Indole

HCID 798CAS 120-72-9

Basic information

Standard SMILES
c1ccc2[nH]ccc2c1
InChIKey
SIKJAQJRHWYJAI-UHFFFAOYSA-N
Molecular formula
C8H7N
Average molar mass
117.15 g/mol
Monoisotopic mass
117.05784923

Names & identifiers

Preferred name
Indole
IUPAC
1H-indole
English name
Indole
Molecular formula
C8H7N
Molecular weight
117.15

Names & synonyms

indole1H-Indole120-72-92,3-BenzopyrroleIndol1-Azaindene1-BenzazoleKetoleBenzopyrroleFEMA No. 2593DTXSID00207378724FJW4M5
Show more names
FEMA 2593Benzazole1H-IndolIndole-15N
NSC-1964DTXCID40737CHEBI:16881RefChem:5904CHEBI:22728CHEBI:35581Indole, 3-Benzopyrrole, 1-benzazole204-420-7

Database identifiers

CAS
120-72-9
PubChem CID
798
DTXSID
DTXSID0020737
ChEMBL
CHEMBL15844
ChEBI
CHEBI:16881
UNII
8724FJW4M5
EC Number
204-420-7
Nikkaji
J2.920C

Properties

Computed structural properties

XLogP
2.1
Topological polar surface area
15.8 Ų
Hydrogen bond donors
1
Hydrogen bond acceptors
0
Rotatable bonds
0
Heavy atoms
9

Experimental & physicochemical properties

LogP · 3 items

2.14

Log P= 2.14

2.14

LogS-1.52
Odor · 3 items

ALMOST FLORAL ODOR WHEN HIGHLY PURIFIED, OTHERWISE EXHIBITS CHARACTERISTIC ODOR OF FECES

Unpleasant odor in high concentration but pleasant in dilute solution.

Light jasmine odor

Density1.22 g/cu cm at 25 °C
Color/Form · 4 items

LEAFLETS (WATER, PETROLEUM), CRYSTALS (ETHER)

Colorless to yellowish scales, turning red on exposure to light and air.

WHITE CRYSTALLINE SOLID

Colorless, shiny flakes

Solubility · 6 items

3560

SOL IN HOT WATER, HOT ALC, ETHER, BENZENE

1 G IN 2 ML OF 70% ALC

SOL IN TOLUENE

Soluble in fixed oils; insoluble in mineral oil and glycerol.

For more Solubility (Complete) data for INDOLE (6 total), please visit the HSDB record page.

Physicochemical properties

Melting point
51 · 51-54 °C (lit.)
Boiling point
253 · 253-254 °C (lit.)
Density
1.22 · 1.22
bulk density
230 kg/m3 · 230kg/m3
vapor pressure
0.016 hPa · 0.016 hPa (25 °C)
FEMA
2593 · 2593 | INDOLE

Safety & regulation

GHS classification

GHS Classification · 6 items

Danger

H302 (100%): Harmful if swallowed [Warning Acute toxicity, oral];H311 (99%): Toxic in contact with skin [Danger Acute toxicity, dermal];H318 (11.6%): Causes serious eye damage [Danger Serious eye damage/eye irritation]

P262, P264, P264+P265, P270, P280, P301+P317, P302+P352, P305+P354+P338, P316, P317, P321, P330, P361+P364, P405, and P501 (click each P-code to see the statement)

Aggregated GHS information provided per 1996 reports by companies from 22 notifications to the ECHA C&L Inventory. Each notification may be associated with multiple companies.;Information may vary between notifications depending on impurities, additives, and other factors. The percentage value in parenthesis indicates the notified classification ratio from companies that provide hazard codes. Only hazard codes with percentage values above 10% are shown. For more detailed information, please visit ECHA C&L website.

