Ethyl Lactate

"Ethyl lactate, also known as lactic acid ethyl ester, is a monobasic ester formed from lactic acid and ethanol, commonly used as a solvent. This compound is considered biodegradable and can be used as a water-rinsible degreaser. Ethyl lactate is found naturally in small quantities in a wide variety of foods including wine, chicken, and various fruits. The odor of ethyl lactate when dilute is mild, buttery, creamy, with hints of fruit and coconut."

"Ethyl lactate is produced from biological sources, and can be either the levo (S) form or dextro (R) form, depending on the organism that is the source of the lactic acid. Most biologically sourced ethyl lactate is ethyl (-)-L-lactate. Ethyl lactate is also produced industrially from petrochemical stocks, and this ethyl lactate consists of the racemic mixture of levo and dextro forms. In some jurisdictions, the natural product is exempt from many restrictions placed upon use and disposal of solvents. Because both enantiomers are found in nature, and because ethyl lactate is easily biodegradable, it is considered to be a green solvent."

"Due to its relatively low toxicity, ethyl lactate is used commonly in pharmaceutical preparations, food additives,^[1] and fragrances. Ethyl lactate is also used as solvent for nitrocellulose, cellulose acetate, and cellulose ethers."

Inositol

"Inositol or cyclohexane-1,2,3,4,5,6-hexol is a chemical compound with formula C₆H₁₂O₆ or (-CHOH-)₆, a sixfold alcohol (polyol) of cyclohexane. It exists in nine possible stereoisomers, of which the most prominent form, widely occurring in nature, is cis-1,2,3,5-trans-4,6-cyclohexanehexol, or myo-inositol (former name meso-inositol).^[2][3] Inositol is a carbohydrate, though not a classical sugar. It is almost tasteless, with a small amount of sweetness."

"Myo-inositol plays an important role as the structural basis for a number of secondary messengers in eukaryotic cells, including inositol phosphates, phosphatidylinositol (PI) and phosphatidylinositol phosphate (PIP) lipids. Inositol or its phosphates and associated lipids are found in many foods, in particular fruit, especially cantaloupe and oranges.^[4] In plants, the hexaphosphate of inositol, phytic acid or its salts, the phytates, are found. Phytic acid occurs also in cereals with high bran content and also nuts and beans, but inositol as phytate is not directly bioavailable to humans in the diet, since it is not digestible (some food preparation techniques partly break down phytates to change this—see phytic acid for details). Inositol as it occurs in certain plant-derived substances such as lecithins, however, is well-absorbed and relatively bioavailable."

Camphor

"Camphor is a waxy, white or transparent solid with a strong, aromatic odor.^[3] It is a terpenoid with the chemical formula C₁₀H₁₆O. It is found in wood of the camphor laurel (Cinnamomum camphora), a large evergreen tree found in Asia (particularly in Borneo and Taiwan) and also of Dryobalanops aromatica, a giant of the Bornean forests. It also occurs in some other related trees in the laurel family, notably Ocotea usambarensis. Dried rosemary leaves (Rosmarinus officinalis), in the mint family, contain up to 20% camphor. It can also be synthetically produced from oil of turpentine. It is used for its scent, as an ingredient in cooking (mainly in India), as an embalming fluid, for medicinal purposes, and in religious ceremonies. A major source of camphor in Asia is camphor basil."

"Already in the 19th century, it was known that with nitric acid, camphor could be oxidized into camphoric acid. Haller and Blanc published a semisynthesis of camphor from camphoric acid, which, although demonstrating its structure, would not prove it. The first complete total synthesis for camphoric acid was published by Gustaf Komppa in 1903. Its starting materials were diethyl oxalate and 3,3-dimethylpentanoic acid, which reacted by Claisen condensation to give diketocamphoric acid. Methylation with methyl iodide and a complicated reduction procedure produced camphoric acid. William Perkin published another synthesis a short time later. Previously, some organic compounds (such as urea) had been synthesized in the laboratory as a proof of concept, but camphor was a scarce natural product with a worldwide demand. Komppa realized this and began industrial production of camphor in Tainionkoski, Finland, in 1907."

Pyrrole

"Pyrrole is a heterocyclic aromatic organic compound, a five-membered ring with the formula C₄H₄NH.^[1] It is a colourless volatile liquid that darkens readily upon exposure to air. Substituted derivatives are also called pyrroles, e.g., N-methylpyrrole, C₄H₄NCH₃. Porphobilinogen, a trisubstituted pyrrole, is the biosynthetic precursor to many natural products such as heme."

"Pyrroles are components of more complex macrocycles, including the porphyrins of heme, the chlorins, bacteriochlorins, chlorophyll, porphyrinogens."

"Pyrrole has very low basicity compared to conventional amines and some other aromatic compounds like pyridine. This decreased basicity is attributed to the delocalization of the lone pair of electrons of the nitrogen atom in the aromatic ring. Pyrrole is a very weak base with a pK_aH of about −4. Protonation results in loss of aromaticity, and is, therefore, unfavorable."

Hexokinase

"A hexokinase is an enzyme that phosphorylates a six-carbon sugar, a hexose, to a hexose phosphate. In most tissues and organisms, glucose is the most important substrate of hexokinases, and glucose-6-phosphate the most important product."

