Tags: Chemical Compound, Chemical Substance.
Betulin (lup-20(29)-ene-3β28-diol) is an abundant naturally occurring triterpene. It is commonly isolated from the bark of birch trees and forms up to 30% of the dry weight of the extractive. The purpose of the compound in the bark is not known. It can be converted to betulinic acid (the alcohol group replaced by a carboxylic acid group) which is biologically more active than betulin itself.
