Musk is the name originally given to a substance with a penetrating odor obtained from a
gland of the male musk deer, which is situated between its
stomach and genitals. The substance has been used as a popular perfume fixative since ancient times and is one of the most expensive
animal products in the world.[1] The name, originated from Sanskrit muṣká meaning
"testicle",[2][3] has come to encompass a wide variety of substances with somewhat similar odors
although many of them are quite different in their chemical structures. They include
glandular secretions from animals other than the musk deer, numerous plants emitting similar fragrances, and artificial
substances with similar odors.
Until the late 19th century the fragrance was only obtained from natural sources.[4] Now synthesized compounds are used almost exclusively.[4] The organic
compound primarily responsible for the characteristic odor of musk is muscone.
Natural sources
Musk deer
The musk deer belongs to the family Moschidae and lives in Pakistan, India, Tibet,
China, Siberia and Mongolia. To obtain the musk, the animal is killed and the gland, also called musk pod, removed and
dried, either in the sun, on a hot stone, or by immersion in hot oil. Upon drying, the reddish-brown paste turns into a black,
granular material called musk grain, and is used for alcoholic solutions. The aroma of the tincture becomes more intense
during storage and gives a pleasant odor only after it is considerably diluted. No other
natural substance has such a complex aroma associated with so many contradictory descriptions; however, it is usually described
abstractly as animalic, earthy and woody[4] or
something akin to the odour of baby's skin[5].
Good musk is of a dark purplish color, dry, smooth and unctuous to the touch, and bitter in taste. It dissolves in boiling
water to the extent of about one-half; alcohol takes up one-third of the substance, and ether and chloroform dissolve still less.
The grain of musk will distinctly scent millions of cubic feet of air without any appreciable
loss of weight, and its scent is not only more penetrating but more persistent than that of any other known substance. In
addition to its odoriferous principle, it contains ammonia, cholesterol, fatty matter, a bitter resinous substance, and other animal principles. As a material in
perfumery it is of the first importance, its powerful and enduring odor giving strength and permanency to the vegetable essences,
so that it is an ingredient in many compounded perfumes.
The best quality is Tonkin musk from Tibet and China, followed
by Assam and Nepal musk, while Carbadine musk from Russian and
Chinese Himalayan regions are considered inferior.[5] Obtaining one kilogram (2.2 lbs) of musk grains requires between thirty and fifty deers, making
musk tinctures highly expensive. At the beginning of the 19th century, Tonkin musk grains cost about twice their weight in
gold.[5] Despite
the high price, musk tinctures were used in perfumery until 1979, when musk deers were protected as an endangered species by the
Convention on the International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Flora and Fauna (CITES). Today
the trade quantity of the natural musk is controlled by CITES but illegal poaching and trading
continues.[5] An illegal shipment of 700
kilograms (1,540 lbs) of Chinese musk from the musk deer was seized in Japan in 1987, an amount corresponding to approximately
100,000 deers killed.[6]
Other animals
Glandular substances with musk-like odor are also obtained from the muskrat of
North America, the Musk Duck (Biziura lobata) of
southern Australia, the musk shrew, the
musk beetle (Calichroma moschata), the musk
turtle, the alligator of Central America, and
from several other animals.
In crocodiles, there are two pairs of musk glands, one pair situated at the corner of the jaw and the other pair in the
cloaca.[7] Musk glands are
also found in snakes.
Plants
Some plants such as Angelica archangelica or Abelmoschus moschatus produce musky smelling macrocyclic lactone compounds. These compounds
are widely used in perfumery as substitutes for natural musk or to alter the smell of a mixture of other musks.
