Citronellal

Citronellal at a Glance

Citronellal is the monoterpene aldehyde of citronella, lemongrass and lemon eucalyptus oils, and the source of their sharp lemony scent.

Commercially it is both a fragrance ingredient and the building block for natural insect repellents — it is the chemical starting point for PMD, the refined lemon-eucalyptus derivative that is one of the few plant-derived repellents with efficacy comparable to DEET.

Its own research covers antifungal activity and sedative effects in rodents.

Citronellal & PMD

The most important thing citronellal does commercially is turn into something else. para-Menthane-3,8-diol (PMD) — the registered “oil of lemon eucalyptus” repellent, the only plant-derived active with efficacy and duration in DEET’s range — is made from citronellal by an acid-catalysed Prins cyclisation in water, either from the pure aldehyde or directly from lemon-eucalyptus oil, whose citronellal converts in situ ^{14Reference 14Phan MH et al. · 2026Ultrasound-assisted synthesis and stereoselectivity analysis of para-menthane-3,8-diol from citronellal via the Prins reaction — synthetic chemistryView study →}. The reaction is old and slow; recent work runs it in minutes with ultrasound and shows that crystallising from the natural oil enriches the more active cis-diastereomer to about 90% ^{14Reference 14Phan MH et al. · 2026Ultrasound-assisted synthesis and stereoselectivity analysis of para-menthane-3,8-diol from citronellal via the Prins reaction — synthetic chemistryView study →}.

That chemistry is why the two must be kept apart on a page like this. PMD is a ring-closed, non-volatile diol; citronellal is an open-chain aldehyde that evaporates from skin in an hour. The long-lasting, DEET-comparable protection reported for “lemon eucalyptus” belongs to PMD-containing products, and citronella-oil products, in which citronellal is a main volatile, give only partial protection. Indoors, citronella candles repelled 14% of mosquitoes and citronella diffusers 68%, against 50% and 97% for geraniol ^{19Reference 19Müller GC et al. · 2009Efficacy of the botanical repellents geraniol, linalool, and citronella against mosquitoes — field studyView study →}. A label that says “lemon eucalyptus oil” and one that says “oil of lemon eucalyptus (PMD)” are describing different molecules.

How Insects Smell It

Citronellal’s repellency is not toxicity; it is aversion, and the pathway is known. In Drosophila the aldehyde is detected by olfactory neurons through the co-receptor Orco (OR83b), and avoidance additionally requires the cation channel TRPA1 acting downstream of a Gq/phospholipase-C cascade to shape the neurons’ firing ^{15Reference 15Kwon Y et al. · 2010Drosophila TRPA1 channel is required to avoid the naturally occurring insect repellent citronellal — insect genetics and electrophysiologyView study →}. A later study found that citronellal also potentiates TRPA1 directly, which suppresses feeding as well as driving avoidance ^{16Reference 16Du EJ et al. · 2015The Mosquito Repellent Citronellal Directly Potentiates Drosophila TRPA1, Facilitating Feeding Suppression — insect electrophysiology and behaviourView study →} — so the same molecule is sensed twice, once as an odour and once as a chemical irritant of the kind TRPA1 exists to detect. Mosquito TRPA1 responds to citronellal too, which is the likeliest reason a compound with no insecticidal potency to speak of still keeps insects away.

Chirality

Citronellal is chiral at C3 and occurs in nature as an unequal mixture of the (R)-(+) and (S)-(−) forms, the ratio being characteristic enough of each oil that chiral gas chromatography, alongside stable-isotope ratios, is used to authenticate citronella, lemon-eucalyptus, lemon-myrtle and lemon-balm oils and to catch adulteration with synthetic material ^{17Reference 17Nhu-Trang TT et al. · 2006Authenticity control of essential oils containing citronellal and citral by chiral and stable-isotope gas-chromatographic analysis — analytical chemistryView study →}. Industry makes a single enantiomer: the Takasago process produces (R)-(+)-citronellal from myrcene through a rhodium–BINAP-catalysed asymmetric isomerisation, and that enantiomer is the chiral key to synthetic (−)-menthol ^{18Reference 18Dylong D et al. · 2025From Turpentine to (-)-Menthol: A New Approach — synthetic chemistryView study →}. The pharmacology, by contrast, mostly used the racemate — the anticonvulsant, sedative and anxiolytic mouse studies all dosed (±)-citronellal ^{6,7,8Reference 6Chowdhury R et al. · 2024AnimalAnticonvulsant effect of (±) citronellal possibly through the GABAergic and voltage-gated sodium channel receptor interaction pathways: In vivo and in silico studies — mouse animal modelView study →Reference 7Islam MT et al. · 2025AnimalCitronellal Exerts Sedative-Like Effects and Augments Diazepam’s Action in Swiss Mice, Possibly Through the GABAergic Pathway — mouse animal modelView study →Reference 8Islam MT et al. · 2025AnimalAnxiolytic-Like Effects of Citronellal and Phytol, Possibly Through the GABAergic Interaction Pathway: In Vivo with Molecular Docking Studies — mouse animal modelView study →} — so whether the two forms differ in those effects is untested.

