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Schäfer L, Sorokowska A, Weidner K, Sauter J, Schmidt AH, Croy I. Body odours as putative chemosignals in the father-child relationship: New insights on paternal olfactory kin recognition and preference from infancy to adolescence. Physiol Behav 2024; 278:114505. [PMID: 38432443 DOI: 10.1016/j.physbeh.2024.114505] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/18/2023] [Revised: 02/27/2024] [Accepted: 02/28/2024] [Indexed: 03/05/2024]
Abstract
Children's body odours are effective chemical cues in the parent-child relationship. Mothers can recognize the odour of their child and prefer this odour over that of unfamiliar children. This effect is mediated by genetic similarity and developmental stage and is therefore suited to promote parental care at pre-pubertal stage, while facilitating incest avoidance at (post-)pubertal stage. The present study tested whether similar mechanisms apply to fathers. Therefore n = 56 fathers evaluated body odour samples of their own and of unfamiliar children in varying genetic and developmental stages. Genetic status was determined by human leucocyte antigen (HLA) profiling, developmental status by standardized assessment of pubertal status and steroid hormone concentration (estradiol, testosterone). Similar to mothers, fathers identified their own child's body odour above chance and preferred that odour. The paternal preference did not relate to HLA similarity but decreased with increasing age of the child. The decline was associated with higher pubertal stages in daughters only, which supports the hypothesis of odour-mediated incest prevention in opposite-sex parent-child dyads.
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Affiliation(s)
- Laura Schäfer
- Department of Psychotherapy and Psychosomatic Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, Technische Universität Dresden, Fetscherstraße 74, 01307 Dresden, Germany.
| | - Agnieszka Sorokowska
- Department of Psychotherapy and Psychosomatic Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, Technische Universität Dresden, Fetscherstraße 74, 01307 Dresden, Germany; Smell and Taste Lab, Department of Psychology, University of Wroclaw, pl. Dawida 1, 50-527, Wroclaw, Poland
| | - Kerstin Weidner
- Department of Psychotherapy and Psychosomatic Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, Technische Universität Dresden, Fetscherstraße 74, 01307 Dresden, Germany
| | | | - Alexander H Schmidt
- DKMS, Kressbach 1, 72072 Tübingen, Germany; DKMS Life Science Lab, St. Petersburger Straße 2, 01069 Dresden, Germany
| | - Ilona Croy
- Department of Psychotherapy and Psychosomatic Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, Technische Universität Dresden, Fetscherstraße 74, 01307 Dresden, Germany; Institute of Psycholgy, Friedrich-Schiller-Universität Jena, Jena, Germany; German Center for Mental Health (DZPG), Site Jena-Magdeburg-Halle, Jena, Germany
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2
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Maidodou L, Clarot I, Leemans M, Fromantin I, Marchioni E, Steyer D. Unraveling the potential of breath and sweat VOC capture devices for human disease detection: a systematic-like review of canine olfaction and GC-MS analysis. Front Chem 2023; 11:1282450. [PMID: 38025078 PMCID: PMC10646374 DOI: 10.3389/fchem.2023.1282450] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/24/2023] [Accepted: 10/16/2023] [Indexed: 12/01/2023] Open
Abstract
The development of disease screening methods using biomedical detection dogs relies on the collection and analysis of body odors, particularly volatile organic compounds (VOCs) present in body fluids. To capture and analyze odors produced by the human body, numerous protocols and materials are used in forensics or medical studies. This paper provides an overview of sampling devices used to collect VOCs from sweat and exhaled air, for medical diagnostic purposes using canine olfaction and/or Gas Chromatography-Mass spectrometry (GC-MS). Canine olfaction and GC-MS are regarded as complementary tools, holding immense promise for detecting cancers and infectious diseases. However, existing literature lacks guidelines for selecting materials suitable for both canine olfaction and GC-MS. Hence, this review aims to address this gap and pave the way for efficient body odor sampling materials. The first section of the paper describes the materials utilized in training sniffing dogs, while the second section delves into the details of sampling devices and extraction techniques employed for exhaled air and sweat analysis using GC-MS. Finally, the paper proposes the development of an ideal sampling device tailored for detection purposes in the field of odorology. By bridging the knowledge gap, this study seeks to advance disease detection methodologies, harnessing the unique abilities of both dogs and GC-MS analysis in biomedical research.
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Affiliation(s)
- Laetitia Maidodou
- Twistaroma, Illkirch Graffenstaden, France
- CITHEFOR, EA 3452, Université de Lorraine, Nancy, France
- DSA, IPHC UMR7178, Université de Strasbourg, Strasbourg, France
| | - Igor Clarot
- CITHEFOR, EA 3452, Université de Lorraine, Nancy, France
| | - Michelle Leemans
- Clinical Epidemiology and Ageing, IMRB—Paris Est Créteil University /Inserm U955, Créteil, France
| | - Isabelle Fromantin
- Clinical Epidemiology and Ageing, IMRB—Paris Est Créteil University /Inserm U955, Créteil, France
- Wound Care and Research Unit, Curie Institute, Paris, France
| | - Eric Marchioni
- DSA, IPHC UMR7178, Université de Strasbourg, Strasbourg, France
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3
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Di Cicco F, Evans RL, James AG, Weddell I, Chopra A, Smeets MAM. Intrinsic and extrinsic factors affecting axillary odor variation. A comprehensive review. Physiol Behav 2023; 270:114307. [PMID: 37516230 DOI: 10.1016/j.physbeh.2023.114307] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/26/2023] [Revised: 07/14/2023] [Accepted: 07/27/2023] [Indexed: 07/31/2023]
Abstract
Humans produce odorous secretions from multiple body sites according to the microbiomic profile of each area and the types of secretory glands present. Because the axilla is an active, odor-producing region that mediates social communication via the sense of smell, this article focuses on the biological mechanisms underlying the creation of axillary odor, as well as the intrinsic and extrinsic factors likely to impact the odor and determine individual differences. The list of intrinsic factors discussed includes sex, age, ethnicity, emotions, and personality, and extrinsic factors include dietary choices, diseases, climate, and hygienic habits. In addition, we also draw attention to gaps in our understanding of each factor, including, for example, topical areas such as the effect of climate on body odor variation. Fundamental challenges and emerging research opportunities are further outlined in the discussion. Finally, we suggest guidelines and best practices based on the factors reviewed herein for preparatory protocols of sweat collection, data analysis, and interpretation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Francesca Di Cicco
- Faculty of Social and Behavioural Sciences, Utrecht University, Heidelberglaan 1, Utrecht, CS 3584, the Netherlands.
| | - Richard L Evans
- Unilever Research & Development, Port Sunlight Laboratory, Bebington, UK
| | - A Gordon James
- Unilever Research & Development, Colworth House, Sharnbrook, UK
| | - Iain Weddell
- Unilever Research & Development, Port Sunlight Laboratory, Bebington, UK
| | - Anita Chopra
- Unilever Research & Development, Port Sunlight Laboratory, Bebington, UK
| | - Monique A M Smeets
- Faculty of Social and Behavioural Sciences, Utrecht University, Heidelberglaan 1, Utrecht, CS 3584, the Netherlands; Unilever Research & Development, Rotterdam, the Netherlands
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4
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Schwambergová D, Pátková Ž, Třebická Fialová J, Třebický V, Stella D, Havlíček J. Immunoactivation Affects Perceived Body Odor and Facial but Not Vocal Attractiveness. EVOLUTIONARY PSYCHOLOGY 2023; 21:14747049231218010. [PMID: 38087426 PMCID: PMC10722934 DOI: 10.1177/14747049231218010] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/25/2023] [Accepted: 11/16/2023] [Indexed: 12/18/2023] Open
Abstract
Several previous studies have shown that in mammals, the health status of conspecifics can be assessed based on perceptual cues. Olfactory, visual, or acoustic cues may lead to avoidant behavior, thus reducing the risk of contagion by close contact with infected individuals. We tested whether immune system activation after immunization leads to perceptible changes in body odor and facial and vocal attractiveness in humans. We have experimentally activated the immune system of male participants using vaccination against hepatitis A/B and meningococcus. Their body odor, facial photographs, and vocal recordings were collected before and 14 days after vaccination. Subsequently, the body odor samples, facial photographs, and vocal recordings were assessed by female raters for their attractiveness and healthiness. We have also measured skin coloration (from facial photographs and in vivo using a spectrophotometer), vocal parameters, and C-reactive protein (CRP) levels as a marker of inflammation. We found an increase in perceived body odor attractiveness, a decrease in facial attractiveness and healthiness, and no change in vocal attractiveness 14 days after vaccination compared to the prevaccination condition. Moreover, there was no change in facial coloration or vocal parameters between the prevaccination and postvaccination conditions. Prevaccination CRP levels were negatively associated with body odor and facial attractiveness and positively associated with body odor intensity. Overall, our results suggest that perceived body odor as well as facial but not vocal attractiveness may provide cues to activation of the immune response and that each modality may carry specific information about the individual's condition.
