page_title: Isoprene
section_title: Other organisms
hierarchical_section_title: Isoprene / Natural occurrences / Other organisms
caption_attribution_description: English: corrected image of polyisoprene
context_page_description: Isoprene, or 2-methyl-1,3-butadiene, is a common organic compound with the formula CH₂=C−CH=CH₂. In its pure form it is a colorless volatile liquid. Isoprene is an unsaturated hydrocarbon. It is produced by many plants and animals and its polymers are the main component of natural rubber. C. G. Williams named the compound in 1860 after obtaining it from thermal decomposition of natural rubber; he correctly deduced the empirical formula C₅H₈.
context_section_description: Isoprene is the most abundant hydrocarbon measurable in the breath of humans. The estimated production rate of isoprene in the human body is 0.15 µmol/(kg·h), equivalent to approximately 17 mg/day for a person weighing 70 kg. Isoprene is common in low concentrations in many foods. Many species of soil and marine bacteria, such as Actinobacteria, are capable of degrading isoprene and using it as a fuel source.
caption: Chemical structure of cis-polyisoprene, the main constituent of natural rubber
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