β-Caryophyllene

β-Caryophyllene (Item No. 21572) is a sesquiterpene that has been found in plants, including C. sativa, C. indica, and hemp, and has diverse biological activities, including lipid metabolic, antioxidant, anti-neuroinflammatory, anti-proliferative, and antinociceptive properties.^1,2,3,4,5,6 It is an agonist of the cannabinoid (CB) receptor CB₂ (K_i = 155 nM) that inhibits cAMP production induced by forskolin in CHO-K1 cells expressing CB₂ receptors (EC₅₀ = 38 nM).⁷ β-Caryophyllene is also an agonist of peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor α (PPARα; EC₅₀ = 9.58 µM in a reporter assay).² β-Caryophyllene (1 and 2.5 µM) reduces the production of reactive oxygen species (ROS) in and protects against cytotoxicity of SH-SY5Y cells induced by 1-methyl-4-pheylpyridinium (MPP⁺).³ It also decreases the β-amyloid burden in the hippocampus and cerebral cortex and improves memory in an APP/PS1 transgenic mouse model of Alzheimer’s disease, decreasing the latency to find the platform in the Morris water maze during training and increasing the time spent in the target quadrant during testing when administered at a dose of 48 mg/kg per day.⁴ β-Caryophyllene (50 mg/kg) increases the number of entries into and the time spent in the open arms of the elevated plus maze and the time spent immobile in the forced swim test, indicating anxiolytic-like and antidepressant-like activity, effects that can be blocked by the CB₂ receptor antagonist AM630 (Item No. 10006974).⁵

WARNING This product is not for human or veterinary use.

1. Hazekamp, A., Tejkalová, K., and Papadimitriou, S. Cannabis: From cultivar to chemovar II—A metabolomics approach to Cannabis classification. Cannabis Cannabinoid Res. 1(1), 202-215 (2016).

2. Wu, C., Jia, Y., Lee, J.-H., et al. trans-Caryophyllene is a natural agonistic ligand for peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor-α. Bioorg. Med. Chem. Lett. 24(14), 3168-3174 (2014).

3. Wang, G., Ma, W., and Du, J. β-Caryophyllene (BCP) ameliorates MPP+ induced cytotoxicity. Biomed. Pharmacother. 103, 1086-1091 (2018).

4. Cheng, Y., Dong, Z., and Liu, S. β-Caryophyllene ameliorates the Alzheimer-like phenotype in APP/PS1 mice through CB₂ receptor activation and the PPARγ pathway. Pharmacology 94(1-2), 1-12 (2014).

5. Bahi, A., Al Mansouri, S., Al Memari, E., et al. β-Caryophyllene, a CB₂ receptor agonist produces multiple behavioral changes relevant to anxiety and depression in mice. Physiol. Behav. 135, 119-124 (2014).

6. Paula-Freire, L.I., Andersen, M.L., Gama, V.S., et al. The oral administration of trans-caryophyllene attenuates acute and chronic pain in mice. Phytomedicine 21(3), 356-362 (2014).

7. Gertsch, J., Leonti, M., Raduner, S., et al. Beta-caryophyllene is a dietary cannabinoid. Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA 105(26), 9099-9104 (2008).

Huff, H.C., Vasan, A., Roy, P., et al. Differential interactions of selected phytocannabinoids with human CYP2D6 polymorphisms. Biochemistry (2021).