)
Producing Countries
Synthetic production worldwide; naturally present in Jasminum grandiflorum flowers
Pyramid
Heart
Oily, petal-soft, green-floral with a magnoli a undertone. Not the dense indolic jasmine of the absolute — this is the molecule responsible for jasmine’s radiant, diffusive halo, the part you smell from ten metres away before you see the bush.
Powerful, oily-green, jasmine-petal character with magnoli a inflecti on. Greener and sharper than hedione, less indolic than jasmine absolute, more floral than cis-jasmone. A slight waxy-greasy quality underneath — like touching the inside of a gardeni a petal. At low concentrati on (1%), reads as a diffusive floral radiance; above 5%, the green-oily quality dominates. Dries toward a clean, tea-like softness. Not a background note despite descriptions suggesting subtlety — it is potent, and overdosing produces a greasy, overblown effect.
Green note recedes, leaving a warm, radiant jasmine heart. Waxy-soft, slightly greasy, with tea-like dryness emerging. The magnolia tonality becomes clearer.
After a few days
After a few days
Surprisingly persistent (TGSC: 256 hours at 100%). Residual note is clean, faintly floral-waxy, with a dry tea character. MW 224 provides moderate substantivity.
The Full Story
CAS 39924-52-2 (racemic mixture); the naturally occurring form in jasmine is (–)-(1R,2R)-cis-methyl jasmonate (CAS 1211-29-6). Molecular weight 224.3, C₁₃H₂₀O₃. A cyclopentanone ester — methyl 3-oxo-2-(2-pentenyl)cyclopentaneacetate — constituting 2–3% of jasmine absolute (Jasminum grandiflorum).
The scent is powerful, oily-green, and petal-soft, with a jasmine character that leans magnoli a. Not the narcotic, indolic richness of jasmine absolute — methyl jasmonate captures the diffusive, radiant quality: the part of jasmine that carries through air. Considerably more potent than its simplified industrial derivative hedione (methyl dihydrojasmonate, CAS 24851-98-7), which lacks the pentenyl unsaturati on and therefore the green sharpness and natural depth.
Four stereoisomers exist. The trans isomers dominate in equilibrium, but the minor (+)-cis-epi isomer is the most olfactively valuable — concentrated in premium grades such as Jasmoneige (Fraterworks) and Zeppin (Zeon, Japan). Commercial methyl jasmonate (CAS 39924-52-2) is a trans-dominated racemic mixture; enrichment of the epi-isomer content intensifies the jasmine character.
Beyond perfumery, methyl jasmonate is a genuine plant hormone — the methyl ester of jasmonic acid. It mediates wound response, pathogen defense, and herbivore deterrence across the plant kingdom. This dual identity as fragrance molecule and signalling compound is essentially unique among aroma chemicals.
Methyl jasmonate selectively kills cancer cells while leaving normal cells unharmed — it detaches the enzyme hexokinase-2 from mitochondrial membranes, collapsing the glycolytic advantage that tumour cells depend on. Published studies (PMC4859652, Cesari et al. 2014) document apoptosis induction in lung, bladder, colorectal, and liver cancer cell lines. The high doses required have so far prevented clinical application, but the mechanism — exploiting the Warburg effect via a plant hormone — remains one of the more surprising intersections of botany and oncology.
Extraction & Chemistry
Extraction method: Produced exclusively by synthesis for commercial use. The natural form occurs at 2–3% in jasmine absolute but is not isolated industrially from natural sources. Demole and Stoll published the first total synthesis in 1962. Modern industrial routes include Pd-catalysed decarboxylation of allyl 2-oxocyclopentanecarboxylates and aldol condensation of cyclopentanone with crotonaldehyde followed by Corey-Chaykovsky cyclopropanation. The synthesis yields a racemic trans-dominated mixture (CAS 39924-52-2); epi-enriched grades require additional isomerisation and separation steps. Asymmetric methods (Xie hydrogenation, Corey-CBS reduction, enzymatic resolution) exist for stereoselective production but remain costly. Supplied commercially by Bedoukian, Zeon (Japan), and Fraterworks, among others.
Molecular Formula
C13H20O3
CAS Number
39924-52-2
Botanical Name
N/A — synthetic aroma chemical (naturally occurring in Jasminum grandiflorum)
Colourless to pale yellow liquid with a jasmine-like, fruity-floral odour
Boiling Point
110.00 °C. @ 0.20 mm Hg
Flash Point
230.00 °F. TCC ( 110.00 °C. )
Specific Gravity
1.01500 to 1.02500 @ 25.00 °C.
Refractive Index
1.47000 to 1.47600 @ 20.00 °C.
In Perfumery
Heart note and diffusion amplifier in jasmine accords, white florals, and magnolia reconstructions. Methyl jasmonate is the molecule Demole identified as the missing element that prevented complete olfactive reconstruction of jasmine — without it, jasmine accords lack radiance and three-dimensionality. At 1% in a formula, it floralises and lifts. At 5–20%, it becomes a structural jasmine pillar. Its industrial derivative hedione (methyl dihydrojasmonate) is cheaper and stabler but lacks the green sharpness and depth. Premium epi-enriched forms (Zeppin by Zeon at 20–23% epi-isomer content) deliver maximum jasmine fidelity at lower dosages. Essential in jasmine soliflores, white floral bouquets, lily of the valley reconstructions, and chypre hearts where transparent floral lift is needed.
