Catechol one of the main natural phenols in argan oil and is a component of castoreum, a substance from the castor gland of beavers, used in perfumery. It is also found in "Agaricus bisporus". Catechol moieties are also found widely within the natural world. Arthropod cuticle consists of chitin linked by a catechol moiety to protein. The cuticle may be strengthened by cross-linking (tanning and sclerotization), in particular, in insects, and of course by biomineralization. Catechols such as DHSA are produced through the metabolism of cholesterol by bacteria such as "Mycobacterium tuberculosis". Urushiols are naturally existing organic compounds that have the
Biomarker (medicine) Biomarker (medicine) In medicine, a biomarker is a measurable indicator of the severity or presence of some disease state. More generally a biomarker is anything that can be used as an indicator of a particular disease state or some other physiological state of an organism. A biomarker can be a substance that is introduced into an organism as a means to examine organ function or other aspects of health. For example, rubidium chloride is used in isotopic labeling to evaluate perfusion of heart muscle. It can also be a substance whose detection indicates a particular disease state, for example, the