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Affiliation(s)
- Dagmar Schwambergová
- Department of Zoology, Faculty of Science, Charles University, Prague, Czech Republic
| | - Žaneta Pátková
- Department of Philosophy and History of Sciences, Faculty of Science, Charles University, Prague, Czech Republic
| | | | - Vít Třebický
- Faculty of Physical Education and Sport, Charles University, Prague, Czech Republic
| | - David Stella
- Department of the Human Dimensions of Global Change, Global Change Research Institute CAS, Brno, Czech Republic
| | - Jan Havlíček
- Department of Zoology, Faculty of Science, Charles University, Prague, Czech Republic
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5
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Callewaert C, Pezavant M, Vandaele R, Meeus B, Vankrunkelsven E, Van Goethem P, Plumacker A, Misset B, Darcis G, Piret S, De Vleeschouwer L, Staelens F, Van Varenbergh K, Tombeur S, Ottevaere A, Montag I, Vandecandelaere P, Jonckheere S, Vandekerckhove L, Tobback E, Wieers G, Marot JC, Anseeuw K, D’Hoore L, Tuyls S, De Tavernier B, Catteeuw J, Lotfi A, Melnik A, Aksenov A, Grandjean D, Stevens M, Gasthuys F, Guyot H. Sniffing out safety: canine detection and identification of SARS-CoV-2 infection from armpit sweat. Front Med (Lausanne) 2023; 10:1185779. [PMID: 37822474 PMCID: PMC10563588 DOI: 10.3389/fmed.2023.1185779] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/14/2023] [Accepted: 08/14/2023] [Indexed: 10/13/2023] Open
Abstract
Detection dogs were trained to detect SARS-CoV-2 infection based on armpit sweat odor. Sweat samples were collected using cotton pads under the armpits of negative and positive human patients, confirmed by qPCR, for periods of 15-30 min. Multiple hospitals and organizations throughout Belgium participated in this study. The sweat samples were stored at -20°C prior to being used for training purposes. Six dogs were trained under controlled atmosphere conditions for 2-3 months. After training, a 7-day validation period was conducted to assess the dogs' performances. The detection dogs exhibited an overall sensitivity of 81%, specificity of 98%, and an accuracy of 95%. After validation, training continued for 3 months, during which the dogs' performances remained the same. Gas chromatography/mass spectrometry (GC/MS) analysis revealed a unique sweat scent associated with SARS-CoV-2 positive sweat samples. This scent consisted of a wide variety of volatiles, including breakdown compounds of antiviral fatty acids, skin proteins and neurotransmitters/hormones. An acceptability survey conducted in Belgium demonstrated an overall high acceptability and enthusiasm toward the use of detection dogs for SARS-CoV-2 detection. Compared to qPCR and previous canine studies, the detection dogs have good performances in detecting SARS-CoV-2 infection in humans, using frozen sweat samples from the armpits. As a result, they can be used as an accurate pre-screening tool in various field settings alongside the PCR test.
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Affiliation(s)
- Chris Callewaert
- Center for Microbial Ecology and Technology (CMET), Faculty of Bioscience Engineering, Ghent University, Ghent, Belgium
| | - Maria Pezavant
- Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Clinique Vétérinaire Universitaire (CVU), University of Liège, Liège, Belgium
| | | | | | | | | | | | - Benoit Misset
- CHU-Sart-Tilman, Intensive Care Unit, University of Liège, Liège, Belgium
| | - Gilles Darcis
- CHU-Sart-Tilman, Infectious Diseases – Internal Medicine, Public Health Sciences, University of Liège, Liège, Belgium
| | - Sonia Piret
- CHU-Bruyères, Intensive Care Unit, University of Liège, Liège, Belgium
| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | - Stijn Jonckheere
- Laboratory of Clinical Microbiology, Jan Yperman Hospital, Ypres, Belgium
| | - Linos Vandekerckhove
- HIV Cure Research Center, Department of Internal Medicine and Pediatrics, Ghent University Hospital, Ghent University, Ghent, Belgium
| | - Els Tobback
- Department of General Internal Medicine and Infectious Diseases, Ghent University Hospital, Ghent, Belgium
| | - Gregoire Wieers
- General Internal Medicine, Clinique Saint-Pierre Ottignies, Ottignies, Belgium
- Namur Research Institute for Life Sciences (Narilis) and Department of Medicine, University of Namur, Namur, Belgium
| | | | - Kurt Anseeuw
- Department of Emergency Medicine, ZNA, Antwerp, Belgium
| | - Leen D’Hoore
- Belgian Defence, Brussels, Belgium
- Department of Emergency Medicine, ZNA, Antwerp, Belgium
| | - Sebastiaan Tuyls
- Respiratory Medicine, GasthuisZusters (GZA) Hospital Group, Antwerp, Belgium
| | - Brecht De Tavernier
- Emergency Medicine and Intensive Care, GasthuisZusters (GZA) Hospital Group, Antwerp, Belgium
| | | | - Ali Lotfi
- Department of Chemistry, University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT, United States
| | - Alexey Melnik
- Department of Chemistry, University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT, United States
| | - Alexander Aksenov
- Department of Chemistry, University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT, United States
| | - Dominique Grandjean
- Nosaïs Program, Ecole Nationale Vétérinaire d’Alfort (Alfort School of Veterinary Medicine), University Paris-Est, Maisons-Alfort, France
| | | | - Frank Gasthuys
- Department of Surgery, Anesthesiology and Orthopedics of Large Animals, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Ghent University, Merelbeke, Belgium
| | - Hugues Guyot
- Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Clinique Vétérinaire Universitaire (CVU), University of Liège, Liège, Belgium
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6
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Tognetti A, Williams MN, Lybert N, Lekander M, Axelsson J, Olsson MJ. Humans can detect axillary odor cues of an acute respiratory infection in others. Evol Med Public Health 2023; 11:219-228. [PMID: 37426329 PMCID: PMC10324639 DOI: 10.1093/emph/eoad016] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/14/2022] [Revised: 05/05/2023] [Indexed: 07/11/2023] Open
Abstract
Background and objectives Body odor conveys information about health status to conspecifics and influences approach-avoidance behaviors in animals. Experiments that induce sickness in otherwise healthy individuals suggest that humans too can detect sensory cues to infection in others. Here, we investigated whether individuals could detect through smell a naturally occurring acute respiratory infection in others and whether sickness severity, measured via body temperature and sickness symptoms, was associated with the accuracy of detection. Methodology Body odor samples were collected from 20 donors, once while healthy and once while sick with an acute respiratory infection. Using a double-blind, two-alternative forced-choice method, 80 raters were instructed to identify the sick body odor from paired sick and healthy samples (i.e. 20 pairs). Results Sickness detection was significantly above chance, although the magnitude of the effect was low (56.7%). Raters' sex and disgust sensitivity were not associated with the accuracy of sickness detection. However, we find some indication that greater change in donor body temperature, but not sickness symptoms, between sick and healthy conditions improved sickness detection accuracy. Conclusion and implications Our findings suggest that humans can detect individuals with an acute respiratory infection through smell, albeit only slightly better than chance. Humans, similar to other animals, are likely able to use sickness odor cues to guide adaptive behaviors that decrease the risk of contagion, such as social avoidance. Further studies should determine how well humans can detect specific infections through body odor, such as Covid-19, and how multisensory cues to infection are used simultaneously.
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Affiliation(s)
- Arnaud Tognetti
- Corresponding author. Division of Psychology, Department of Clinical Neuroscience, Karolinska Institutet, Nobels väg 9, 171 77, Stockholm, Sweden; E-mail:
| | | | - Nathalie Lybert
- Division of Psychology, Department of Clinical Neuroscience, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden
| | - Mats Lekander
- Division of Psychology, Department of Clinical Neuroscience, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden
- Stress Research Institute, Department of Psychology, Stockholm University, Stockholm, Sweden
- Osher Center for Integrative Health, Department of Clinical Neuroscience, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden
| | - John Axelsson
- Division of Psychology, Department of Clinical Neuroscience, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden
- Stress Research Institute, Department of Psychology, Stockholm University, Stockholm, Sweden
| | - Mats J Olsson
- Division of Psychology, Department of Clinical Neuroscience, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden
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Richard Ortegón S, Carlos O, Robert-Hazotte A, Lelgouarch A, Desoche C, Kawabata Duncan K, Tagai K, Fournel A, Bensafi M, Race B, Ferdenzi C. Investigating the human chemical communication of positive emotions using a virtual reality-based mood induction. Physiol Behav 2023; 264:114147. [PMID: 36893999 DOI: 10.1016/j.physbeh.2023.114147] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/17/2022] [Revised: 01/02/2023] [Accepted: 03/05/2023] [Indexed: 03/09/2023]
Abstract
Humans can communicate their emotions to others via volatile emissions from their bodies. Although there is now solid evidence for human chemical communication of fear, stress and anxiety, investigations of positive emotions remain scarce. In a recent study, we found that women's heart rate and performance in creativity tasks were modulated by body odors of men sampled while they were in a positive vs. neutral mood. However, inducing positive emotions in laboratory settings remains challenging. Therefore, an important step to further investigate the human chemical communication of positive emotions is to develop new methods to induce positive moods. Here, we present a new mood induction procedure (MIP) based on virtual reality (VR), that we assumed to be more powerful than videos (used in our previous study) to induce positive emotions. We hypothesized that, consequently, given the more intense emotions created, this VR-based MIP would induce larger differences between the receivers' responses to the positive body odor versus a neutral control body odor, than the Video-based MIP. The results confirmed the higher efficacy of VR to induce positive emotions compared with videos. More specifically, VR had more repeatable effects between individuals. Although positive body odors had similar effects to those found in the previous video study, especially faster problem solving, these effects did not reach statistical significance. These outcomes are discussed as a function of the specificities of VR and of other methodological parameters, that may have prevented the observation of such subtle effects and that should be understood more in-depth for future studies on human chemical communication.
