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Names | |||
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Preferred IUPAC name
3-Methyl-1H-indole | |||
Other names
3-Methylindole
4-Methyl-2,3-benzopyrrole | |||
Identifiers | |||
3D model (JSmol)
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ChEBI | |||
ChemSpider | |||
ECHA InfoCard | 100.001.338 | ||
PubChem CID
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UNII | |||
CompTox Dashboard (EPA)
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Properties | |||
C9H9N | |||
Molar mass | 131.178 g·mol−1 | ||
Appearance | White crystalline solid | ||
Odor | Fecal matter (pleasant flowery aroma in low concentrations) | ||
Melting point | 93 to 95 °C (199 to 203 °F; 366 to 368 K) | ||
Boiling point | 265 °C (509 °F; 538 K) | ||
Insoluble | |||
Except where otherwise noted, data are given for materials in their standard state (at 25 °C [77 °F], 100 kPa).
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Skatole or 3-methylindole is an organic compound belonging to the indole family. It occurs naturally in the feces of mammals and birds and is the primary contributor to fecal odor. In low concentrations, it has a flowery smell and is found in several flowers and essential oils, including those of orange blossoms, jasmine, and Ziziphus mauritiana. It has also been identified in certain cannabis varieties.[1]
It is used as a fragrance and fixative in many perfumes and as an aroma compound. It is also used in low concentrations in some ice cream as a flavor enhancer.[2] Its name derives from the Greek root skato-, meaning feces. Skatole was discovered in 1877 by the German physician Ludwig Brieger (1849–1919).[3][4][5]
Ich habe mich zuerst mit der Untersuchung der flüchtigen Bestandtheile der Excremente aus sauerer Lösung beschäftigt. Es wurden dabei die flüchtigen Fettsäuren: Essigsäure, normale und Isobuttersäure, sowie die aromatischen Substanzen: Phenol, Indol und eine neue dem Indol verwandte Substanz, die ich Skatol nennen werde, erhalten.
[I was occupied initially with the investigation of the volatile components of excrement in acidic solution. One obtained thereby volatile fatty acids: acetic acid; normal and isobutyric acid; as well as the aromatic substances: phenol, indole and a new indole-derived substance which I will name "skatole".]
— Brieger, (1878), page 130
Das Skatol ... (von το σχατος = faeces) ... (Skatole ... (from το σχατος = feces....)