Hazard information

Regulatory Information · 5 items

Chemical: 1H-Indole

Commission Regulation (EC) No 1565/2000 (Repealed by Com. Implementing Reg. (EU) No 872/2012)

1H-Indole is listed on the EPA's Chemical Data Reporting (CDR) system. Manufacturers and importers of 1H-Indole are required to report information about their production and use of this chemical to the EPA under the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA). (40 eCFR Part 711)

Status: Active Update: 25-09-2021 https://echa.europa.eu/registration-dossier/-/registered-dossier/21020

1H-Indole: Does not have an individual approval but may be used under an appropriate group standard

Other Safety InformationEvaluation - Chemicals that are unlikely to require further regulation to manage risks to environment
Hazards SummaryExternal application to rabbit eyes scored 8 on a scale of 1-10 (10 being most severe) for degree of injury after 24 hours; [HSDB] Safe when used as a flavoring agent in food; [JECFA] A severe eye irritant; [RTECS]
Hazard Classes and Categories · 2 items

Acute Tox. 4 (100%);Acute Tox. 3 (99%);Eye Dam. 1 (11.6%)

Acute toxicity (Oral) - Category 4;Acute toxicity (Dermal) - Category 3;Serious eye damage/eye irritation - Category 2A;Hazardous to the aquatic environment (Acute) - Category 1

Safety & protection

Disposal Methods · 1 item

SRP: At the time of review, criteria for land treatment or burial (sanitary landfill) disposal practices are subject to significant revision. Prior to implementing land disposal of waste residue (including waste sludge), consult with environmental regulatory agencies for guidance on acceptable disposal practices.

Toxicology

Body Burden · 2 items

4 of 46 human adipose tissue samples, collected in 1982, contained indole (3 in age category 45+, 1 in age category 15-44 years)(1).

PERSONAL AIR: Expired air from control (n= 20), but not prediabetic (n= 14) or diabetic (n= 28) human study populations contained indole at unreported concns(1).

InteractionsPOSITIVE INOTROPIC EFFECTS OF INDOLE ON ISOLATED GUINEA PIG ATRIA WAS ANTAGONIZED BY PROPRANOLOL & PRETREATMENT WITH RESERPINE.
Environmental Fate · 3 items

TERRESTRIAL FATE: Based on a recommended classification scheme(1), an estimated Koc value of 350(SRC), determined from a measured log Kow(2) and a recommended regression-derived equation(3), and a measured Koc of 187 from a synthetic soil with 0-2% added humic acid(4), indicate that indole will have moderate mobility in soil(SRC). Volatilization of indole should not be important from moist soil surfaces(SRC) given an estimated Henry's Law constant of 5.3X10-7 atm-cu m/mole(SRC), calculated from experimental values for vapor pressure(5) and water solubility(6). Indole is expected to readily biodegrade under both aerobic and anaerobic conditions in soil(SRC). Indole, added to Chernozem soil at 1 and 10 g/kg soil, was completely biodegraded in 19 and 135 days, respectively(7). Indole was completely biodegraded by suspensions of an organic soil (Carlisle muck) under methanogenic and denitrifying conditions within 67 and 144 days, respectively; oxindole was reported as a metabolite of this process(8).

AQUATIC FATE: Based on a recommended classification scheme(1), an estimated Koc value of 350(SRC), determined from a measured log Kow(2) and a recommended regression-derived equation(1), and a measured Koc value of 187(3) indicate that indole may adsorb to suspended solids and sediment in water(SRC). Indole is not expected to volatilize from water surfaces(1,SRC) based on an estimated Henry's Law constant of 5.3X10-7 atm-cu m/mole(SRC), calculated from experimental values for vapor pressure(4) and water solubility(5). According to a classification scheme(6), an estimated BCF value of 25(1,SRC), from a measured log Kow(2), suggests that bioconcentration in aquatic organisms is low(SRC). Indole is expected to readily biodegrade under both aerobic and anaerobic conditions in water(SRC). At 10 °C, aerobic groundwater containing a mixture of aromatic compounds completely biodegraded indole in 310 hours, including an acclimation period of 130 hours(7). Complete metabolism of indole by methanogenic sediments from the shore, edge, and bottom of Buffalo Run stream, PA, occurred within 33 days; oxindole was formed during this process(8). Indole was completely biodegraded under denitrifying conditions in 7 days using a sewage inoculum(8).

