''Nepeta cataria'', commonly known as catnip, catswort, catwort, and catmint, is a

species In biology, a species is the basic unit of Taxonomy (biology), classification and a taxonomic rank of an organism, as well as a unit of biodiversity. A species is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of ...

of the

genus Genus ( plural genera ) is a taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms as well as viruses. In the hierarchy of biological classification, genus comes above species and below family. In binomial n ...

'' Nepeta'' in the

family Family (from la, familia) is a group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or affinity (by marriage or other relationship). The purpose of the family is to maintain the well-being of its members and of society. Idea ...

Lamiaceae The Lamiaceae ( ) or Labiatae are a family of flowering plants commonly known as the mint, deadnettle or sage family. Many of the plants are aromatic in all parts and include widely used culinary herbs like basil, mint, rosemary, sage, savo ...

, native to southern and eastern

Europe Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a subcontinent of Eurasia and it is located enti ...

, the

Middle East The Middle East ( ar, الشرق الأوسط, ISO 233: ) is a geopolitical region commonly encompassing Arabia (including the Arabian Peninsula and Bahrain), Asia Minor (Asian part of Turkey except Hatay Province), East Thrace (Europ ...

Central Asia Central Asia, also known as Middle Asia, is a region of Asia that stretches from the Caspian Sea in the west to western China and Mongolia in the east, and from Afghanistan and Iran in the south to Russia in the north. It includes the former ...

, and parts of China. It is widely naturalized in northern Europe,

New Zealand New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 List of islands of New Zealand, smaller islands. It is the ...

, and North America. The common name catmint can also refer to the genus as a whole. The names ''catnip'' and ''catmint'' are derived from the intense attraction about two-thirds of

cat The cat (''Felis catus'') is a domestic species of small carnivorous mammal. It is the only domesticated species in the family Felidae and is commonly referred to as the domestic cat or house cat to distinguish it from the wild members of ...

s have toward it ( alternative plants exist). In addition to its uses with cats, catnip is an ingredient in some herbal teas (or tisanes), and is valued for its

sedative A sedative or tranquilliser is a substance that induces sedation by reducing irritability or excitement. They are CNS depressants and interact with brain activity causing its deceleration. Various kinds of sedatives can be distinguished, but ...

and

relaxant A muscle relaxant is a drug that affects skeletal muscle function and decreases the muscle tone. It may be used to alleviate symptoms such as muscle spasms, pain, and hyperreflexia. The term "muscle relaxant" is used to refer to two major therap ...

properties.

Description

''Nepeta cataria'' is a short-lived

perennial A perennial plant or simply perennial is a plant that lives more than two years. The term ('' per-'' + '' -ennial'', "through the years") is often used to differentiate a plant from shorter-lived annuals and biennials. The term is also wide ...

herbaceous plant Herbaceous plants are vascular plants that have no persistent woody stems above ground. This broad category of plants includes many perennials, and nearly all annuals and biennials. Definitions of "herb" and "herbaceous" The fourth edition ...

that grows to be tall and wide, and that blooms from late spring to autumn. In appearance, ''N. cataria'' resembles a typical member of the mint family of plants, featuring brown-green foliage with the characteristic square stem of the plant family Lamiaceae. The coarse-toothed leaves are triangular to elliptical in shape.Missouri Botanical Garden: ''Nepeta cataria'' (Catmint)
. Retrieved 1 October 2013 The small, bilabiate

flower A flower, sometimes known as a bloom or blossom, is the reproductive structure found in flowering plants (plants of the division Angiospermae). The biological function of a flower is to facilitate reproduction, usually by providing a mechanism ...

s of ''N. cataria'' are fragrant and are either pink in colour or white with fine spots of pale purple.

