Asarone, which includes alpha (trans) and beta (cis) types, is an ether

Ether

Ethers are a class of organic compounds that contain an ether group — an oxygen atom connected to two alkyl or aryl groups — of general formula R–O–R'. A typical example is the solvent and anesthetic diethyl ether, commonly referred to simply as "ether"...

 found in certain plants such as acorus

Acorus

Acorus is a genus of monocot flowering plants. This genus was once placed within the family Araceae , but more recent classifications place it in its own family Acoraceae and order Acorales, of which it is the sole genus of the oldest surviving line of monocots. The exact relationship of Acorus to...

 and asarum

Asarum

Asarum is a genus of plants in the birthwort family Aristolochiaceae, commonly known as Wild ginger.- Description :...

. As a volatile fragrance oil

Fragrance oil

Fragrance oil, also known as aroma oils, aromatic oils, and flavor oils, are blended synthetic aroma compounds or natural essential oils that are diluted with a carrier like propylene glycol, vegetable oil, or mineral oil...

, it is used in killing plant fungal pests and bacteria. The toxicity and carcinogenicity of asarone means that it may be difficult to develop practical anthelmintics and insecticides based on it.

Pharmacology

The main clinical symptom of asarone is prolonged vomiting that sometimes lasted more than 15 hours. Asarone is not metabolized to trimethoxyamphetamine

Trimethoxyamphetamine

TMAs, also known as trimethoxyamphetamines, are a family of isomeric psychedelic hallucinogenic drugs. There exist six different TMAs that differ only in the position of the three methoxy groups: TMA, TMA-2, TMA-3, TMA-4, TMA-5, and TMA-6. The TMAs are analogs of the phenethylamine cactus alkaloid...

as has been claimed by online vendors.
Beta-asarone may be a potential candidate for development as a therapeutic agent to manage cognitive impairment associated with conditions such as Alzheimer's disease.