What It's Used For

Citronellal is the monoterpene aldehyde of citronella, lemongrass and lemon eucalyptus oils — the reduced-then-oxidized relative of the alcohol citronellol and of geraniol/nerol. Its genuine claim to fame is as the dominant volatile behind citronella-oil repellency and the chemical starting point for PMD (para-menthane-3,8-diol), the registered “oil of lemon eucalyptus” repellent — but PMD is a cyclized derivative whose strong, long-lasting efficacy must not be read back onto the aldehyde. Beyond that, its isolate evidence is thin and entirely preclinical: consistent in-vitro antifungal activity and rodent CNS/analgesic signals.

Evidence by IndicationStrength of support · Beta

01Insect repellent / larvicidalShaky30%Whole-oil candle and diffuser repellency ^{19Reference 19Müller GC et al. · 2009Efficacy of the botanical repellents geraniol, linalool, and citronella against mosquitoes — field studyView study →}

02Antifungal / antimicrobialShaky26%Ergosterol/ROS-mechanism in-vitro studies ^{3,4,5Reference 3Saibabu V et al. · 2017In vitroInsights into the intracellular mechanisms of citronellal in Candida albicans: implications for reactive oxygen species-mediated necrosis, mitochondrial dysfunction, and DNA damage — in vitroView study →Reference 4OuYang Q et al. · 2021In vitroCitronellal Exerts Its Antifungal Activity by Targeting Ergosterol Biosynthesis in Penicillium digitatum — in vitroView study →Reference 5Trindade LA et al. · 2022In vitroThe antifungal and antibiofilm activity of Cymbopogon nardus essential oil and citronellal on clinical strains of Candida albicans — in vitroView study →}

03Sedative / anxiolytic / anticonvulsantShaky24%Rodent behavioral + docking studies ^{6,7,8Reference 6Chowdhury R et al. · 2024AnimalAnticonvulsant effect of (±) citronellal possibly through the GABAergic and voltage-gated sodium channel receptor interaction pathways: In vivo and in silico studies — mouse animal modelView study →Reference 7Islam MT et al. · 2025AnimalCitronellal Exerts Sedative-Like Effects and Augments Diazepam’s Action in Swiss Mice, Possibly Through the GABAergic Pathway — mouse animal modelView study →Reference 8Islam MT et al. · 2025AnimalAnxiolytic-Like Effects of Citronellal and Phytol, Possibly Through the GABAergic Interaction Pathway: In Vivo with Molecular Docking Studies — mouse animal modelView study →}

04Anti-inflammatory / analgesicShaky20%Two mouse antinociception studies ^{1,2Reference 1Melo MS et al. · 2010AnimalAntinociceptive effect of citronellal in miceView study →Reference 2Quintans-Júnior LJ et al. · 2013AnimalCitronellal, a monoterpene present in Java citronella oil, attenuates mechanical nociception response in miceView study →}

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Mechanisms

Insect-acetylcholinesterase inhibition is documented for the alcohol citronellol, not the aldehyde — omitted here to preserve isomer discipline.

Pharmacokinetics

There is no dedicated human pharmacokinetics. Citronellal is a small (C₁₀H₁₈O), lipophilic, volatile reactive aldehyde: expected to be rapidly absorbed but with low systemic persistence, quickly oxidized to citronellic acid (excreted as conjugates) or reduced to citronellol, with some cyclization to PMD-type diols. Its reactivity toward skin proteins (Schiff-base/Michael chemistry) underlies its sensitizer behavior rather than any circulating pool, and the high effective rodent doses are consistent with rapid clearance and low bioavailability.