The plant sources include musk flower (Mimulus
moschatus), the muskwood (Olearia argophylla)
of the Guianas and West Indies, and in the seeds of
Abelmoschus moschatus (musk
seeds). However, the plant Mimulus is today largely scentless, all specimens
having almost simultaneously lost their distinctive odor for no apparent reason in the mid-twentieth century.[verification needed]
Artificial compounds
Muscone, the organic compound responsible for the characteristic odor of musk
Since obtaining the deer musk requires killing the endangered animal, nearly all
musk fragrance used in perfumery today is synthetic. They can be divided into three major classes — aromatic nitro musks,
polycyclic musk compounds, and macrocyclic musk compounds.[4] The first two groups have broad uses in industry ranging from cosmetics to detergents. However, the detection of the first two chemical
groups in human and environmental samples as well as their carcinogenic properties initiated a public debate on the use of these
compounds and a ban or reduction of their use in many regions of the world. As an alternative, macrocyclic musk compounds are
expected to replace them since these compounds appear to be safer.[4]
Nitro-musks
An artificial musk was obtained by Baur in 1888 by condensing toluene with isobutyl bromide in the presence of aluminium chloride, and nitrating the product. It was discovered accidentally as a result of Baur's
attempts at producing a more effective form of trinitrotoluene. It appears that the
odour depends upon the symmetry of the three nitro groups. Following the discovery of Musk Baur, the first nitro-musk,
many similar preparations have been made. Notable nitro-musks include
- Musk Baur (Tonquinol)
- Musk Ketone
- Musk Xylene
- Musk Ambrette
- Moskene
Polycyclic musks
An artificial musk that contains more than one ring in its molecular structure. These musks became popular after
World War II and slowly supplanted the nitro-musks in popularity due to the latter's
toxicity and molecular instability. However it was discover in the 1990's that polycyclic musks are also potentially harmful in
that they can disrupt cellular metabolism and may potentially be mutagenic. Many of these musks were used in large quantities to
scent laundry detergents. Commonly used polycyclic musks include
- Galaxolide (HHCB)
- Tonalide (Musk Plus, AHTN)
- Phantolide
- Celestolide (Crysolide)
- Traesolide
Macrocyclic musks
A class of artificial musk consisting of a single ring composed of more than 6 carbons (often 10-15). Of all artificial musks,
these most resemble the primary odoriferous compound from Tonkin musk in its "large ringed" structure. While the macrocyclic
musks extracted from plants consists of large ringed lactones, all animal derived macrocyclic
musks are ketones[5]. Macrocyclic ketone musks were not widely produced until the late 1990's due to difficulties in
their synthesis. About half the human population are anosmics to macrocyclic musks, possibly due to its high molecular weight.
Common macrocyclic musks include
- Ethylene Brassilate
- Globalide (Habanolide)
- Ambrettolide
- Muscone
- Thibetolide (Exaltolide)
- Velvione
Notes
- ^ Rue,
Leonard Lee, III (2004). The Encyclopedia of Deer. Voyageur Press, p. 28. ISBN 0896585905.
- ^ Merriam-Webster's Online Dictionary: musk. Merriam-Webster. Retrieved on 2007-04-07. Via Middle Persian mušk, Late Greek μόσχος
(moschos), Late Latin muscus and Middle
English muske.
- ^ Chantraine, Pierre (1990). Dictionnaire étymologique de la langue grecque. Klincksieck, p.
715. ISBN 2-252-03277-4.
- ^ a b c d e
- ^ a b c d e
- ^ Edmonds, Richard Louis (Ed.); James Harkness (2000). "Recent Trends in Forestry and Conservation of
Biodiversity in China", Managing the Chinese Environment (Studies on Contemporary China). Oxford University Press, p. 191. ISBN 0198296355.
- ^ Wareham, D.C. (2005). Elsevier's Dictionary of Herpetological and Related Terminology.
Elsevier Science, p. 129. ISBN 0444518630.
This article incorporates text from the Encyclopædia
Britannica Eleventh Edition, a publication now in the public
domain.
This entry is from Wikipedia, the leading user-contributed encyclopedia. It may not have been reviewed by professional editors (see full disclaimer)