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Affiliation(s)
- Stéphane Richard Ortegón
- University Claude Bernard Lyon 1, CNRS UMR5292, INSERM U1028, Lyon Neuroscience Research Center, CH Le Vinatier, Bât. 462 Neurocampus, 95 boulevard Pinel, Bron Cedex 69675, France; Shiseido Group EMEA, 56A rue du Faubourg Saint-Honoré, Paris 75008, France
| | - Olivia Carlos
- Shiseido Group EMEA, 56A rue du Faubourg Saint-Honoré, Paris 75008, France
| | | | - Anne Lelgouarch
- University Claude Bernard Lyon 1, CNRS UMR5292, INSERM U1028, Lyon Neuroscience Research Center, CH Le Vinatier, Bât. 462 Neurocampus, 95 boulevard Pinel, Bron Cedex 69675, France
| | - Clément Desoche
- University Claude Bernard Lyon 1, CNRS UMR5292, INSERM U1028, Lyon Neuroscience Research Center, CH Le Vinatier, Bât. 462 Neurocampus, 95 boulevard Pinel, Bron Cedex 69675, France
| | - Keith Kawabata Duncan
- Shiseido Co., Ltd MIRAI Technology Institute, 1-2-11 Takashima, Nishi-Ku, Yokohama-shi, Kanagawa 220-0011, Japan
| | - Keiko Tagai
- Shiseido Co., Ltd MIRAI Technology Institute, 1-2-11 Takashima, Nishi-Ku, Yokohama-shi, Kanagawa 220-0011, Japan
| | - Arnaud Fournel
- University Claude Bernard Lyon 1, CNRS UMR5292, INSERM U1028, Lyon Neuroscience Research Center, CH Le Vinatier, Bât. 462 Neurocampus, 95 boulevard Pinel, Bron Cedex 69675, France
| | - Moustafa Bensafi
- University Claude Bernard Lyon 1, CNRS UMR5292, INSERM U1028, Lyon Neuroscience Research Center, CH Le Vinatier, Bât. 462 Neurocampus, 95 boulevard Pinel, Bron Cedex 69675, France
| | - Bénédicte Race
- Shiseido Group EMEA, 56A rue du Faubourg Saint-Honoré, Paris 75008, France
| | - Camille Ferdenzi
- University Claude Bernard Lyon 1, CNRS UMR5292, INSERM U1028, Lyon Neuroscience Research Center, CH Le Vinatier, Bât. 462 Neurocampus, 95 boulevard Pinel, Bron Cedex 69675, France.
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8
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Alves Soares T, Owsienko D, Haertl T, Loos HM. Recovery rates of selected body odor substances in different textiles applying various work-up and storage conditions measured by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry. Anal Chim Acta 2023; 1252:341067. [PMID: 36935158 DOI: 10.1016/j.aca.2023.341067] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/11/2023] [Revised: 02/28/2023] [Accepted: 03/06/2023] [Indexed: 03/09/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Body odor is an important aspect in interpersonal communication. For psychological and chemical research on body odors, suitable procedures for sampling and application, and analysis of body odors are essential. In this study, different textile fabrics (polyester, cotton, and Gazin gauze) were comparatively evaluated in view of their potential suitability for body odor sampling by determining recovery rates of selected body odor substances. In addition, the impact of sample preparation and storage conditions on the recovery rates was determined. RESULTS The recovery rates of dimethyl disulfide, (E)-non-2-enal, 5α-androst-16-en-3-one, 6-methylhept-5-en-2-one, heptanal and 3-sulfanylhexan-1-ol were determined under different conditions of storage (storage for 30 min at room temperature or storage for 30 min at room temperature followed by freezing at - 80 °C for 4 weeks) and sample work-up (solvent extraction with and without solvent-assisted flavour evaporation, in the following: SAFE). SAFE led to overall lower recovery rates with a significant effect for (E)-non-2-enal and 5α-androst-16-en-3-one. Nevertheless, the results showed that SAFE can be an essential step when working with a complex matrix. When comparing the different fabrics, except for (E)-non-2-enal no difference between the recovery rates obtained for cotton and polyester became evident. Gazin gauze showed lower recovery rates for all compounds. Finally, our results showed that the here investigated target compounds are stable during storage for four weeks at - 80 °C. SIGNIFICANCE AND NOVELTY The results show on the one hand that the here investigated compounds were stable during storage and that the fiber type had limited influence on overall recovery rates. On the other hand, they highlight the limitations of using textile materials for sampling of volatile substances, especially with regard to low recovery rates for certain substances and the necessity of material pre-treatment or distillation steps for enabling GC-MS analysis after solvent extraction.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tatjana Alves Soares
- Friedrich-Alexander-Universität Erlangen-Nürnberg, Henkestr. 9, 91054, Erlangen, Germany
| | - Diana Owsienko
- Friedrich-Alexander-Universität Erlangen-Nürnberg, Henkestr. 9, 91054, Erlangen, Germany
| | - Tobias Haertl
- Friedrich-Alexander-Universität Erlangen-Nürnberg, Henkestr. 9, 91054, Erlangen, Germany
| | - Helene M Loos
- Friedrich-Alexander-Universität Erlangen-Nürnberg, Henkestr. 9, 91054, Erlangen, Germany; Fraunhofer Institute for Process Engineering and Packaging IVV, Giggenhauser Str. 35, 85354, Freising, Germany.
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9
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Roney JR, Mei M, Grillot RL, Emery Thompson M. No effects of exposure to women's fertile window body scents on men's hormonal and psychological responses. EVOL HUM BEHAV 2023. [DOI: 10.1016/j.evolhumbehav.2023.03.003] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 04/03/2023]
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10
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Cross-modal associations of human body odour attractiveness with facial and vocal attractiveness provide little support for the backup signals hypothesis: A systematic review and meta-analysis. EVOL HUM BEHAV 2022. [DOI: 10.1016/j.evolhumbehav.2022.11.001] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/02/2022]
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Callara AL, Cecchetto C, Dal Bo E, Citi L, Gentili C, Vanello N, Scilingo EP, Greco A. Human body odors of happiness and fear modulate the late positive potential component during neutral face processing: a preliminary ERP study on healthy subjects. ANNUAL INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE OF THE IEEE ENGINEERING IN MEDICINE AND BIOLOGY SOCIETY. IEEE ENGINEERING IN MEDICINE AND BIOLOGY SOCIETY. ANNUAL INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE 2022; 2022:4093-4096. [PMID: 36085736 DOI: 10.1109/embc48229.2022.9871495] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/15/2023]
Abstract
Human body odors (HBOs) are powerful stimuli that can affect emotional, cognitive and behavioral processes. However, the characterization of the physiological response to HBOs is still to be fully investigated. Here, we analyzed the self-assessed emotion perception and the EEG event-related potentials (ERP) on 17 healthy young women during a simultaneous visual-olfactory stimulation. Particularly, we evaluated the effect of happiness and fear HBO on the amplitude of ERP waveforms elicited by neutral face processing. In addition, we evaluated the subjective valence and arousal perception of the presented neutral faces by means of the self-assessment-manikin test. We observed a significant increase in the amplitude of the late positive potential (LPP) for central left sites (i.e., C3) during the administration of HBOs with respect to clean air. On the other hand, we did not observe any significant change in the subjective valence and arousal scores as well as for the early components of the ERP (i.e., P100, N170, Vertex-Positive-Potential). Our preliminary results suggest that fear and happiness HBO can induce a protracted increase in the LPP, and possibly reflect an automatic and sustained engagement with emotionally significant content.
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12
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Ability of dog owners to identify their dogs by smell. Sci Rep 2021; 11:22784. [PMID: 34815506 PMCID: PMC8610967 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-021-02238-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/14/2021] [Accepted: 11/11/2021] [Indexed: 11/08/2022] Open
Abstract
Several studies report that olfactory cues play an important role in human life; humans are essentially able to recognize other family members and friends by their odors. Moreover, recent studies report that humans are also able to identify odors of non-conspecifics. The aim of this study was to determine whether dog owners are able to identify their dogs by smell and distinguish the odor of their own dogs from those of other dogs. A total of 53 dog owners (40 females and 13 males of different ages) volunteered to take part in this study. A number of the participants (17) owned 2 dogs; these owners took part in the study twice (i.e., working with only one dog at a time). Sterile gauze pads were used to collect odor samples from the dogs. Each pad was placed in its own sterile glass jar (750 ml) with a twist off lid until the experiment commenced. Participants were asked to identify their own dog´s odor from a line-up of 6 glass containers. This experiment demonstrated that dog owners are capable of identifying their dogs by smell on a significant level. Results of this study additionally suggested that male owners outperformed their female counterparts in the identification process. Moreover, dog owners whose dogs were housed outside had a higher success rate in identification than did participants who kept their dogs indoors with them. The dog owners found it easier to identify dogs that had been neutered, fed dry dog food and bathed less frequently. In general, younger dog owners tended to have more success when attempting to identify their dogs than did their older counterparts.
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Leongómez JD, Sánchez OR, Vásquez-Amézquita M, Roberts SC. Contextualising courtship: Exploring male body odour effects on vocal modulation. Behav Processes 2021; 193:104531. [PMID: 34655713 DOI: 10.1016/j.beproc.2021.104531] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/18/2020] [Revised: 06/26/2020] [Accepted: 10/07/2021] [Indexed: 12/21/2022]
Abstract
Voice characteristics are important to communicate socially relevant information. Recent research has shown that individuals alter their voices depending on the context of social interactions and perceived characteristics of the audience, and this affects how they are perceived. Numerous studies have also shown that the presence of bodily odours can elicit psychological changes in people. Here, we tested whether the presence of male axillary odour would influence vocal modulations in courtship contexts. We analysed differences in vocal parameters and attractiveness ratings across 950 recordings from 80 participants as they responded to opposite-sex target stimuli. Using these, we tested whether men's and women's vocal parameters and perceived stimuli attractiveness differed in the presence or absence of the odour. We expected women to speak with increased voice F0, and men to lower their pitch, when exposed to male body odour, especially if it were of high quality. However, neither the presence of male odour, its quality, nor the addition of androstadienone produced any consistent changes in vocal parameters. Nevertheless, rated stimulus attractiveness was predicted by F0 and especially F0 variability, suggesting that this is a key parameter in signalling attraction during human courtship, and supporting the idea that vocal modulations are context-sensitive.