Clinical Trials

No trial of isolated citronellal for any endpoint is registered or published. Human exposure is as a trace flavouring, a fragrance ingredient, and the volatile of citronella-oil repellent products; none of it has been studied as a dose. Every finding above is in vitro or rodent.

Last checked: September 2026.

Isolate vs. Plant Studies

The isolate literature is small but genuinely the isolate: the two antinociception studies ^{1,2Reference 1Melo MS et al. · 2010AnimalAntinociceptive effect of citronellal in miceView study →Reference 2Quintans-Júnior LJ et al. · 2013AnimalCitronellal, a monoterpene present in Java citronella oil, attenuates mechanical nociception response in miceView study →}, the ergosterol and ROS antifungal mechanisms ^{3,4Reference 3Saibabu V et al. · 2017In vitroInsights into the intracellular mechanisms of citronellal in Candida albicans: implications for reactive oxygen species-mediated necrosis, mitochondrial dysfunction, and DNA damage — in vitroView study →Reference 4OuYang Q et al. · 2021In vitroCitronellal Exerts Its Antifungal Activity by Targeting Ergosterol Biosynthesis in Penicillium digitatum — in vitroView study →}, and the recent anticonvulsant, sedative and anxiolytic series in mice ^{6,7,8Reference 6Chowdhury R et al. · 2024AnimalAnticonvulsant effect of (±) citronellal possibly through the GABAergic and voltage-gated sodium channel receptor interaction pathways: In vivo and in silico studies — mouse animal modelView study →Reference 7Islam MT et al. · 2025AnimalCitronellal Exerts Sedative-Like Effects and Augments Diazepam’s Action in Swiss Mice, Possibly Through the GABAergic Pathway — mouse animal modelView study →Reference 8Islam MT et al. · 2025AnimalAnxiolytic-Like Effects of Citronellal and Phytol, Possibly Through the GABAergic Interaction Pathway: In Vivo with Molecular Docking Studies — mouse animal modelView study →} all dosed citronellal itself, and one Candida study ran the oil and the aldehyde side by side ^{5Reference 5Trindade LA et al. · 2022In vitroThe antifungal and antibiofilm activity of Cymbopogon nardus essential oil and citronellal on clinical strains of Candida albicans — in vitroView study →}. What none of it includes is a human being.

The plant evidence is where the reputation comes from, and it points at other molecules. Citronella-oil repellency is a whole-oil result ^{19Reference 19Müller GC et al. · 2009Efficacy of the botanical repellents geraniol, linalool, and citronella against mosquitoes — field studyView study →} in which citronellal is the largest but not the only active — the oil also carries geraniol and citronellol, both repellents in their own right — and the strong lemon-eucalyptus data are PMD’s ^{14Reference 14Phan MH et al. · 2026Ultrasound-assisted synthesis and stereoselectivity analysis of para-menthane-3,8-diol from citronellal via the Prins reaction — synthetic chemistryView study →}. Lemon balm’s calming reputation is the plant’s, with citral, not citronellal, its main volatile ^{12Reference 12Taherpour AA et al. · 2012Chemical composition analysis of the essential oil of Melissa officinalis L. from Kurdistan, Iran by HS/SPME method and calculation of the biophysicochemical coefficients of the components — GC-MS composition studyView study →}. The honest reading: real isolate pharmacology in animals, no human data, and a repellent reputation that belongs partly to the family and partly to a derivative.

Its Role in Plants

Citronellal sits at the aldehyde end of the geraniol family: the plant makes geraniol from geranyl diphosphate, oxidises it to citral or reduces it to citronellol, and citronellal is the aldehyde of the saturated branch. Which member accumulates is a matter of species and enzyme — citronella grasses stop at the aldehyde, palmarosa at geraniol, roses at the alcohols ^{10,13Reference 10Rodrigues KA et al. · 2013In vitroMolluscicidal and larvicidal activities and essential oil composition of Cymbopogon winterianus — GC-MS composition and in vitro bioassayView study →Reference 13Ekpenyong CE et al. · 2015ReviewEthnopharmacology, phytochemistry, and biological activities of Cymbopogon citratus (DC.) Stapf extracts — reviewView study →} — and the source oils of the whole family are described once, on the geraniol page.