ATMOSPHERIC FATE: According to a model of gas/particle partitioning of semivolatile organic compounds in the atmosphere(1), indole, which has a measured vapor pressure of 0.0122 mm Hg at 25 °C(2), will exist solely as a vapor in the ambient atmosphere. Vapor-phase indole is degraded in the atmosphere by reaction with photochemically-produced hydroxyl radicals, nitrate radicals, and ozone(SRC); the half-lives for these reactions in air are estimated to be about 2 to 3 hours, < 1 minute, and 6 hours, respectively(3,SRC).

Food Survey Values · 1 item

Different samples of Beaufort cheese from the French Alps contained indole at unreported concns(1). Indole, at unreported concns, was reported as a volatile flavor compound in fried bacon(2), roasted filbert nuts(3), short-necked clams and corbicula(4), and pork(5). Water-boiled duck meat and duck fat contained indole at 1.72 and 2.28 ppb, wet basis, respectively(6).

Plant ConcentrationsVolatile compounds identified in Lonicera japonica flowers (Japanese honeysuckle) contained indole at concns of 52, <20, and 87 ug/kg for fresh flowers, flowers after 12 hours, and flowers after 24 hours, respectively(1).
Effluent Concentrations · 2 items

Indole was detected in industrial wastewaters from the following industries: timber products, leather tanning, iron and steel manufacturing, inorganics and plastics, synfuels, and publicly owned treatment works(1). Process water derived from the Fischer Assay retorting of oil shale from Rundle, Australia contained indole at 3 mg/l(2). A grab sample of final effluent from the Addison, IL publicly-owned treatment works in April 1980 contained indole at unreported concns(3). Wastewater obtained during the gasification of Indian Head lignite contained indole at an estimated concn of 1 mg/l(4). Wastewater and sludge from the Iona Island Sewage Treatment plant, Vancouver, British Columbia contained indole at unreported concns(5).

Untreated coke plant wastewater contained indole from 23 to 26,000 ug/l(1). Volatile components in poultry manure contained indole at concns of 5.08 and 10.4 mg/kg(2). Indole was identified in creosote oil extracts at 7700 ug/g(3). Basin floodwater, taken from Fort Devens, MA, following primary treatment, contained indole at 11 ug/l(4,5). Chlorinated still bottom extract contained indole at unreported concns(6).

Regulatory information

Regulatory Information · 5 items

Chemical: 1H-Indole

Commission Regulation (EC) No 1565/2000 (Repealed by Com. Implementing Reg. (EU) No 872/2012)

1H-Indole is listed on the EPA's Chemical Data Reporting (CDR) system. Manufacturers and importers of 1H-Indole are required to report information about their production and use of this chemical to the EPA under the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA). (40 eCFR Part 711)

Status: Active Update: 25-09-2021 https://echa.europa.eu/registration-dossier/-/registered-dossier/21020

1H-Indole: Does not have an individual approval but may be used under an appropriate group standard

Safety data

F
8-13
PPE
dust mask type N95 (US), Eyeshields, Faceshields, Gloves
wgk
1
tsca
TSCA listed
rtecs
NL2450000
ridadr
UN 2811 6.1/PG 3