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Affiliation(s)
- Juan David Leongómez
- Human Behaviour Lab, Faculty of Psychology, Universidad El Bosque, Bogota 110121, Colombia; Division of Psychology, University of Stirling, Stirling FK9 4LA, UK.
| | - Oscar R Sánchez
- Human Behaviour Lab, Faculty of Psychology, Universidad El Bosque, Bogota 110121, Colombia.
| | - Milena Vásquez-Amézquita
- Experimental Psychology Lab, Faculty of Psychology, Universidad El Bosque, Bogota 110121, Colombia.
| | - S Craig Roberts
- Division of Psychology, University of Stirling, Stirling FK9 4LA, UK.
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Schwambergová D, Sorokowska A, Slámová Ž, Třebická Fialová J, Sabiniewicz A, Nowak-Kornicka J, Borkowska B, Pawłowski B, Havlíček J. No evidence for association between human body odor quality and immune system functioning. Psychoneuroendocrinology 2021; 132:105363. [PMID: 34343779 DOI: 10.1016/j.psyneuen.2021.105363] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/31/2021] [Revised: 06/15/2021] [Accepted: 07/18/2021] [Indexed: 10/20/2022]
Abstract
Previous studies have shown that women perceive male faces with a more reactive immune system as more attractive, but whether body odor might likewise provide cues to immune function has not been investigated yet. These two studies tested a possible relationship between body odor quality and immunoreactivity (Study 1) and immune system function (Study 2). In Study 1, we collected body odor samples from 21 men just before and two weeks after vaccination against hepatitis A/B and meningococcus. We determined the levels of specific antibodies (selected as markers of immune system's reactivity), testosterone, and cortisol. Subsequently, 88 female raters assessed the odor samples for their attractiveness, intensity, and healthiness. In Study 2, we collected body odor and blood samples from 35 men and women. We assessed key parameters of their innate and adaptive immunity, such as complement activity or total lymphocyte T and B counts and asked 95 raters to assess the odor samples for their attractiveness, intensity, and healthiness. In Study 1, we found no significant association between antibody levels induced by vaccination and perceived body odor attractiveness, intensity, and healthiness. We also found no significant relationship between antibody levels and steroid hormones (testosterone and cortisol). In Study 2, we likewise found no association between basal key parameters (innate and adaptive) of the immune system and body odor quality. Our results indicate that body odor may not serve as a cue to the reactivity of the immune system.
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Affiliation(s)
- Dagmar Schwambergová
- Department of Zoology, Faculty of Science, Charles University, Viničná 7, 128 44 Prague, Czech Republic; National Institute of Mental Health, Topolová 748, 250 67 Klecany, Czech Republic.
| | - Agnieszka Sorokowska
- Institute of Psychology, University of Wroclaw, Plac Uniwersytecki 1, 50-137 Wroclaw, Poland
| | - Žaneta Slámová
- National Institute of Mental Health, Topolová 748, 250 67 Klecany, Czech Republic; Department of Philosophy and History of Sciences, Faculty of Science, Charles University, Viničná 7, 128 44 Prague, Czech Republic
| | - Jitka Třebická Fialová
- Department of Zoology, Faculty of Science, Charles University, Viničná 7, 128 44 Prague, Czech Republic; National Institute of Mental Health, Topolová 748, 250 67 Klecany, Czech Republic
| | - Agnieszka Sabiniewicz
- Institute of Psychology, University of Wroclaw, Plac Uniwersytecki 1, 50-137 Wroclaw, Poland; Smell and Taste Clinic, TU Dresden, Fetscherstrasse 74, 01307 Dresden, Germany
| | - Judyta Nowak-Kornicka
- Department of Human Biology, University of Wroclaw, Przybyszewskiego 63, 51-148 Wroclaw, Poland
| | - Barbara Borkowska
- Department of Human Biology, University of Wroclaw, Przybyszewskiego 63, 51-148 Wroclaw, Poland
| | - Bogusław Pawłowski
- Department of Human Biology, University of Wroclaw, Przybyszewskiego 63, 51-148 Wroclaw, Poland
| | - Jan Havlíček
- Department of Zoology, Faculty of Science, Charles University, Viničná 7, 128 44 Prague, Czech Republic; National Institute of Mental Health, Topolová 748, 250 67 Klecany, Czech Republic
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15
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Hierl K, Croy I, Schäfer L. Body Odours Sampled at Different Body Sites in Infants and Mothers-A Comparison of Olfactory Perception. Brain Sci 2021; 11:820. [PMID: 34205665 PMCID: PMC8235221 DOI: 10.3390/brainsci11060820] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/21/2021] [Revised: 06/16/2021] [Accepted: 06/18/2021] [Indexed: 11/16/2022] Open
Abstract
Body odours and their importance for human chemical communication, e.g., in the mother-child relationship, are an increasing focus of recent research. Precise examination of sampling methods considering physiology and feasibility aspects in order to obtain robust and informative odour samples is therefore necessary. Studies comparing body odour sampling at different body sites are still pending. Therefore, we sampled axilla, breast, and head odour from 28 mother-infant dyads and examined whether odour perception differs with regard to the body site. The participating mothers were asked to evaluate their own and their infant's body odour samples, as well as odours of two unfamiliar mother-infant dyads. We tested whether maternal pleasantness and intensity evaluation, as well as recognition ability of the odours differed between the body sites. In infants, the head odour exhibited slightly lower pleasantness ratings than axilla and breast, and intensity ratings did not differ between body sites. In mothers, body site affected intensity ratings but not pleasantness ratings, as the breast odour was rated as less intense compared with head and axilla. Across all body sites, mothers rated the own and their infant's odour as less intense when compared with unfamiliar samples. Recognition ability did not differ between body sites, and in line with previous studies, mothers were able to recognize their own and their own infant's odour above chance. In sum, our study extends the previous methodological repertoire of body odour sampling and indicates that the axilla, breast, and head of adults as well as infants serve as informative odour sources.
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Affiliation(s)
- Katharina Hierl
- Department of Psychotherapy and Psychosomatics, Technical University of Dresden, 01062 Dresden, Germany
| | - Ilona Croy
- Department of Biological and Clinical Psychology, Friedrich-Schiller-University of Jena, 07743 Jena, Germany
| | - Laura Schäfer
- Department of Psychotherapy and Psychosomatics, Technical University of Dresden, 01062 Dresden, Germany
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16
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Abstract
A growing body of research has shown that human apocrine sweat carries information about the emotional state of its donor. Exposure to sweat produced in a fear-inducing context triggers in its receivers a simulacrum of this emotional state, as evidenced by increased medial frontalis and corrugator supercilii (facial electromyography; fEMG) activity – two facial muscles involved in the display of fear facial expressions. However, despite the increased interest in the effects of emotional sweat, little is known about the properties of these chemical sweat samples. The goal of this study was to examine whether a second application of the same sweat sample would yield reliable results. Specifically, we assessed whether sweat samples collected from Portuguese males (N = 8) in fear (vs. neutral)-inducing contexts would produce similar fEMG activations (i.e., in the medial frontalis and corrugator supercilii) in female receivers (N = 60) across two independent applications (the first with Dutch and the second with Portuguese receivers). Our findings showed that exposure to fear (vs. neutral) sweat resulted in higher activation of both muscles compared with neutral odors, revealing a similar data pattern across the two applications and underlining the feasibility of reusing emotional sweat samples. The implications of these findings for properties of these sweat volatiles are discussed.
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17
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Jessen S. Maternal odor reduces the neural response to fearful faces in human infants. Dev Cogn Neurosci 2020; 45:100858. [PMID: 32927245 PMCID: PMC7495014 DOI: 10.1016/j.dcn.2020.100858] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/24/2019] [Revised: 08/18/2020] [Accepted: 09/04/2020] [Indexed: 01/01/2023] Open
Abstract
Maternal odor is known to play an important role in mother-infant-interaction in many altricial species such as rodents. However, we only know very little about its role in early human development. The present study therefore investigated the impact of maternal odor on infant brain responses to emotional expression. We recorded the electroencephalographic (EEG) signal of seven-month-old infants watching happy and fearful faces. Infants in two control groups exposed to no specific odor (control 1) or the odor of a different infant’s mother (control 2) showed the expected EEG fear response. Crucially, this response was markedly absent in the experimental group exposed to their mother’s odor. Thus, infants respond differently to fear signals in the presence of maternal odor. Our data therefore suggest that maternal odor can be a strong modulator of social perception in human infants.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sarah Jessen
- Department of Neurology, University of Lübeck, Ratzeburger Allee 160, 23562 Lübeck, Germany.
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18
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Sabiniewicz A, Tarnowska K, Świątek R, Sorokowski P, Laska M. Olfactory-based interspecific recognition of human emotions: Horses (Equus ferus caballus) can recognize fear and happiness body odour from humans (Homo sapiens). Appl Anim Behav Sci 2020. [DOI: 10.1016/j.applanim.2020.105072] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/23/2022]
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19
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Wisman A, Shrira I. Sexual Chemosignals: Evidence that Men Process Olfactory Signals of Women's Sexual Arousal. ARCHIVES OF SEXUAL BEHAVIOR 2020; 49:1505-1516. [PMID: 32026223 PMCID: PMC7299914 DOI: 10.1007/s10508-019-01588-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/30/2018] [Revised: 11/05/2019] [Accepted: 11/12/2019] [Indexed: 05/27/2023]
Abstract
Research suggests that humans can communicate emotional states (e.g., fear, sadness) via chemosignals. However, thus far little is known about whether sexual arousal can also be conveyed through chemosignals and how these signals might influence the receiver. In three experiments, and a subsequent mini meta-analysis, support was found for the hypothesis that men can process the scent of sexually aroused women and that exposure to these sexual chemosignals affect the subsequent perceptions and sexual motivation of men. Specifically, Experiment 1 revealed that men evaluate the axillary sweat of sexually aroused women as more attractive, compared to the scent of the same women when not sexually aroused. In addition, Experiment 2 showed that exposure to sexual chemosignals increased the men's sexual arousal. Experiment 3 found support for the thesis that exposure to sexual chemosignals would increase sexual motivation. As predicted, men devoted greater attention to and showed greater interest in mating with women who displayed sexual cues (e.g., scantily dressed, in seductive poses). By contrast, exposure to the sexual chemosignals did not alter males' attention and mating interest toward women who displayed no sexual cues. It is discussed how sexual chemosignals may function as an additional channel in the communication of sexual interest and how contextual factors can influence the dynamics of human sexual communication.