Taxonomy

''Nepeta cataria'' was one of the many species described by

Linnaeus Carl Linnaeus (; 23 May 1707 – 10 January 1778), also known after his ennoblement in 1761 as Carl von Linné Blunt (2004), p. 171. (), was a Swedish botanist, zoologist, taxonomist, and physician who formalised binomial nomenclature, t ...

in 1753 in his landmark work ''

Species Plantarum ' (Latin for "The Species of Plants") is a book by Carl Linnaeus, originally published in 1753, which lists every species of plant known at the time, classified into genera. It is the first work to consistently apply binomial names and was the ...

''. He had previously described it in 1738 as ' (meaning "''Nepeta'' with flowers in a stalked, interrupted spike"), before the commencement of

Linnaean taxonomy Linnaean taxonomy can mean either of two related concepts: # The particular form of biological classification (taxonomy) set up by Carl Linnaeus, as set forth in his ''Systema Naturae'' (1735) and subsequent works. In the taxonomy of Linnaeus t ...

Uses

The plant terpenoid nepetalactone is the main chemical constituent of the essential oil of ''Nepeta cataria''. Nepetalactone can be extracted from catnip by steam distillation.

Cultivation

''Nepeta cataria'' is cultivated as an

ornamental plant Ornamental plants or garden plants are plants that are primarily grown for their beauty but also for qualities such as scent or how they shape physical space. Many flowering plants and garden varieties tend to be specially bred cultivars that ...

for use in gardens. It is also grown for its attractant qualities to house cats and

butterflies Butterflies are insects in the macrolepidopteran clade Rhopalocera from the order Lepidoptera, which also includes moths. Adult butterflies have large, often brightly coloured wings, and conspicuous, fluttering flight. The group comprises t ...

. The plant is drought-tolerant and

deer Deer or true deer are hoofed ruminant mammals forming the family Cervidae. The two main groups of deer are the Cervinae, including the muntjac, the elk (wapiti), the red deer, and the fallow deer; and the Capreolinae, including the ...

-resistant. It can be a repellent for certain insects, including

aphid Aphids are small sap-sucking insects and members of the superfamily Aphidoidea. Common names include greenfly and blackfly, although individuals within a species can vary widely in color. The group includes the fluffy white woolly aphids. A ...

s and

squash bug Squash bug is a common name for several insects in the family Coreidae and may refer to: *'' Acanthocoris scabrator'' *''Anasa tristis ''Anasa tristis'' is a species of bug in the family Coreidae. It is a major pest of squash and pumpkins, ...

s. Catnip is best grown in full sunlight and grows as a loosely branching, low perennial. Varieties include ''Nepeta cataria'' var. ''citriodora'' (or ''N. cataria'' subsp. ''citriodora''), or "lemon catnip", named after its lemon-scented leaves.

Biological control

The

iridoid Iridoids are a type of monoterpenoids in the general form of cyclopentanopyran, found in a wide variety of plants and some animals. They are biosynthetically derived from 8-oxogeranial. Iridoids are typically found in plants as glycosides, m ...

that is deposited on cats who have rubbed themselves against the plants and scratched the surfaces of catnip and silver vine (Actinidia polygama) leaves, repels mosquitoes. The compound

iridodial Iridodial is an iridoid Iridoids are a type of monoterpenoids in the general form of cyclopentanopyran, found in a wide variety of plants and some animals. They are biosynthetically derived from 8-oxogeranial. Iridoids are typically found in ...

, an iridoid extracted from catnip oil, has been found to attract lacewings that eat aphids and mites.

As an insect repellent

Nepetalactone is a mosquito and

fly repellent An insect repellent (also commonly called "bug spray") is a substance applied to skin, clothing, or other surfaces to discourage insects (and arthropods in general) from landing or climbing on that surface. Insect repellents help prevent and cont ...

. Oil isolated from catnip by steam distillation is a repellent against insects, in particular mosquitoes, cockroaches, and termites. Research suggests that, while a more effective spatial repellant than

DEET ''N'',''N''-Diethyl-''meta''-toluamide, also called DEET () or diethyltoluamide, is the most common active ingredient in insect repellents. It is a slightly yellow oil intended to be applied to the skin or to clothing and provides protection ag ...