In the plant it is a defence. Insects sense it through Orco and TRPA1 and avoid it ^{15,16Reference 15Kwon Y et al. · 2010Drosophila TRPA1 channel is required to avoid the naturally occurring insect repellent citronellal — insect genetics and electrophysiologyView study →Reference 16Du EJ et al. · 2015The Mosquito Repellent Citronellal Directly Potentiates Drosophila TRPA1, Facilitating Feeding Suppression — insect electrophysiology and behaviourView study →}; it is antifungal against leaf and fruit pathogens ^{4Reference 4OuYang Q et al. · 2021In vitroCitronellal Exerts Its Antifungal Activity by Targeting Ergosterol Biosynthesis in Penicillium digitatum — in vitroView study →}; and lemon eucalyptus, citronella and lemon balm all accumulate it in glandular tissue where a browsing insect meets it first. The same molecule serves as an alarm signal in the “citronella ants” of North America, which release its sharp lemon smell when a nest is disturbed.

Prevalence in Nature

Citronellal is narrower in distribution than its parent alcohol: it dominates a few oils and appears at low levels in many citral-type ones. Lemon eucalyptus (Corymbia citriodora) leaf oil is the richest source, around 70% ^{11Reference 11Tolba H et al. · 2015In vitroEssential oil of Algerian Eucalyptus citriodora: Chemical composition, antifungal activity — GC-MS composition and in vitro studyView study →}; Java citronella (Cymbopogon winterianus) runs about a quarter citronellal beside geraniol and citronellol ^{10Reference 10Rodrigues KA et al. · 2013In vitroMolluscicidal and larvicidal activities and essential oil composition of Cymbopogon winterianus — GC-MS composition and in vitro bioassayView study →}, the Ceylon type (C. nardus) less; lemon balm oil can carry ~20%, though its composition swings with population, harvest and storage ^{12Reference 12Taherpour AA et al. · 2012Chemical composition analysis of the essential oil of Melissa officinalis L. from Kurdistan, Iran by HS/SPME method and calculation of the biophysicochemical coefficients of the components — GC-MS composition studyView study →}; lemongrass has only 3–4% ^{13Reference 13Ekpenyong CE et al. · 2015ReviewEthnopharmacology, phytochemistry, and biological activities of Cymbopogon citratus (DC.) Stapf extracts — reviewView study →}. Manuka, lemon myrtle, lemon verbena and Litsea cubeba carry it as a minor companion to citral ^{17Reference 17Nhu-Trang TT et al. · 2006Authenticity control of essential oils containing citronellal and citral by chiral and stable-isotope gas-chromatographic analysis — analytical chemistryView study →}.

Major Natural Sources

Source	Plant part	Reported citronellal content
Lemon eucalyptus (Corymbia citriodora)	leaf oil	~69% (Algerian oil) 11Reference 11Tolba H et al. · 2015In vitroEssential oil of Algerian Eucalyptus citriodora: Chemical composition, antifungal activity — GC-MS composition and in vitro studyView study →
Java citronella (Cymbopogon winterianus)	leaf oil	26.5% (geraniol 16.2%, citronellol 7.3%) 10Reference 10Rodrigues KA et al. · 2013In vitroMolluscicidal and larvicidal activities and essential oil composition of Cymbopogon winterianus — GC-MS composition and in vitro bioassayView study →
Lemon balm (Melissa officinalis)	leaf oil	~20% (citral ~61%) 12Reference 12Taherpour AA et al. · 2012Chemical composition analysis of the essential oil of Melissa officinalis L. from Kurdistan, Iran by HS/SPME method and calculation of the biophysicochemical coefficients of the components — GC-MS composition studyView study →
Lemongrass (Cymbopogon citratus)	leaf oil	~3–4% 13Reference 13Ekpenyong CE et al. · 2015ReviewEthnopharmacology, phytochemistry, and biological activities of Cymbopogon citratus (DC.) Stapf extracts — reviewView study →

All figures are shares of the essential oil; citronella and lemon-balm oils in particular vary widely by chemotype and origin.

Other Reported Sources

• Ceylon citronella (Cymbopogon nardus) — the older, lower-citronellal type ^{5Reference 5Trindade LA et al. · 2022In vitroThe antifungal and antibiofilm activity of Cymbopogon nardus essential oil and citronellal on clinical strains of Candida albicans — in vitroView study →}
• Manuka (Leptospermum scoparium) — a minor volatile
• Lemon myrtle, lemon verbena and Litsea cubeba — citral-type oils with a citronellal companion ^{17Reference 17Nhu-Trang TT et al. · 2006Authenticity control of essential oils containing citronellal and citral by chiral and stable-isotope gas-chromatographic analysis — analytical chemistryView study →}
• Rose and geranium oils carry the reduced alcohol, citronellol, rather than the aldehyde

Discovery & Synthesis

Citronellal was characterised from citronella oil in the late nineteenth century, in the same programme of terpene chemistry that gave geraniol, citral and linalool their structures, and took its name from the oil; an older synonym, rhodinal, records the rose-like note of its reduced relatives. Its industrial history is more recent and more important. The Takasago process telomerises myrcene with diethylamine, isomerises the resulting allylamine with a chiral rhodium–BINAP catalyst to the enamine of (R)-(+)-citronellal, hydrolyses it, and cyclises the aldehyde to isopulegol on the way to (−)-menthol ^{18Reference 18Dylong D et al. · 2025From Turpentine to (-)-Menthol: A New Approach — synthetic chemistryView study →} — the first industrial asymmetric catalysis, and still the largest single use of the molecule. Citronellal is also made by hydrogenating citral and, on a smaller scale, distilled from citronella and lemon-eucalyptus oils for natural-label fragrance.

Patents: not yet researched.

Commercial Production

Citronellal is an intermediate more than an ingredient: the chiral pool for synthetic menthol ^{18Reference 18Dylong D et al. · 2025From Turpentine to (-)-Menthol: A New Approach — synthetic chemistryView study →}, the feedstock for PMD ^{14Reference 14Phan MH et al. · 2026Ultrasound-assisted synthesis and stereoselectivity analysis of para-menthane-3,8-diol from citronellal via the Prins reaction — synthetic chemistryView study →}, and the parent of hydroxycitronellal, the lily-of-the-valley note of twentieth-century perfumery. As a fragrance material in its own right it supplies the sharp lemon of citronella candles, soaps and cleaners, where its volatility is the point rather than a problem.

Toxicity & Safety

Swallowing citronellal is not the problem — the risk is on your skin. It has low acute toxicity and a long GRAS history as a flavoring, but as a reactive aldehyde it is a recognized contact allergen and sensitizer.

Safety at a Glance

✅ Low / no toxicityAllergy risk

• Low acute toxicity. A long-standing GRAS flavoring and fragrance ingredient, with wide margins in rodent studies.
• Recognized fragrance contact allergen. Concentrated leave-on topical use is the main risk, and it is labeled as such in the EU.
• More irritant than its parent alcohols. Dilute well; treat it as a topical irritant as well as a sensitizer.
• Autoxidizes to sensitizing hydroperoxides. Avoid oxidized or poorly stored material.

Full Safety & Interactions Detail

Citronellal has low acute toxicity and a long history as a GRAS flavoring/fragrance ingredient, with wide margins in rodent acute-toxicity studies. The headline caveat is topical: it is a recognized fragrance contact allergen, and as a reactive aldehyde it is more irritant than its parent alcohols and readily autoxidizes to sensitizing hydroperoxides. Treat it as a topical irritant/sensitizer — dilute well, avoid oxidized material, and note that concentrated leave-on use is the main risk under EU fragrance-allergen labeling. No reproductive-toxicity study of isolated citronellal was located. Culinary and aromatic exposure is incidental and long-standing; concentrated or undiluted topical exposure has not been assessed, and citronellal is a reactive aldehyde with no established safety margin at those levels.

Dosage

There is no established human therapeutic dose, and citronellal is not recommended as an isolated oral supplement. Real-world use is as a trace fragrance/flavor ingredient and, topically, only well-diluted within a carrier (aromatherapy/repellent blends, typically ≤1% for leave-on), with a patch test first. For durable repellency, the PMD derivative — not free citronellal — is the evidence-backed choice. All efficacy dosing to date is preclinical (rodent i.p. 50–250 mg/kg; antifungal MIC ~256 µg/mL) and not translatable to humans. These are doses studied in research and are not a personal recommendation.