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Affiliation(s)
- Arnaud Wisman
- School of Psychology, Keynes College, University of Kent, Canterbury, Kent, CT2 7NP, UK.
| | - Ilan Shrira
- Department of Psychology, Pennsylvania State University, University Park, PA, USA
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20
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Lee S, Kim JH, Nguyen NT, Park RM, Lee SM, Bang SH, Jeon G, Lee J, Kim S, Cho BK, Kim YH, Min J. Removal of Trans-2-nonenal Using Hen Egg White Lysosomal-Related Enzymes. Mol Biotechnol 2020; 62:380-386. [PMID: 32583365 DOI: 10.1007/s12033-020-00256-w] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 06/10/2020] [Indexed: 11/27/2022]
Abstract
2-Nonenal is a long-chain aliphatic aldehyde containing nine carbons and an unsaturated bond. 2-Nonenal is the primary cause of odor associated with aging, with an unpleasant greasy and grassy odor. Lysosome, mitochondria, and peroxisome are significant organelles in eukaryotic cells that contain various hydrolases that degrade biomolecules. Proteins in mitochondria and peroxisome also contain aldehyde dehydrogenase. We performed trans-2-nonenal treatment using lysosomal-related enzymes extracted from hen egg white (HEW). As trans-2-nonenal is more structurally stable than cis-2-nonenal, it was selected as the target aldehyde. HEW contains various biologically active proteins and materials such as albumin, ovotransferrin, lysosome, peroxisome, and mitochondria. Here, complementary experiments were conducted to evaluate the role of lysosomal-related enzymes in the treatment of trans-2-nonenal. The activity of lysosomal-related enzymes was confirmed via antimicrobial test against E. coli. HPLC analysis was used to determine the reduction of trans-2-nonenal. The trans-2-nonenal treatment depended on the reaction time and enzyme concentration. Materials considered as an intermediate from trans-2-nonenal treatment were detected by GC/MS spectrometer. Under acidic conditions (pH 6), lysosomal-related enzymes were the most efficient in the treatment of trans-2-nonenal. Furthermore, based on differential pH testing, we found the conditions under which all the 50 ppm trans-2-nonenal was removed. Therefore, our results suggest that the lysosomal-related enzymes reduced trans-2-nonenal, suggesting clinical application as anti-aging deodorants.
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Affiliation(s)
- Seyoung Lee
- Graduate School of Semiconductor and Chemical Engineering, Jeonbuk National University, 567 Baekje-daero, deokjin-gu, Jeonju-si, Jeollabuk-do, 54896, Republic of Korea
| | - Ji Hun Kim
- Department of Biological Sciences, Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology, 291 Daehak-ro, Yuseong-gu, Daejeon, 34141, South Korea
| | - Ngoc-Tu Nguyen
- Graduate School of Semiconductor and Chemical Engineering, Jeonbuk National University, 567 Baekje-daero, deokjin-gu, Jeonju-si, Jeollabuk-do, 54896, Republic of Korea
| | - Ra-Mi Park
- Graduate School of Semiconductor and Chemical Engineering, Jeonbuk National University, 567 Baekje-daero, deokjin-gu, Jeonju-si, Jeollabuk-do, 54896, Republic of Korea
| | - Su-Min Lee
- Graduate School of Semiconductor and Chemical Engineering, Jeonbuk National University, 567 Baekje-daero, deokjin-gu, Jeonju-si, Jeollabuk-do, 54896, Republic of Korea
| | - Seung Hyuck Bang
- Graduate School of Semiconductor and Chemical Engineering, Jeonbuk National University, 567 Baekje-daero, deokjin-gu, Jeonju-si, Jeollabuk-do, 54896, Republic of Korea
| | - Gyeongchan Jeon
- Graduate School of Semiconductor and Chemical Engineering, Jeonbuk National University, 567 Baekje-daero, deokjin-gu, Jeonju-si, Jeollabuk-do, 54896, Republic of Korea
| | - Jaewoong Lee
- Graduate School of Semiconductor and Chemical Engineering, Jeonbuk National University, 567 Baekje-daero, deokjin-gu, Jeonju-si, Jeollabuk-do, 54896, Republic of Korea
| | - Sunchang Kim
- Department of Biological Sciences, Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology, 291 Daehak-ro, Yuseong-gu, Daejeon, 34141, South Korea
| | - Byung-Kwan Cho
- Department of Biological Sciences, Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology, 291 Daehak-ro, Yuseong-gu, Daejeon, 34141, South Korea.
| | - Yang-Hoon Kim
- School of Biological Science, Chungbuk National University, Chungdae-ro 1, Seowon-Gu, Cheongju, Chungbuk, 28644, Republic of Korea.
| | - Jiho Min
- Graduate School of Semiconductor and Chemical Engineering, Jeonbuk National University, 567 Baekje-daero, deokjin-gu, Jeonju-si, Jeollabuk-do, 54896, Republic of Korea.
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21
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Schäfer L, Sorokowska A, Sauter J, Schmidt AH, Croy I. Body odours as a chemosignal in the mother-child relationship: new insights based on an human leucocyte antigen-genotyped family cohort. Philos Trans R Soc Lond B Biol Sci 2020; 375:20190266. [PMID: 32306871 PMCID: PMC7209942 DOI: 10.1098/rstb.2019.0266] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 09/12/2019] [Indexed: 12/26/2022] Open
Abstract
Mothers are able to identify the body odour (BO) of their own child and prefer this smell above other BOs. It has hence been assumed that the infantile BO functions as a chemosignal promoting targeted parental care. We tested this hypothesis and examined whether children's BOs signal genetic similarity and developmental status to mothers. In addition, we assessed whether BOs facilitate inbreeding avoidance (Westermarck effect). In a cross-sectional design, N = 164 mothers participated with their biological children (N = 226 children, aged 0-18 years) and evaluated BO probes of their own and four other, sex-matched children. Those varied in age and in genetic similarity, which was assessed by human leucocyte antigen profiling. The study showed not only that mothers identified and preferred their own child's BO, but also that genetic similarity and developmental status are transcribed in BOs. Accordingly, maternal preference of their own child's odour changes throughout development. Our data partly supported the Westermarck effect: mothers' preference of pubertal boys' BOs was negatively related to testosterone for the own son, but not for unfamiliar children. This article is part of the Theo Murphy meeting issue 'Olfactory communication in humans'.
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Affiliation(s)
- Laura Schäfer
- Department of Psychosomatics, Technische Universität, Fetscherstraße 74, 01307 Dresden, Germany
| | - Agnieszka Sorokowska
- Department of Psychosomatics, Technische Universität, Fetscherstraße 74, 01307 Dresden, Germany
- Smell and Taste Lab, Department of Psychology, University of Wroclaw, pl. Dawida 1, 50-527, Wroclaw, Poland
| | | | - Alexander H. Schmidt
- DKMS, Kressbach 1, 72072 Tübingen, Germany
- DKMS Life Science Lab, St. Petersburger Straße 2, 01069 Dresden, Germany
| | - Ilona Croy
- Department of Psychosomatics, Technische Universität, Fetscherstraße 74, 01307 Dresden, Germany
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22
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de Groot JHB, Kirk PA, Gottfried JA. Encoding fear intensity in human sweat. Philos Trans R Soc Lond B Biol Sci 2020; 375:20190271. [PMID: 32306883 PMCID: PMC7209933 DOI: 10.1098/rstb.2019.0271] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 09/13/2019] [Indexed: 12/14/2022] Open
Abstract
Humans, like other animals, have an excellent sense of smell that can serve social communication. Although ample research has shown that body odours can convey transient emotions like fear, these studies have exclusively treated emotions as categorical, neglecting the question whether emotion quantity can be expressed chemically. Using a unique combination of methods and techniques, we explored a dose-response function: Can experienced fear intensity be encoded in fear sweat? Specifically, fear experience was quantified using multivariate pattern classification (combining physiological data and subjective feelings with partial least-squares-discriminant analysis), whereas a photo-ionization detector quantified volatile molecules in sweat. Thirty-six male participants donated sweat while watching scary film clips and control (calming) film clips. Both traditional univariate and novel multivariate analysis (100% classification accuracy; Q2: 0.76; R2: 0.79) underlined effective fear induction. Using their regression-weighted scores, participants were assigned significantly above chance (83% > 33%) to fear intensity categories (low-medium-high). Notably, the high fear group (n = 12) produced higher doses of armpit sweat, and greater doses of fear sweat emitted more volatile molecules (n = 3). This study brings new evidence to show that fear intensity is encoded in sweat (dose-response function), opening a field that examines intensity coding and decoding of other chemically communicable states/traits. This article is part of the Theo Murphy meeting issue 'Olfactory communication in humans'.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jasper H. B. de Groot
- Department of Neurology, University of Pennsylvania, 3400 Spruce Street, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
- Department of Psychology, Utrecht University, Heidelberglaan 1, Utrecht 3584 CS, The Netherlands
| | - Peter A. Kirk
- Department of Neurology, University of Pennsylvania, 3400 Spruce Street, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
| | - Jay A. Gottfried
- Department of Neurology, University of Pennsylvania, 3400 Spruce Street, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
- Department of Psychology, University of Pennsylvania, 3720 Walnut Street, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
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23
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Sarolidou G, Axelsson J, Kimball BA, Sundelin T, Regenbogen C, Lundström JN, Lekander M, Olsson MJ. People expressing olfactory and visual cues of disease are less liked. Philos Trans R Soc Lond B Biol Sci 2020; 375:20190272. [PMID: 32306878 DOI: 10.1098/rstb.2019.0272] [Citation(s) in RCA: 31] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/21/2022] Open
Abstract
For humans, like other social animals, behaviour acts as a first line of defence against pathogens. A key component is the ability to detect subtle perceptual cues of sick conspecifics. The present study assessed the effects of endotoxin-induced olfactory and visual sickness cues on liking, as well as potential involved mechanisms. Seventy-seven participants were exposed to sick and healthy facial pictures and body odours from the same individual in a 2 × 2 factorial design while disgust-related facial electromyography (EMG) was recorded. Following exposure, participants rated their liking of the person presented. In another session, participants also answered questionnaires on perceived vulnerability to disease, disgust sensitivity and health anxiety. Lower ratings of liking were linked to both facial and body odour disease cues as main effects. Disgust, as measured by EMG, did not seem to be the mediating mechanism, but participants who perceived themselves as more prone to disgust, and as more vulnerable to disease, liked presented persons less irrespectively of their health status. Concluding, olfactory and visual sickness cues that appear already a few hours after the experimental induction of systemic inflammation have implications for human sociality and may as such be a part of a behavioural defence against disease. This article is part of the Theo Murphy meeting issue 'Olfactory communication in humans'.