Chemistry & industry

Pharmacology

Mechanism of Action · 1 item

The effects of heterocyclic cmpd on hepatic xenobiotic metabolizing enzymes were studied in mice. Female CD-1 mice were admin 5 u mol/kg coumarin, trimethylene oxide (TMO), or trimethylene sulfide (TMS) for 6 days by gavage, or benzofuran, indole, or indole-3-carbinol (IC) daily for 10 days. Animals were /sacrificed/ 1 or 2 days after the last dose; livers were removed and assayed for epoxide hydrolase, glutathione-S-transferase (GST), reduced NADH-quinone-reductase (NADH/QR), glucose-6-phosphate-dehydrogenase (G6PDH), glutathione-reductase (GSSG-red), uridine-diphosphate-glucose-dehydrogenase (UDPGDH), aniline-hydroxylase, 7-ethoxycoumarin-deethylase (ECOD), and cytochrome-c-reductase (cyt-c-red) activities, and cytochrome p450. All cmpd except indole, significantly enhanced epoxide hydrolase activity. GST activities were elevated by all cmpd except TMO and TMS. NADH/QR activity was incr only by coumarin and benzofuran. Indole incr only GST, UDPGDH and cyt-c-red activities. IC enhanced GST, UDPGDH, cyt-c-red, epoxide hydrolase and cytochrome p450 and related monooxygenase activities. Benzofuran and coumarin showed more varied responses. Both cmpd incr epoxide hydrolase, GST and NADH/QR activities. Benzofuran decr cytochrome p450 content and elevated ECOD activity.

Metabolism/Metabolites · 6 items

INDOLE UNDERGOES SCISSION OF PYRROLE RING TO YIELD N-FORMYLANTHRANILIC ACID, AN UNSTABLE COMPD WHICH DECOMP INTO ANTHRANILIC ACID & FORMIC ACID. INDOLE IS FIRST HYDROXYLATED TO GIVE INDOXYL & THEN ISATIN, & IT IS PROBABLY LATTER WHICH UNDERGOES HYDROLYTIC RING OPENING.

...INDOLE IS METABOLIZED BY RAT TO INDOXYL, OXINDOLE, 5-HYDROXYOXINDOLE & ISATIN...

YIELDS 2,2-BIS(3-INDOLYL)INDOXYL IN HORSERADISH. DEOXYVIOLACEIN IN CHROMOBACTERIUM. CIS-6,7-DIHYDRO-6,7-DIHYDROXYINDOLE PROBABLY IN PSEUDOMONAS. /FROM TABLE/

YIELDS 3,3'-DIINDOLYLACETIC ACID IN PEA. O-FORMAMIDOBENZALDEHYDE IN TECOMA. 3-HYDROXYOXINDOLE IN COCCUS. /FROM TABLE/

For more Metabolism/Metabolites (Complete) data for INDOLE (10 total), please visit the HSDB record page.

Indole has known human metabolites that include 6-Hydroxyindole, Oxindole, and Indoxyl.

Tissue LocationsEpidermis;Fibroblasts;Intestine;Neuron
Cellular LocationsMembrane

Uses & manufacturing

Uses · 6 items

Found in feces, neroli oil, jasmine oil, orange-blossom oil, certain flowers, tobacco smoke, and coal tar; Used in perfumery, flavoring, and as chemical reagent, intermediate, and feedstock; [HSDB]

USED IN PERFUMERY

SYNTHETIC FLAVOR

Chemical reagent

Used as a chemical intermediate for the synthesis of indol-3-ylacetic acid; 4-indol-3-ylbutyric acid; L-tryptophan.

For more Uses (Complete) data for INDOLE (6 total), please visit the HSDB record page.

U.S. Exports(1986) No Data
U.S. Imports(1984) 9.92X10+6 g
U.S. Production · 2 items

2023: 21,192 lb;2022: 52,919 lb;2021: 79,366 lb;2020: 70,548 lb

(1986) No Data

Consumer UsesFragrance
Industry UsesLaboratory chemicals
Applications · 8 items

Uses(1) According to the GB 27 60-96 , indole can be used as flavouring agent and mainly used for preparing the essence of cheese, citrus, coffee, nuts, grape, strawberry, raspberry, chocolate, assorted fruit, jasmine and lily etc. (2) It can be used as the reagent for the determination of nitrite, can also used in the manufacture of perfume and medicine. (3) It can be used as the raw material of perfume, pharmaceuticals and plant growth hormone. (4) Indole is the intermediate for the indole acetic acid and indole butyric acid.The indole acetic acid and indole butyric are plant growth regulator. (5) It can be widely used in the manufacture of the essences of jasmine, lilac, orange blossom, gardenia, honeysuckle, lotus, narcissus, ylang, orchid and prynne etc. It is usually combined with the methyl indole to imitate the artificial civet. The extremely few of the indole can be used in chocolate, raspberry, strawberry, bitter orange, coffee, nuts, cheese, grapes and fruit and other fruity essential oil. (6) Indole is mainly used as spices, dyes, amino acids and the raw materials of pesticide. Indole itself is a spice commonly used in producing the essences of jasmine, lilac, lotus flowers, orchids and other flower flavor. The usage is generally in a few thousandths. (7) It can be used for verifying the gold, potassium and nitrite and manufacturing jasmine-type fragrance. It can also be used in pharmaceutical industry.

