FAO Nutrition Meetings
Resort Series No. 44A
WHO/Food Add./68.33
TOXICOLOGICAL EVALUATION OF SOME
FLAVOURING SUBSTANCES AND
NON-NUTRITIVE SWEETENING AGENTS
Geneva, 21-28 August 1967
The Eleventh Report of the Joint FAO/WHO Expert Committee on Food
Additives is published as FAO Nutrition Meetings Report Series,
1967, No. 44; Wld Hlth Org. techn. Rep. Ser., 1968, 383. This
Report contains general considerations, including the principles
adopted for the evaluation, and a summary of the results of the
evaluations of a number of food additives. Additional information,
such as biological data and a toxicological evaluation, considered at
that meeting, is to be found in this document.
Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations
World Health Organization
1967
LINALYL ACETATE
90 per cent. and 96 per cent.
Chemical name 3,7-Dimethyl-1,6-octadien-3-yl acetate
Empirical formula C12H20O2
Structural formula
(CH3)2C=CHCH2C=CHCH2C(CH3)(OOCCH3)CH=CH2
Molecular weight 196.29
Definition Linalyl acetate, 90 per cent. contains not
less than 90 per cent. of esters, calculated
as C12H20O2
Linalyl acetate, 96 per cent. contains not
less than 96 per cent. of esters, calculated
as C12H20O2.
Description Linalyl acetate occurs in bergamot,
petitgrain, and other oils. It may be
prepared by acetylation and fractionation of
Brazilian Bois de Rose Oil, and it may also
be prepared synthetically. It is a colour
less to slightly yellow liquid having a
pleasant floral odour.
Biological Data
Biochemical aspects
This ester is probably hydrolysed to linalol and acetic acid, the
former being subsequently converted to geraniol and its metabolites
1,5-dimethyl-1,5-hexadien-1,6-dicarboxylic acid and
7-carboxy-5-methylocto-6-enoic acid (Patty, 1963).
Acute toxicity
Animal Route LD50 References
(mg/kg
body-weight)
Mouse oral 13 360 Jenner et al., 1964
Rat oral 14 550 Jenner et al., 1964
Rat. In a 12-week feeding study on 15 males and 15 females,
using mixed esters, retardation of growth of female rats occurred at a
level of 24.3 mg/kg/day (Oser, 1967).
Long-term studies
None available.
Comments
Despite the absence of precise knowledge of the metabolic fate of
this ester, evaluation is possible from the additional animal data.
Biochemical and metabolic studies are needed.
EVALUATION
Estimate of acceptable daily intake for man
mg/kg body-weight
Conditional acceptance 0-0.25
Further work required
Biochemical and metabolic studies in animals and man and
long-term studies are required.1
REFERENCES
Jenner, P. M., Hagan, E. C., Taylor, J. M., Cook, E. L. & Fitzhugh, O.
G. (1964) Fd Cosmet. Toxicol., 2, 327
Oser, B. L. (1967) Unpublished report
Patty, F. A. (1963) Industrial hygiene & Toxicology, Vol. II,
Interscience, London and New York
1 When considering the group of flavouring substances citral,
citronellol, linalol, linalyl acetate and geranyl acetate, the
Committee stressed the urgent need to elucidate the metabolic pathways
which may be common to these widely distributed substances. They found
it reasonable to require that one or more of these substances should
be made the subject of long-term studies. Whether this limitation can
be made and which substances should be chosen may follow from a
consideration of the biochemical evidence when this becomes available.