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Affiliation(s)
- Georgia Sarolidou
- Division of Psychology, Department of Clinical Neuroscience, Karolinska Institutet, Sweden
| | - John Axelsson
- Division of Psychology, Department of Clinical Neuroscience, Karolinska Institutet, Sweden.,Stress Research Institute, Stockholm University, Stockholm, Sweden.,Osher Center for Integrative Medicine, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden
| | - Bruce A Kimball
- USDA-APHIS-WS, National Wildlife Research Center, Monell Chemical Senses Center, Philadelphia, PA, USA
| | - Tina Sundelin
- Division of Psychology, Department of Clinical Neuroscience, Karolinska Institutet, Sweden.,Stress Research Institute, Stockholm University, Stockholm, Sweden
| | - Christina Regenbogen
- Division of Psychology, Department of Clinical Neuroscience, Karolinska Institutet, Sweden.,Institute of Neuroscience and Medicine: JARA-Institute Brain Structure Function Relationship (INM-3), Research Center Jülich, Jülich, Germany.,Department of Psychiatry, Psychotherapy and Psychosomatics, RWTH Aachen University, Aachen, Germany
| | - Johan N Lundström
- Division of Psychology, Department of Clinical Neuroscience, Karolinska Institutet, Sweden.,Department of Psychology, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, USA.,Stockholm University Brain Imaging Centre, Stockholm, Sweden.,Monell Chemical Senses Center, Philadelphia, PA, USA
| | - Mats Lekander
- Division of Psychology, Department of Clinical Neuroscience, Karolinska Institutet, Sweden.,Stress Research Institute, Stockholm University, Stockholm, Sweden.,Osher Center for Integrative Medicine, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden
| | - Mats J Olsson
- Division of Psychology, Department of Clinical Neuroscience, Karolinska Institutet, Sweden
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24
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Hofer MK, Chen FS. The Scent of a Good Night's Sleep: Olfactory Cues of a Romantic Partner Improve Sleep Efficiency. Psychol Sci 2020; 31:449-459. [PMID: 32163721 DOI: 10.1177/0956797620905615] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/16/2022] Open
Abstract
Almost nothing is known about whether exposure to the scent of loved ones influences sleep. In the current study, 155 participants spent 2 nights with their partner's scent and 2 nights with a control scent (in random order). Sleep was measured in two ways: sleep efficiency (via actigraphy) and perceived sleep quality (via self-report). Sleep efficiency was higher when participants were exposed to their partner's scent. This increase occurred regardless of participants' beliefs about the origin of the scent. Perceived sleep quality was higher when participants believed that they were smelling their partner's scent. Exposure to a partner's scent led sleep efficiency to increase by more than 2% on average, an improvement similar in magnitude to the effect of melatonin on sleep. The current work speaks to the critical role of olfaction in communication and reveals that social scents can impact sleep.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Frances S Chen
- Department of Psychology, University of British Columbia
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25
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Smeets MA, Rosing EA, Jacobs DM, van Velzen E, Koek JH, Blonk C, Gortemaker I, Eidhof MB, Markovitch B, de Groot J, Semin GR. Chemical Fingerprints of Emotional Body Odor. Metabolites 2020; 10:E84. [PMID: 32121157 PMCID: PMC7142800 DOI: 10.3390/metabo10030084] [Citation(s) in RCA: 31] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/02/2020] [Revised: 02/22/2020] [Accepted: 02/24/2020] [Indexed: 01/10/2023] Open
Abstract
Chemical communication is common among animals. In humans, the chemical basis of social communication has remained a black box, despite psychological and neural research showing distinctive physiological, behavioral, and neural consequences of body odors emitted during emotional states like fear and happiness. We used a multidisciplinary approach to examine whether molecular cues could be associated with an emotional state in the emitter. Our research revealed that the volatile molecules transmitting different emotions to perceivers also have objectively different chemical properties. Chemical analysis of underarm sweat collected from the same donors in fearful, happy, and emotionally neutral states was conducted using untargeted two-dimensional (GC×GC) coupled with time of flight (ToF) MS-based profiling. Based on the multivariate statistical analyses, we find that the pattern of chemical volatiles (N = 1655 peaks) associated with fearful state is clearly different from that associated with (pleasant) neutral state. Happy sweat is also significantly different from the other states, chemically, but shows a bipolar pattern of overlap with fearful as well as neutral state. Candidate chemical classes associated with emotional and neutral sweat have been identified, specifically, linear aldehydes, ketones, esters, and cyclic molecules (5 rings). This research constitutes a first step toward identifying the chemical fingerprints of emotion.
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Affiliation(s)
- Monique A.M. Smeets
- Unilever R&D Vlaardingen, Olivier van Noortlaan 120, 3133 AT Vlaardingen, The Netherlands; (E.A.E.R.); (D.M.J.); (E.v.V.); (J.H.K.); (C.B.); (I.G.)
- Faculty of Social and Behavioural Sciences, Utrecht University, Heidelberglaan 1, 3584 CS Utrecht, The Netherlands; (M.B.E.); (B.M.); (J.d.G.); (G.R.S.)
| | - Egge A.E. Rosing
- Unilever R&D Vlaardingen, Olivier van Noortlaan 120, 3133 AT Vlaardingen, The Netherlands; (E.A.E.R.); (D.M.J.); (E.v.V.); (J.H.K.); (C.B.); (I.G.)
| | - Doris M. Jacobs
- Unilever R&D Vlaardingen, Olivier van Noortlaan 120, 3133 AT Vlaardingen, The Netherlands; (E.A.E.R.); (D.M.J.); (E.v.V.); (J.H.K.); (C.B.); (I.G.)
| | - Ewoud van Velzen
- Unilever R&D Vlaardingen, Olivier van Noortlaan 120, 3133 AT Vlaardingen, The Netherlands; (E.A.E.R.); (D.M.J.); (E.v.V.); (J.H.K.); (C.B.); (I.G.)
| | - Jean H. Koek
- Unilever R&D Vlaardingen, Olivier van Noortlaan 120, 3133 AT Vlaardingen, The Netherlands; (E.A.E.R.); (D.M.J.); (E.v.V.); (J.H.K.); (C.B.); (I.G.)
| | - Cor Blonk
- Unilever R&D Vlaardingen, Olivier van Noortlaan 120, 3133 AT Vlaardingen, The Netherlands; (E.A.E.R.); (D.M.J.); (E.v.V.); (J.H.K.); (C.B.); (I.G.)
| | - Ilse Gortemaker
- Unilever R&D Vlaardingen, Olivier van Noortlaan 120, 3133 AT Vlaardingen, The Netherlands; (E.A.E.R.); (D.M.J.); (E.v.V.); (J.H.K.); (C.B.); (I.G.)
| | - Marloes B. Eidhof
- Faculty of Social and Behavioural Sciences, Utrecht University, Heidelberglaan 1, 3584 CS Utrecht, The Netherlands; (M.B.E.); (B.M.); (J.d.G.); (G.R.S.)
| | - Benyamin Markovitch
- Faculty of Social and Behavioural Sciences, Utrecht University, Heidelberglaan 1, 3584 CS Utrecht, The Netherlands; (M.B.E.); (B.M.); (J.d.G.); (G.R.S.)
| | - Jasper de Groot
- Faculty of Social and Behavioural Sciences, Utrecht University, Heidelberglaan 1, 3584 CS Utrecht, The Netherlands; (M.B.E.); (B.M.); (J.d.G.); (G.R.S.)
| | - Gün R. Semin
- Faculty of Social and Behavioural Sciences, Utrecht University, Heidelberglaan 1, 3584 CS Utrecht, The Netherlands; (M.B.E.); (B.M.); (J.d.G.); (G.R.S.)
