A component of certain essential oils used in traditional Chinese herbal medicine; carcinogenic, neuroprotective, and radioprotective in mice when given at 50 mg/kg; inhibits HMG-CoA reductase (IC50 = 3 mM); inhibits CYP2D6 and CYP3A4 (IC50 = 55.2 and 65.2 μg/ml, respectively).