Kava Science Which kavalactones are actually "double bonded"?

[verticity]

In lipids, which are definitely different than KLs, the fatty acid chains are relatively straight when they are saturated, hus they pack together more neatly than when they are kinked by a cis (double) bond. The closer packing increases van der Waals forces and raises the melting point. ...

OK, I get it; I was thinking of it backwards: the van der Waals forces are increased as a consequence of the closer packing; but that does not imply that the overall vdW forces are higher. That is, the whole potential energy curve is not deeper; just that the molecules are able to get closer together because of their shape...

 

[verticity]

Reviving this silly thread once again, because I was looking back at my copy of "Pacific Elixer", and found this quote discussing kavalactones excreted in poop (the plot thickens!), where Lebot et al. actually use the "saturated/unsaturated" terminology. (Above the question had been asked: what terminology should we use instead of "double bonded")?:

"Although Rasmussen et. al (1979) found only a very small amount of DHK in feces, they reported large concentrations of kavain and methysticin. According to these authors, unsaturated 7,8 kavalactones, like kavain, methysticin, and yangonin, are not absorbed and metabolized as well as the saturated compounds [DHM and DHK] at the same position." (p. 73)