Why cats go crazy for catnip.

[NNadir]

The following is a news item in the premier scientific journal Science. It should be open sourced, and is here: Why cats are crazy for catnip (Sofia Moutinho, Science, January 20, 2021).

Some excerpts:

Cat owners flood the internet with videos of their kitties euphorically rolling and flipping out over catnip-filled bags and toys. But exactly how catnip—and a substitute, known as silver vine—produces this feline high has long been a mystery. Now, a study suggests the key intoxicating chemicals in the plants activate cats’ opioid systems much like heroin and morphine do in people. Moreover, the study concludes that rubbing the plants protects the felines against mosquito bites.

“This study essentially has revealed a new potential mosquito repellent” by examining the “pharmaceutical knowledge” of cats, says Emory University biologist Jacobus de Roode, who did not participate in the study.

Catnip (Nepeta cataria) and silver vine (Actinidia polygama) both contain chemical compounds called iridoids that protect the plants against aphids and are known to be the key to the euphoria produced in cats. To determine the physiological effect of these compounds, Iwate University biologist Masao Miyazaki spent 5 years running different experiments using the plants and their chemicals.

First, his team extracted chemicals present in both catnip and silver vine leaves and identified the most potent component that produces the feline high: a minty silver vine chemical called nepetalactol that had not been shown to affect cats until this study. (The substance is similar to nepetalactone, the key iridoid in catnip.) Then, they put 10 leaves’ worth of nepetalactol into paper pouches and presented them, together with pouches containing only a saline substance, to 25 domestic cats to gauge their response. Most of the animals only showed interest in the pouches with nepetalactol...

...Next, the researchers measured beta-endorphins—one of the hormones that naturally relieves pain and induces pleasure by activating the body’s opioid system—in the bloodstreams of five cats 5 minutes before and after exposure. The researchers found that levels of this “happiness hormone” became significantly elevated after exposure to nepetalactol compared with controls. Five cats that had their opioid systems blocked did not rub on the nepetalactol-infused pouch...

It appears, however, that nepetalactol also repels mosquitos:

But the researchers wanted to know whether there was a reason for the cats to go wild, beyond pure pleasure. That is when one of the scientists heard about the insect-repelling properties of nepetalactone, which about 2 decades ago was shown to be as good as the famed mosquito-stopper DEET. The researchers hypothesized that when felines in the wild rub on catnip or silver vine, they’re essentially applying an insect repellant.

If you have a cat, and have seen him or her around catnip, you knew, at least intuitively, that it acts on opioid receptors. I didn't know about mosquitos however. I might try some myself.

The full scientific paper to which this article refers is here, and is, I believe, open sourced: The characteristic response of domestic cats to plant iridoids allows them to gain chemical defense against mosquitoes (REIKO UENOYAMA, TAMAKO MIYAZAKI, JANE L. HURST, ROBERT J. BEYNON, MASAATSU ADACHI, TAKANOBU MUROOKA, IBUKI ONODA, YU MIYAZAWA, RIEKO KATAYAMA, TETSURO YAMASHITA, SHUJI KANEKO, TOSHIO NISHIKAWA, MASAO MIYAZAKI, SCIENCE ADVANCES 20 JAN 2021 : EABD9135)

Nepetalactol:

[applegrove]

1. We had a cat that would rub against honeysuckle or go crazy for the

logs of the same tree in our woodpile. I wonder if it is the same.

[pansypoo53219]

5. my cat pansy got high on parsley + wet wool + celery juice. god knows what else. i grow the BEST

catnip. contact me. i will ship last summers crop.

[BigmanPigman]

2. How can a mosquito get through all the fur?

[SheltieLover]

3. K&R!

[Auggie]

4. If I used catnip as a mosquito repellent would I need another repellent for the cat?

I get a lot of licks after handling the stuff.

[eppur_se_muova]

6. Very interesting ! I have seen homebrew insect repellents on Etsy made with catnip oil ...

my first reaction was "what's that about ?". My second reaction was the same as Auggie's.

Nice to have an actual science-based paper on this topic, especially one with ... cat pics ! Hmmm, should I forward to Salmon Chanted Evening ??

[NNadir]

7. Maybe you should forward it...

I kind of wonder if the hemiacetal as drawn epimerizes like a sugar, and if so what effect the epimers have on cats.

The reality is that I probably won't find time to look, even if it's been studied.

[TexasTowelie]

8. Did someone say catnip?

I shared my experience here:
https://www.democraticunderground.com/10181063004

And these great videos were posted in this thread:
https://www.democraticunderground.com/1018462699