, when compared with

SS220 SS220 is an insect repellent with a broad range of efficacy. It was developed in 2002 at the ''Chemicals Affecting Insect Behavior Laboratory'' of the United States Department of Agriculture and has been found to "exert repellent and deterrent ef ...

or DEET, it is not so effective as a repellent as it is when used on the skin of humans.

Effect of ingestion on humans

Catnip has a history of use in traditional medicine for a variety of ailments such as stomach cramps, indigestion, fevers, hives, and nervous conditions. The plant has been consumed as a tisane, juice,

tincture A tincture is typically an extract of plant or animal material dissolved in ethanol (ethyl alcohol). Solvent concentrations of 25–60% are common, but may run as high as 90%.Groot Handboek Geneeskrachtige Planten by Geert Verhelst In chemist ...

, infusion, or poultice, and has also been smoked. However, its medicinal use has fallen out of favor with the development of modern medicine.

Effect on felines

Catnip contains the feline attractant nepetalactone. ''N. cataria'' (and some other species within the genus ''Nepeta'') are known for their behavioral effects on the cat family, not only on

domestic cat The cat (''Felis catus'') is a domestic species of small carnivorous mammal. It is the only domesticated species in the family Felidae and is commonly referred to as the domestic cat or house cat to distinguish it from the wild members of ...

s, but also other species. Several tests showed that

leopard The leopard (''Panthera pardus'') is one of the five extant species in the genus '' Panthera'', a member of the cat family, Felidae. It occurs in a wide range in sub-Saharan Africa, in some parts of Western and Central Asia, Southern Russia ...

cougar The cougar (''Puma concolor'') is a large cat native to the Americas. Its range spans from the Canadian Yukon to the southern Andes in South America and is the most widespread of any large wild terrestrial mammal in the Western Hemisphere. I ...

serval The serval (''Leptailurus serval'') is a wild cat native to Africa. It is widespread in sub-Saharan countries, except rainforest regions. Across its range, it occurs in protected areas, and hunting it is either prohibited or regulated in ran ...

s, and

lynx A lynx is a type of wild cat. Lynx may also refer to: Astronomy * Lynx (constellation) * Lynx (Chinese astronomy) * Lynx X-ray Observatory, a NASA-funded mission concept for a next-generation X-ray space observatory Places Canada * Lynx, Ontar ...

es often reacted strongly to catnip in a manner similar to domestic cats.

Lion The lion (''Panthera leo'') is a large Felidae, cat of the genus ''Panthera'' native to Africa and India. It has a muscular, broad-chested body; short, rounded head; round ears; and a hairy tuft at the end of its tail. It is sexually dimorphi ...

s and

tigers The tiger (''Panthera tigris'') is the largest living cat species and a member of the genus ''Panthera''. It is most recognisable for its dark vertical stripes on orange fur with a white underside. An apex predator, it primarily preys on un ...

may react strongly as well, but they do not react consistently in the same fashion. With domestic cats, ''N. cataria'' is used as a recreational substance for the enjoyment of pet cats, and catnip and catnip-laced products designed for use with domesticated cats are available to consumers. Common behaviors cats display when they sense the bruised leaves or stems of catnip are rubbing on the plant, rolling on the ground, pawing at it, licking it, and chewing it. Consuming much of the plant is followed by drooling, sleepiness, anxiety, leaping about, and

purr A purr is a tonal fluttering sound made by some species of felids and two species of genets. It varies in loudness and tone among species and in the same animal. Felids are a family of mammals that belong to the order Carnivora and are info ...

ing. Some growl,

meow A meow or miaow is a cat vocalization. ''Meows'' may have diverse tones and are sometimes chattered, murmured or whispered. Adult cats rarely meow to each other, so an adult cat meowing to human beings is probably a post-domestication exten ...