DescriptionIndole has an almost floral odor when highly purified. Otherwise, it exhibits the characteristic odor of feces. It is not very stable on exposure to light (turns red). Indole may be obtained from the 220 - 260°C boiling fraction of coal tar or by heating sodium phenylglycine-o-carboxylate with NaOH, saturating the aqueous solution of the melt with C 02, and finally reducing with sodium amalgam; can be prepared also by the reduction of indoxyl, indoxyl carboxylic acid, or indigo.

OccurrenceReported occurring in several natural products as a complex compound that decomposes during enfleurage or steam distillation yielding free indole; reported found in the essential oil from flower of Jasminum grandiflorum, in neroli oil and in the oil extracted from flowers of bitter orange; also reported in the flowers of several plants: lemon, coffee, Hevea brasiliensis and Randia formosa in the oil extracted from flowers of Jasminum odoratissinium L. and in the oil of Narcissus jonquilla. Also reported found in apricot, mandarin orange peel oil, grapes, kohlrabi, French fried potato, crispbread, cheeses, butter, milk, milk powder, boiled egg, fish oil, chicken, beef, pork, beer, rum, Finnish whiskey, red and white wine, coffee, tea, soybean, mushrooms, cauliflower, figs, rice, licorice, buckwheat, malt, wort, elder flower, clary sage, shrimp, okra, crab, clam, squid and green maté

UsesIndole is a flavoring agent that is a white, flaky crystalline product. it has an unpleasant odor when concentrated and a flowery odor when diluted. it is soluble in most fixed oils and propylene glycol and insoluble in glycerin and mineral oil. it is obtained from decomposi- tion of a protein.

UsesIndole occurs in coal tar. It is used, underhigh dilution, in perfumery, and as an intermediatein organic synthesis.

UsesIn highly dil solutions the odor is pleasant, hence indole has been used in perfumery.

UsesCan be used in perfumes and in the synthesis of tryptophan.

General DescriptionIndole is classified under the volatile flavor compounds (VFCs). It is known to play significant role in various biological functions such as anti-inflammatory, anticonvulsant, cardiovascular and antibacterial activities.

Preparation methods · 1 item

PreparationObtained from the 220 to 260°C boiling fraction of coal tar or by heating sodium phenyl-glycine-o-carboxylate with NaOH, saturating the aqueous solution of the melt with CO2 and finally reducing with sodium amalgam; can be prepared also by the reduction of indoxyl, indoxyl carboxylic acid or indigo.

Suppliers50 total

国药集团化学试剂有限公司86-21-63210123 · [email protected]
梯希爱(上海)化成工业发展有限公司021-67121386 · [email protected]
衢州润东化工有限公司0570-8789886 18892685668 · [email protected]
上海阿拉丁生化科技股份有限公司400-6206333 13167063860 · [email protected]
山东前元高分子材料有限公司18678041314 18765609661 · [email protected]
Additional notes · 1 item

Definitionindole: A yellow solid, C8H7N, m.p.52°C. Its molecules consist of a benzenering fused to a nitrogen-containingfive-membered ring. It occurs insome plants and in coal tar, and isproduced in faeces by bacterial action.It is used in making perfumes.Indole has the nitrogen atom positionednext to the fused benzenering. An isomer with the nitrogentwo atoms away from the fused ringis called isoindole.

Related reactions

1,309 records

Linked notes

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