Skip to main content
An official website of the United States government
Government Funding Lapse
Because of a lapse in government funding, the information on this website may not be up to date, transactions submitted via the website may not be processed, and the agency may not be able to respond to inquiries until appropriations are enacted.

The NIH Clinical Center (the research hospital of NIH) is open. For more details about its operating status, please visit cc.nih.gov.

Updates regarding government operating status and resumption of normal operations can be found at opm.gov.

limonene, (+)-

An oral dietary supplement containing a natural cyclic monoterpene, and a major component of the oil extracted from citrus peels, with potential chemopreventive and antineoplastic activities. Upon oral administration, D-limonene activates aldehyde dehydrogenase 3A1 (ALDH3A1), thereby decreasing aldehyde level. This may protect salivary stem/progenitor cells (SSPCs) from toxic aldehydes and prevent or improve radiation-induced xerostomia. Limonene and its metabolites perillic acid, dihydroperillic acid, uroterpenol and limonene 1,2-diol may also inhibit tumor growth through inhibition of p21-dependent signaling and may induce apoptosis via the induction of the transforming growth factor beta-signaling pathway. In addition, they inhibit post-translational modification of signal transduction proteins, resulting in G1 cell cycle arrest as well as differential expression of cell cycle- and apoptosis-related genes.
Synonym:(+)-alpha-limonene
(+)-limonene
(R)-(+)-limonene
D-limonene
limonene, D-
Code name:Alda 341
Alda-341
Alda341
Chemical structure:(+)-(R)-4-isopropenyl-1-methylcyclohexene
(4R)-1-methyl-4-(1-methylethenyl)cyclohexene
(R)-4-isopropenyl-1-methylcyclohexene
1-methyl-4-isopropenyl-1-cyclohexene
cyclohexene, 1-methyl-4-(1-methylethenyl)-, (4R)-
Search NCI's Drug Dictionary