, scratch, or bite at the hand holding it. The main response period after exposure is generally between 5 and 15 minutes, after which olfactory fatigue usually sets in; however, about one-third of cats are not affected by catnip. The behavior is

hereditary Heredity, also called inheritance or biological inheritance, is the passing on of traits from parents to their offspring; either through asexual reproduction or sexual reproduction, the offspring cells or organisms acquire the genetic infor ...

. Cats detect nepetalactone through their

olfactory epithelium The olfactory epithelium is a specialized epithelial tissue inside the nasal cavity that is involved in smell. In humans, it measures 9 cm2 and lies on the roof of the nasal cavity about 7 cm above and behind the nostrils. The olfactory ...

, not through their

vomeronasal organ The vomeronasal organ (VNO), or Jacobson's organ, is the paired auxiliary olfactory (smell) sense organ located in the soft tissue of the nasal septum, in the nasal cavity just above the roof of the mouth (the hard palate) in various tetrapo ...

. At the olfactory epithelium, the nepetalactone binds to one or more

olfactory receptor Olfactory receptors (ORs), also known as odorant receptors, are chemoreceptors expressed in the cell membranes of olfactory receptor neurons and are responsible for the detection of odorants (for example, compounds that have an odor) which give ri ...

s. A 1962 pedigree analysis of 26 cats in a Siamese breeding colony suggested that the catnip response was caused by a Mendelian- dominant gene. A 2011 pedigree analysis of 210 cats in two breeding colonies (taking into account

measurement error Observational error (or measurement error) is the difference between a measured value of a quantity and its true value.Dodge, Y. (2003) ''The Oxford Dictionary of Statistical Terms'', OUP. In statistics, an error is not necessarily a "mistak ...

by repeated testing) showed no evidence for Mendelian patterns of inheritance but demonstrated heritabilities of for catnip response behavior, indicating a

polygenic A polygene is a member of a group of non- epistatic genes that interact additively to influence a phenotypic trait, thus contributing to multiple-gene inheritance (polygenic inheritance, multigenic inheritance, quantitative inheritance), a type o ...

liability threshold model In mathematical or statistical modeling a threshold model is any model where a threshold value, or set of threshold values, is used to distinguish ranges of values where the behaviour predicted by the model varies in some important way. A particula ...

. A study published in January 2021 suggests that felines are specifically attracted to the

iridoids Iridoids are a type of monoterpenoids in the general form of cyclopentanopyran, found in a wide variety of plants and some animals. They are biosynthetically derived from 8-oxogeranial. Iridoids are typically found in plants as glycosides, mo ...

nepetalactone and

nepetalactol Nepetalactol is an iridoid. It is produced from 8-oxogeranial by the enzyme iridoid synthase. Nepetalactol is a substrate for the enzyme iridoid oxidase (IO) which produces 7-deoxyloganetic acid. It has been identified in ''Actinidia polygama ...

, present in catnip and silver vine, respectively. The compounds were found to repel mosquitos, and it is hypothesized that rubbing against the plants provides the cats with a chemical coat that protects them against mosquito bites.

Felines not affected by catnip

Other plants that have a catnip-like effect on cats include valerian (''Valeriana officinalis'') root and leaves; silver vine ('' Actinidia polygama''), or matatabi, popular in Asia; and Tatarian honeysuckle (''

Lonicera tatarica ''Lonicera tatarica'' is a species of honeysuckle known by the common name Tatarian honeysuckle. Native to Eurasia, the plant is one of several exotic bush honeysuckles present in North America, being considered an invasive species there. Descrip ...

'') wood. Many of the one-third of cats that do not respond to catnip do respond to one or more of these three alternatives.

References

External links

USDA Plant Profile: ''Nepeta cataria'' (catmint)
{{Authority control Nepeta Flora of Asia Flora of Europe Cat attractants Perennial plants Plant toxin insecticides Garden plants of Asia Garden plants of Europe Flora of the Mediterranean Basin Plants described in 1753