References

1. Melo MS, et al. (2010). Antinociceptive effect of citronellal in mice. Pharmaceutical Biology. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/20645719/
2. Quintans-Júnior LJ, et al. (2013). Citronellal, a monoterpene present in Java citronella oil, attenuates mechanical nociception response in mice. Pharmaceutical Biology. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/23795810/
3. Saibabu V, Singh S, Ansari MA, et al. (2017). Insights into the intracellular mechanisms of citronellal in Candida albicans: implications for reactive oxygen species-mediated necrosis, mitochondrial dysfunction, and DNA damage — in vitro. Rev Soc Bras Med Trop. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/28954074/
4. OuYang Q, Liu Y, Oketch OR, et al. (2021). Citronellal Exerts Its Antifungal Activity by Targeting Ergosterol Biosynthesis in Penicillium digitatum — in vitro. J Fungi (Basel). https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/34072578/
5. Trindade LA, Cordeiro LV, de Figuerêdo Silva D, et al. (2022). The antifungal and antibiofilm activity of Cymbopogon nardus essential oil and citronellal on clinical strains of Candida albicans — in vitro. Braz J Microbiol. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/35386096/
6. Chowdhury R, Bhuia MS, Al Hasan MS, et al. (2024). Anticonvulsant effect of (±) citronellal possibly through the GABAergic and voltage-gated sodium channel receptor interaction pathways: In vivo and in silico studies — mouse animal model. Neurochem Int. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/38395152/
7. Islam MT, Hasan MSA, Mia E, et al. (2025). Citronellal Exerts Sedative-Like Effects and Augments Diazepam’s Action in Swiss Mice, Possibly Through the GABAergic Pathway — mouse animal model. Brain Behav. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/40123142/
8. Islam MT, Al Hasan MS, Ferdous J, et al. (2025). Anxiolytic-Like Effects of Citronellal and Phytol, Possibly Through the GABAergic Interaction Pathway: In Vivo with Molecular Docking Studies — mouse animal model. Mol Neurobiol. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/41261301/
9. Zhu J, Zeng X, Yanma, et al. (2006). Adult repellency and larvicidal activity of five plant essential oils against mosquitoes — insect bioassay. J Am Mosq Control Assoc. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/17067055/
10. Rodrigues KA, Dias CN, do Amaral FM, et al. (2013). Molluscicidal and larvicidal activities and essential oil composition of Cymbopogon winterianus — GC-MS composition and in vitro bioassay. Pharm Biol. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/23855832/
11. Tolba H, Moghrani H, Benelmouffok A, et al. (2015). Essential oil of Algerian Eucalyptus citriodora: Chemical composition, antifungal activity — GC-MS composition and in vitro study. J Mycol Med. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/26597375/
12. Taherpour AA, Maroofi H, Rafie Z, et al. (2012). Chemical composition analysis of the essential oil of Melissa officinalis L. from Kurdistan, Iran by HS/SPME method and calculation of the biophysicochemical coefficients of the components — GC-MS composition study. Nat Prod Res. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/21809949/
13. Ekpenyong CE, Akpan E, Nyoh A (2015). Ethnopharmacology, phytochemistry, and biological activities of Cymbopogon citratus (DC.) Stapf extracts — review. Chin J Nat Med. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/25986281/
14. Phan MH, Tran TD, Ho NTD, et al. (2026). Ultrasound-assisted synthesis and stereoselectivity analysis of para-menthane-3,8-diol from citronellal via the Prins reaction — synthetic chemistry. Ultrason Sonochem. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/42330877/
15. Kwon Y, Kim SH, Ronderos DS, et al. (2010). Drosophila TRPA1 channel is required to avoid the naturally occurring insect repellent citronellal — insect genetics and electrophysiology. Curr Biol. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/20797863/
16. Du EJ, Ahn TJ, Choi MS, et al. (2015). The Mosquito Repellent Citronellal Directly Potentiates Drosophila TRPA1, Facilitating Feeding Suppression — insect electrophysiology and behaviour. Mol Cells. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/26447139/
17. Nhu-Trang TT, Casabianca H, Grenier-Loustalot MF (2006). Authenticity control of essential oils containing citronellal and citral by chiral and stable-isotope gas-chromatographic analysis — analytical chemistry. Anal Bioanal Chem. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/17089103/
18. Dylong D, Panten J, Rußbüldt B, et al. (2025). From Turpentine to (-)-Menthol: A New Approach — synthetic chemistry. ChemSusChem. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/40552362/
19. Müller GC, Junnila A, Butler J, et al. (2009). Efficacy of the botanical repellents geraniol, linalool, and citronella against mosquitoes — field study. J Vector Ecol. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/20836800/

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