"Genes that encode hexokinase have been discovered in each domain of life, ranging from bacteria, yeast, and plants to humans and other vertebrates. They are categorized as actin fold proteins, sharing a common ATP binding site core surrounded by more variable sequences that determine substrate affinities and other properties. Several hexokinase isoforms or isozymes providing different functions can occur in a single species. Hexokinase should not be confused with the liver's glucokinase. While hexokinase is capable of phosphorylating several hexoses, glucokinase acts with a 50-fold lower substrate affinity, and its only substrate is glucose."

Vaska's Complex

"Vaska's complex is the trivial name for the chemical compound trans-chlorocarbonylbis(triphenylphosphine)iridium(I), which has the formula IrCl(CO)[P(C₆H₅)₃]₂. This square planar diamagnetic organometallic complex consists of a central iridium atom bound to two mutually trans triphenylphosphine ligands, carbon monoxide, and a chloride ion. The complex was first reported by J. W. DiLuzio and Lauri Vaska in 1961.^[1] Vaska's complex can undergo oxidative addition and is notable for its ability to bind to O₂ reversibly. It is a bright yellow crystalline solid."

"The synthesis involves heating virtually any iridium chloride salt with triphenylphosphine and a carbon monoxide source. The most popular method uses dimethylformamide (DMF) as a solvent, and sometimes aniline is added to accelerate the reaction."

Adrenaline (Epinephrin)

"Epinephrine (also known as adrenaline) is a hormone and a neurotransmitter.^[1] It increases heart rate, constricts blood vessels, dilates air passages and participates in the fight-or-flight response of the sympathetic nervous system.^[2] In chemical terms, adrenaline is one of a group of monoamines called the catecholamines. It is produced in some neurons of the central nervous system, and in the chromaffin cells of the adrenal medulla from the amino acids phenylalanine and tyrosine. "

"Extracts of the adrenal gland were first obtained by Polish physiologist Napoleon Cybulski in 1895. These extracts, which he called nadnerczyna, contained adrenaline and other catecholamines.^[4] Japanese chemist Jokichi Takamine and his assistant Keizo Uenaka independently discovered adrenaline in 1900.^[5][6] In 1901, Takamine successfully isolated and purified the hormone from the adrenal glands of sheep and oxen.^[7] Adrenaline was first synthesized in the laboratory by Friedrich Stolz and Henry Drysdale Dakin, independently, in 1904."

Methyl Salicylate

"Plants containing methyl salicylate produce this organic ester (a combination of an organic acid with an alcohol) most likely as an anti-herbivore defense. If the plant is infected with herbivorous insects, the release of methyl salicylate may function as an aid in the recruitment of beneficial insects to kill the herbivorous insects.^[1] Aside from its toxicity, methyl salicylate may also be used by plants as a pheromone to warn other plants of pathogens such as tobacco mosaic virus.^[2] Numerous plants produce methyl salicylate in very small amounts."

"Plants producing it in significant amounts (readily detected by scent) include:

• most species of the family Pyrolaceae, particularly those in the genus Pyrola;
• some species of the genus Gaultheria in the family Ericaceae, including Gaultheria procumbens, the wintergreen or eastern teaberry;
• some species of the genus Betula in the family Betulaceae, particularly those in the subgenus Betulenta such as B. lenta, the black birch;
• all species of the genus Spiraea in the family Rosaceae, also called the meadowsweets."

Acetylene

"Acetylene (systematic name: ethyne) is the chemical compound with the formula C₂H₂. It is a hydrocarbon and the simplest alkyne.^[2] This colorless gas is widely used as a fuel and a chemical building block. It is unstable in pure form and thus is usually handled as a solution." 

"As an alkyne, acetylene is unsaturated because its two carbon atoms are bonded together in a triple bond. The carbon-carbon triple bond places all four atoms in the same straight line, with CCH bond angles of 180°. Since acetylene is a linear symmetrical molecule, it possesses the D_∞h point group."

"In terms of valence bond theory, in each carbon atom the 2s orbital hybridizes with one 2p orbital thus forming an sp hybrid. The other two 2p orbitals remain unhybridized. The two ends of the two sp hybrid orbital overlap to form a strong σ valence bond between the carbons, while on each of the other two ends hydrogen atoms attach also by σ bonds. The two unchanged 2p orbitals form a pair of weaker π valence bonds. "

Stearic Acid

"Stearic acid (first syllable pronounced either steer or stair) is the saturated fatty acid with an 18 carbon chain and has the IUPAC name octadecanoic acid. It is a waxy solid, and its chemical formula is CH₃(CH₂)₁₆CO₂H. Its name comes from the Greek word στέαρ "stéatos", which means tallow. The salts and esters of stearic acid are called stearates. Stearic acid is noteworthy as the most common saturated fatty acid, another common one being the C16 compound palmitic acid."

"Generally applications of stearic acid exploit its bifunctional character, with a polar head group that can be attached to metal cations and a nonpolar chain that confers solubility in organic solvents. The combination leads to uses as a surfactant and softening agent. Stearic acid undergoes the typical reactions of saturated carboxylic acids, notably reduction to stearyl alcohol, and esterification with a range of alcohols."