Amyl salicylate

Occurrence

Apparently has not been reported to occur in nature.

Preparation

By esterification of salicylic acid with the isomeric amyl alcohols obtained from fusel oil and other sources.

Definition

ChEBI: Amyl salicylate is a benzoate ester.

Toxicity evaluation

The LD₅₀ value iv in dogs was reported as 0.5-0.8 g/kg(Fassett, 1963).Human testing. A maximization test(Kligman, 1966) was carried out on 25 volunteers. The material was tested at a concentration of 10% in petrolatum and produced no reactions(Kligman, 1970).Aspirin-containing drugs will cause exacerbation in some patients with chronic urticaria. The action is probably due to the salicylate radical. It is suggested that aspirin acts in chronic urticaria by enhancing the effect of histamine in the skin(Moore- Robinson & Warin, 1967).

Metabolism

Most of the esters of salicylic acid are decomposed to salicylic acid in the body and excreted as such. Besides the unchanged acid, salicuric acid, genticic acid and salicyl glucuronide have been known to be excreted. The lower esters of salicylic acid decompose more readily than the higher esters and as a consequence, little of the amyl ester is split. The whole subject of salicylic esters is covered in an extensive literature by Gross & Greenberg(1948).