- William James Center for Research, ISPA-Instituto Universitário, 1149-041 Lisboa, Portugal
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26
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Lobmaier JS, Probst F, Fischbacher U, Wirthmüller U, Knoch D. Pleasant body odours, but not genetic similarity, influence trustworthiness in a modified trust game. Sci Rep 2020; 10:3388. [PMID: 32099082 PMCID: PMC7042344 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-020-60407-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/22/2019] [Accepted: 02/06/2020] [Indexed: 11/23/2022] Open
Abstract
Identifying trustworthy partners is an important adaptive challenge for establishing mutually cooperative relationships. Previous studies have demonstrated a marked relationship between a person's attractiveness and his apparent trustworthiness (beauty premium). Kin selection theory, however, suggests that cues to kinship enhance trustworthiness. Here we directly tested predictions of the beauty premium and kin selection theory by using body odours as cues to trustworthiness. Body odours reportedly portray information about an individuals' genotype at the human leucocyte antigen system (HLA) and thus olfactory cues in body odours serve as a promising means for kin recognition. Ninety men played trust games in which they divided uneven sums of monetary units between two male trustees represented by their body odour and rated each body odour for pleasantness. Half of the odours came from HLA-similar men (suggesting closer kin) and half from HLA dissimilar men (suggesting non-kin). We found that the amount of money the players transferred was not related to HLA-similarity, but to the pleasantness of the trustee's body odour. By showing that people with more pleasant body odours are trusted more than people with unpleasant body odour we provide evidence for a "beauty-premium" that overrides any putative effect of kin.
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Affiliation(s)
- Janek S Lobmaier
- Department of Social Neuroscience and Social Psychology, Institute of Psychology, University of Bern, Bern, Switzerland.
| | - Fabian Probst
- Department of Social Neuroscience and Social Psychology, Institute of Psychology, University of Bern, Bern, Switzerland
- Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Urs Fischbacher
- Department of Economics, University of Konstanz, Konstanz, Germany
- Thurgau Institute of Economics, Kreuzlingen, Switzerland
| | - Urs Wirthmüller
- Universitätsinstitut für Klinische Chemie, University of Bern, Bern, Switzerland
| | - Daria Knoch
- Department of Social Neuroscience and Social Psychology, Institute of Psychology, University of Bern, Bern, Switzerland.
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27
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Cecchetto C, Fischmeister FPS, Gorkiewicz S, Schuehly W, Bagga D, Parma V, Schöpf V. Human body odor increases familiarity for faces during encoding-retrieval task. Hum Brain Mapp 2020; 41:1904-1919. [PMID: 31904899 PMCID: PMC7268037 DOI: 10.1002/hbm.24920] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/04/2019] [Revised: 10/31/2019] [Accepted: 12/29/2019] [Indexed: 01/27/2023] Open
Abstract
Odors can increase memory performance when presented as context during both encoding and retrieval phases. Since information from different sensory modalities is integrated into a unified conceptual knowledge, we hypothesize that the social information from body odors and faces would be integrated during encoding. The integration of such social information would enhance retrieval more so than when the encoding occurs in the context of common odors. To examine this hypothesis and to further explore the underlying neural correlates of this behavior, we have conducted a functional magnetic resonance imaging study in which participants performed an encoding‐retrieval memory task for faces during the presentation of common odor, body odor or clean air. At the behavioral level, results show that participants were less biased and faster in recognizing faces when presented in concomitance with the body odor compared to the common odor. At the neural level, the encoding of faces in the body odor condition, compared to common odor and clean air conditions, showed greater activation in areas related to associative memory (dorsolateral prefrontal cortex), odor perception and multisensory integration (orbitofrontal cortex). These results suggest that face and body odor information were integrated and as a result, participants were faster in recognizing previously presented material.
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Affiliation(s)
- Cinzia Cecchetto
- Institute of Psychology, University of Graz, Graz, Austria.,BioTechMed, Graz, Austria
| | | | | | | | - Deepika Bagga
- Institute of Psychology, University of Graz, Graz, Austria.,BioTechMed, Graz, Austria
| | - Valentina Parma
- Department of Psychology, Temple University, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
| | - Veronika Schöpf
- Institute of Psychology, University of Graz, Graz, Austria.,BioTechMed, Graz, Austria.,Computational Imaging Research Lab (CIR), Department of Biomedical Imaging and Image-guided Therapy, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
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28
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Oren C, Shamay-Tsoory SG. Women's Body Odor during Ovulation Improves Social Perception in Single Men. Chem Senses 2019; 44:653-662. [PMID: 31412102 DOI: 10.1093/chemse/bjz053] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/14/2022] Open
Abstract
Previous research has shown that men's mating motivation may increase following exposure to women's body odor during ovulation. In the current study, we examined whether exposure to women's fertility odor cues influences social perception among men, while focusing on the role of men's relationship status in moderating this reaction. We collected body odor samples from 43 women during ovulation and during the luteal phase and exposed 85 men to these odor samples while they performed an emotion recognition task and an interpersonal perception task. Single men were better at recognizing emotional facial expressions following exposure to odor cues of high fertility as compared with odor cues of low fertility. No such effect was identified in pair-bonded men. In support of this finding, single men became more accurate on the interpersonal perception task following exposure to odor cues of high fertility, while pair-bonded men became less accurate after such exposure. Collectively, the results suggest that exposure to women's fertility odor cues improves social perception among single men, while it impairs such perception among pair-bonded men. We suggest that these effects may result from increased mating motivation following exposure to odor cues of fertility, which in turn encourages accurate social perception among single men while promoting an avoidant attitude toward social stimuli among pair-bonded men.
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Affiliation(s)
- Chen Oren
- Department of Psychology, University of Haifa, Mount Carmel, Haifa, Israel
| | - Simone G Shamay-Tsoory
- Department of Psychology, University of Haifa, Mount Carmel, Haifa, Israel.,The Integrated Brain and Behavior Research Center (IBBR), University of Haifa, Haifa, Israel
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29
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Evidence for odour-mediated assortative mating in humans: The impact of hormonal contraception and artificial fragrances. Physiol Behav 2019; 210:112541. [PMID: 31103136 DOI: 10.1016/j.physbeh.2019.05.002] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/28/2018] [Revised: 05/03/2019] [Accepted: 05/05/2019] [Indexed: 12/23/2022]
Abstract
There is substantial evidence for assortative partner preferences in humans based on physical characteristics. In contrast, evidence suggests that olfactory preferences tend to be disassortative, with people preferring body odour of potential partners who are dissimilar at key genetic loci, perhaps to gain fitness advantage through offspring heterozygosity. We compared ratings of perceived body odour similarity of real couples with those of randomly paired 'fake' couples. Contrary to prediction, we find that odours of real partners are perceived more, rather than less, similar to each other than fake couples. However, this applied only to natural odour samples: there were no differences in similarity levels of real and fake couples' samples which were collected while wearing artificial fragrances. Furthermore, in light of suggestions that hormonal contraception (HC) disrupts disassortative odour preferences in women, we compared odour similarity among real couples in which the female partner was using or not using HC at the time when the relationship began. We find that odours of HC-using couples are of intermediate similarity between non-using and fake couples, suggesting that HC use during partner choice could affect odour-influenced assortment. We also examined the association between relationship satisfaction and perceived similarity of unfragranced odours of real couples. We found that these are positively correlated in male partners but negatively correlated in the female partners, indicative of a sex difference in the relative favourability of odour similarity in partner preference. Finally, by comparing odour similarity ratings with those given by perfumers using a novel olfactory lexicon we found evidence that similarity judgements were based on the Spicy/Animalic aspects of individual odour profiles. Taken together, our results challenge the conventional view that odour-mediated partner preferences in humans are typically disassortative.
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30
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Gaby JM, Dalton P. Discrimination Between Individual Body Odors Is Unaffected by Perfume. Perception 2019; 48:1104-1123. [PMID: 31474186 DOI: 10.1177/0301006619872055] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/15/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Jessica M Gaby
- Monell Chemical Senses Center, Philadelphia, PA, USA; Department of Psychology, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY, USA; Department of Food Science, Penn State University, State College, PA, USA
| | - Pamela Dalton
- Monell Chemical Senses Center, Philadelphia, PA, USA
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31
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Sorokowska A, Oleszkiewicz A. Body-odor based assessments of sex and personality - Non-significant differences between blind and sighted odor raters. Physiol Behav 2019; 210:112573. [PMID: 31248615 DOI: 10.1016/j.physbeh.2019.112573] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/31/2018] [Revised: 06/05/2019] [Accepted: 06/05/2019] [Indexed: 12/17/2022]
Abstract
People exhibit different sensitivity to the signaling properties of body odors in the social context. Here, we aimed to investigate whether visual status modulates sensitivity to socially-relevant cues carried by body odors and whether it affects psychophysical ratings of such smells. We compared abilities of 19 early-blind, 9 late-blind and 13 sighted people to accurately assess sex, neuroticism and dominance of odor donors based on body odor samples. We showed that early blind, late blind and sighted people do not differ in accuracy of sex and personality assessments based on body odor samples. Additionally, the three participating groups perceived the presented body odor samples as similarly intense, pleasant and attractive. We discuss our findings in the context of interpersonal olfactory communication and olfactory compensation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Agnieszka Sorokowska
- Smell and Taste Research Lab, Institute of Psychology, University of Wroclaw, pl. Dawida 1, 50-527 Wroclaw, Poland; Department of Psychotherapy and Psychosomatic Medicine, TU Dresden, Fetscherstr. 74, 01307 Dresden, Germany.
