Cinnamon is a spice obtained from the inner bark of several tree species from the genus Cinnamomum. Cinnamon is used mainly as an aromatic condiment and flavouring additive in a wide variety of cuisines, sweet and savoury dishes, breakfast cereals, snack foods, bagels, teas, hot chocolate and traditional foods. The aroma and flavour of cinnamon derive from its essential oil and principal component, cinnamaldehyde, as well as numerous other constituents including eugenol.
An essential oil is a concentrated hydrophobic liquid containing volatile chemical compounds from plants. Essential oils are also known as volatile oils, ethereal oils, aetheroleum, or simply as the oil of the plant from which they were extracted, such as oil of clove. An essential oil is essential in the sense that it contains the essence of the plant's fragrance—the characteristic fragrance of the plant from which it is derived. The term "essential" used here does not mean indispensable or usable by the human body, as with the terms essential amino acid or essential fatty acid, which are so called because they are nutritionally required by a living organism.
Cinnamomum cassia, called Chinese cassia or Chinese cinnamon, is an evergreen tree originating in southern China and widely cultivated there and elsewhere in South and Southeast Asia. It is one of several species of Cinnamomum used primarily for its aromatic bark, which is used as a spice. The buds are also used as a spice, especially in India, and were used by the ancient Romans.
Cinnamaldehyde is an organic compound with the formula or C6H5CH=CHCHO. Occurring naturally as predominantly the trans (E) isomer, it gives cinnamon its flavor and odor. It is a phenylpropanoid that is naturally synthesized by the shikimate pathway. This pale yellow, viscous liquid occurs in the bark of cinnamon trees and other species of the genus Cinnamomum. The essential oil of cinnamon bark is about 90% cinnamaldehyde. Cinnamaldehyde decomposes to styrene because of oxidation as a result of bad storage or transport conditions. Styrene especially forms in high humidity and high temperatures. This is the reason why cinnamon contains small amounts of styrene.
Cinnamomum is a genus of evergreen aromatic trees and shrubs belonging to the laurel family, Lauraceae. The species of Cinnamomum have aromatic oils in their leaves and bark. The genus contains approximately 250 species, distributed in tropical and subtropical regions of South Asia, Southeast Asia, East Asia and Oceania/Australasia. The genus includes a great number of economically important trees.
Camphora officinarum is a species of evergreen tree that is commonly known under the names camphor tree, camphorwood or camphor laurel.
Cinnamomum tamala, Indian bay leaf, also known as tejpat, tejapatta,Malabar leaf, Indian bark, Indian cassia, or malabathrum, is a tree in the family Lauraceae that is native to India, Bangladesh, Nepal, Bhutan, and China. It can grow up to 20 m (66 ft) tall. Its leaves have a clove-like aroma with a hint of peppery taste; they are used for culinary and medicinal purposes. It is thought to have been one of the major sources of the medicinal plant leaves known in classic and medieval times as malabathrum.
Saigon cinnamon is an evergreen tree indigenous to mainland Southeast Asia. Saigon cinnamon is more closely related to cassia than to Ceylon cinnamon, though in the same genus as both. Saigon cinnamon has 1-5% essential oil content and 25% cinnamaldehyde in essential oil. Consequently, among the species, Saigon cinnamon commands a relatively high price.
Cinnamomum burmanni, also known as Indonesian cinnamon, Padang cassia, Batavia cassia, or korintje, is one of several plants in the genus Cinnamomum whose bark is sold as the spice cinnamon. It is an evergreen tree native to southeast Asia.
Cinnamomum tenuifolium, commonly known as Japanese cinnamon, is an evergreen tree in the genus Cinnamomum. It is a small- or medium-sized tree up to 15 m (49 ft) tall that occurs in Japan, Korea, Taiwan, and eastern China. In China it is under second-class national protection.
Cinnamomum citriodorum is a species of flowering plant in the family Lauraceae. It is commonly known as Malabar Cinnamon. It is an evergreen tree which grows up to 10 metres tall. The species is endemic to central and southwestern Sri Lanka.
A xanthine oxidase inhibitor is any substance that inhibits the activity of xanthine oxidase, an enzyme involved in purine metabolism. In humans, inhibition of xanthine oxidase reduces the production of uric acid, and several medications that inhibit xanthine oxidase are indicated for treatment of hyperuricemia and related medical conditions including gout. Xanthine oxidase inhibitors are being investigated for management of reperfusion injury.
Cinnamomum parthenoxylon is an evergreen tree in the genus Cinnamomum, 10–20 m (33–66 ft) tall. It is native to South and East Asia.
Cinnamomum verum is a small evergreen tree belonging to the family Lauraceae, native to Sri Lanka. The inner bark of the tree is historically regarded as the 'spice' cinnamon, though this term was later generalized for both C. cassia and C. zeylanicum as well.
Camphora glandulifera, common name false camphor tree or Nepal camphor tree, is a tree in the genus Cinnamomum of the family Lauraceae.
α-Cadinol or 10α-hydroxy-4-cadinene is an organic compound, a sesquiterpenoid alcohol.
Cinnamomum mercadoi (kalingag) is a small tree, about 6 to 10 metres high, with a thick, aromatic bark. The plant part of the family Lauraceae, which contains about 45 genera and 2000-2500 species, and is related to the culinary cinnamon, sassafras, and bay tree. The plant is indigenous to the Philippines, where it grows best in forests at low and medium altitudes that sometimes ascend to 2,000 metres (6,600 ft). C. mercadoi is unusual in the cinnamon family in that its essential oil consists large amounts of safrol, whereas other oils of cinnamon contain cinnamaldehyde. It is currently listed in the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List as "vulnerable" due to the overharvesting and the continuous loss of the Philippine forests.
Tamala honey is a unique processed product from oil extracted from an indigenous tree species to Nepal, Cinnamomum tamala ("tejpat"), and incorporated into honey for digestion. With the rise of the tea industry in North America, C.tamala honey has its appeal and potential as a natural sweetener.
Cinnamomum cambodianum is a non-scented species of cinnamon, native and endemic to Cambodia. Commonly referred to as Cambodia cinnamon, C. cambodianum is an evergreen tree with a large, dense crown, growing 15–25 metres tall. The straight, cylindrical bole can grow to 30–80 cm in diameter.
Cinnamyl acetate is a chemical compound of the cinnamyl ester family, in which the variable R group is substituted by a methyl group. As a result of the non-aromatic carbon-carbon double bond, cinnamyl acetate can exist in a Z and an E configuration:
