Research overview: iridoid chemistry and nepetalactol in silver vine

The active ingredients behind the silver vine and catnip response belong to a class of plant compounds called iridoids, with nepetalactol identified as a particularly potent driver of the reaction in silver vine. This overview surveys the chemistry of these iridoids and how they differ between plants, noting that silver vine contains several such compounds. Nepetalactol and related molecules trigger the stereotyped rubbing behavior through the cat's olfactory system. The survey relates the iridoid chemistry to behavioral potency and to the discovery that the compounds also repel mosquitoes. It frames the iridoids as the chemical link between plant and behavior. Understanding nepetalactol and its relatives explains why silver vine is often more effective than catnip and connects the feline response to a specific group of plant defensive compounds, whose presence in these plants ultimately serves the cat as well as the plant.