| | - Anna Oleszkiewicz
- Smell and Taste Research Lab, Institute of Psychology, University of Wroclaw, pl. Dawida 1, 50-527 Wroclaw, Poland; Smell & Taste Clinic, Department of Otorhinolaryngology, TU Dresden, Fetscherstr. 74, 01307 Dresden, Germany
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32
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Fialová J, Hoffmann R, Roberts SC, Havlíček J. The effect of complete caloric intake restriction on human body odour quality. Physiol Behav 2019; 210:112554. [PMID: 31130296 DOI: 10.1016/j.physbeh.2019.05.015] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/22/2018] [Revised: 05/10/2019] [Accepted: 05/12/2019] [Indexed: 01/30/2023]
Abstract
Previous studies on various vertebrates have shown that quantity and quality of food intake affect odour attractiveness as perceived by potential mates. In humans, the quality of body odour is similarly affected by ingested foods, such as by variation in meat and garlic intake. Nevertheless, it is not known whether quantity of food has an impact on human body odour attractiveness. Thus, here we tested how 48 h of complete caloric intake restriction affects the hedonic quality of human axillary odour. Odour samples (cotton pads fixed in both armpits and worn for 12 h) were obtained from healthy female donors across three conditions: i) during their habitual food regime; ii) after 48 h of complete caloric intake restriction (drinking water was provided), and iii) 72 h after restoration of caloric intake. Axillary samples were assessed by male raters regarding their pleasantness, attractiveness, femininity, and intensity. We also collected blood samples to assess physiological changes due to dietary restriction (e.g., glucose, sodium, albumin, and triacylglyceride assays) and anthropometric measurements at the same intervals as body odour samples. We found no differences in pleasantness, attractiveness and intensity between the odour samples collected at baseline and during complete caloric intake restriction. Interestingly, we found that body odours were rated more pleasant, more attractive and less intense after restoration of food intake as compared to the baseline and during caloric restriction. Our results suggest that restoration of food intake positively influences hedonic quality of human body odour which might thus provide cues to current fitness status and metabolic efficiency.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jitka Fialová
- Faculty of Science, Charles University, Viničná 7, Prague 128 43, Czech Republic; National Institute of Mental Health, Topolová 748, Klecany 250 67, Czech Republic.
| | - Rudolf Hoffmann
- Medical Clinic Václavka, Musílkova 55, 150 00 Prague, Czech Republic
| | - S Craig Roberts
- School of Natural Sciences, University of Stirling, Stirling FK9 4LA, UK
| | - Jan Havlíček
- Faculty of Science, Charles University, Viničná 7, Prague 128 43, Czech Republic; National Institute of Mental Health, Topolová 748, Klecany 250 67, Czech Republic
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33
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Parrott ML, Nation A, Selwood L. Female mate choice significantly increases captive breeding success, and scents can be frozen to determine choice, in the stripe-faced dunnart. Appl Anim Behav Sci 2019. [DOI: 10.1016/j.applanim.2019.03.006] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/27/2022]
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34
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Ferreira J, Parma V, Alho L, Silva CF, Soares SC. Emotional Body Odors as Context: Effects on Cardiac and Subjective Responses. Chem Senses 2019; 43:347-355. [PMID: 29617740 DOI: 10.1093/chemse/bjy021] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/29/2022] Open
Abstract
Many studies have indicated that the chemical cues from body odors (BOs) of donors experiencing negative emotions can influence the psychophysiological and behavioral response of the observers. However, these olfactory cues have been used mainly as contextual information for processing visual stimuli. Here, for the first time, we evaluate how emotional BO affects the emotional tone of a subsequent BO message. Axillary sweat samples were taken from 20 donors in 3 separate sessions while they watched fear, disgust, or neutral videos. In a double-blind experiment, we assessed the cardiac and subjective responses from 69 participants who were either exposed to negative emotional or neutral BOs. Our results showed a reduced cardiac parasympathetic activity (HF%)-indicating increased stress-when participants smelled the emotional BOs before the neutral BOs, compared to when they smelled neutral followed by emotional BOs. The intensity of the neutral odor also increased following the exposure to both negative BOs. These findings indicate that BOs contain an emotion-dependent chemical cue that affects the perceiver both at the physiological and subjective levels.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jacqueline Ferreira
- CINTESIS.UA, Department of Education and Psychology, University of Aveiro, Aveiro, Portugal.,Institute for Biomedical Imaging and Life Sciences (IBILI), Faculty of Medicine, University of Coimbra, Coimbra, Portugal
| | - Valentina Parma
- William James Centre for Research (WJCR), Instituto Superior de Psicologia Aplicada (ISPA), Lisbon, Portugal.,International School for Advanced Studies (SISSA), Neuroscience Area, Trieste, Italy.,Department of Clinical Neuroscience, Division for Psychology, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden
| | - Laura Alho
- Lusófona University of Humanities and Technology, Lisbon, Portugal.,Instituto Universitário de Lisboa (ISCTE-IUL), CIS-IUL, Lisbon, Portugal
| | - Carlos F Silva
- CINTESIS.UA, Department of Education and Psychology, University of Aveiro, Aveiro, Portugal
| | - Sandra C Soares
- CINTESIS.UA, Department of Education and Psychology, University of Aveiro, Aveiro, Portugal.,Institute for Biomedical Imaging and Life Sciences (IBILI), Faculty of Medicine, University of Coimbra, Coimbra, Portugal.,Department of Clinical Neuroscience, Division for Psychology, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden
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35
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Allen C, Cobey KD, Havlíček J, Singleton FP, Hahn AC, Moran CN, Roberts SC. Preparation for fatherhood: A role for olfactory communication during human pregnancy? Physiol Behav 2019; 206:175-180. [PMID: 30978334 DOI: 10.1016/j.physbeh.2019.03.030] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/20/2018] [Revised: 03/27/2019] [Accepted: 03/31/2019] [Indexed: 01/28/2023]
Abstract
There is evidence across a range of bi-parental species that physiological changes may occur in partnered males prior to the birth of an infant. It has been hypothesised that these hormonal changes might facilitate care-giving behaviours, which could augment infant survival. The mechanism that induces these changes has not been identified, but evidence from several species suggests that odour may play a role. The current study investigated this in humans by recording testosterone and psychological measures related to infant interest and care in men (n = 91) both before and after exposure to odours from either pregnant women or non-pregnant control women. We found no evidence for an effect of odour cues of pregnancy on psychological measures including self-reported sociosexual orientation and social dominance scores, ratings of infant or adult faces, or testosterone levels. However, we found that brief exposure to post-partum odours significantly increased the reward value of infant faces. Our study is the first to show that the odour of peri-partum women may lead to upregulation of men's interest in infants.
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Affiliation(s)
- C Allen
- School of Psychology, Newcastle University, Newcastle-upon-Tyne NE1 7RU, UK; Division of Psychology, University of Stirling, Stirling FK9 4LA, UK.
| | - K D Cobey
- Division of Psychology, University of Stirling, Stirling FK9 4LA, UK; Ottawa Hospital Research Institute, Ottawa K1Y4E9, Canada; University of Ottawa, Ottawa K1N6N5, Canada
| | - J Havlíček
- Department of Zoology, Charles University, Prague, Czech Republic
| | - F P Singleton
- Division of Psychology, University of Stirling, Stirling FK9 4LA, UK
| | - A C Hahn
- Department of Psychology, Humboldt State University, USA
| | - C N Moran
- Faculty of Health Sciences and Sport, University of Stirling, Scotland FK9 4LA, UK
| | - S C Roberts
- Division of Psychology, University of Stirling, Stirling FK9 4LA, UK
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36
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The Effect of Female Pheromone on the Functional State of Young Men. ACTA BIOMEDICA SCIENTIFICA 2019. [DOI: 10.29413/abs.2019-4.1.8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/21/2022] Open
Abstract
Introduction. Modern studies show that the presentation of smell of female mice before male mice infection with the influenza virus activates non-specific immune response which protects male mice from infection of the upper respiratory tract and reducing their mortality. However the researches have not studied the adaptive effect of female sexual pheromone on men.The aim of this work was to study the effect of odor of synthetic analogue of natural female pheromone (Osmopherine) on the functional state of young men often suffering from acute respiratory infections (ARI) and allergic diseases.Materials and methods. We studied four-week effect of Osmopherine on the psycho-emotional state, the concentration of hormones (testosterone, cortisol) and immunoglobulins (sIgA, total IgG), the percentage of leukocytes in the blood and the individual smell of young men, who have ARI more than 4 times a year or an allergic disease. The study involved 117 boys aged 19–23 years. Olfactory testing of individual odor samples of young men was carried out by young women (n = 32) aged 18–22 years.Results. It was found that female pheromone has a positive effect on the functional state of men with different immune systems. However its effect is caused by the pathogenesis of the disease. Application of Osmopherine in men with reduced immunity causes an increased activity, improved mood, reduced anxiety and stabilized testosterone level. Men with allergic diseases did not have the same effect. A significant 2 times decrease in the content of eosinophils was found, which indirectly indicates the decrease in the activity of the delayed phase of allergic reactions of immediate type.Conclusion. The immune system functions according to its internal laws and programs. However its activity for the benefit of the whole body is integrated and regulated by the nervous and endocrine systems. Therefore modulating effect on the functioning of the immune system can be mediated through the presentation of pheromones.
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37
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Body odors (even when masked) make you more emotional: behavioral and neural insights. Sci Rep 2019; 9:5489. [PMID: 30940875 PMCID: PMC6445102 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-019-41937-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/06/2018] [Accepted: 03/18/2019] [Indexed: 12/19/2022] Open
Abstract
Morality evolved within specific social contexts that are argued to shape moral choices. In turn, moral choices are hypothesized to be affected by body odors as they powerfully convey socially-relevant information. We thus investigated the neural underpinnings of the possible body odors effect on the participants’ decisions. In an fMRI study we presented to healthy individuals 64 moral dilemmas divided in incongruent (real) and congruent (fake) moral dilemmas, using different types of harm (intentional: instrumental dilemmas, or inadvertent: accidental dilemmas). Participants were required to choose deontological or utilitarian actions under the exposure to a neutral fragrance (masker) or body odors concealed by the same masker (masked body odor). Smelling the masked body odor while processing incongruent (not congruent) dilemmas activates the supramarginal gyrus, consistent with an increase in prosocial attitude. When processing accidental (not instrumental) dilemmas, smelling the masked body odor activates the angular gyrus, an area associated with the processing of people’s presence, supporting the hypothesis that body odors enhance the saliency of the social context in moral scenarios. These results suggest that masked body odors can influence moral choices by increasing the emotional experience during the decision process, and further explain how sensory unconscious biases affect human behavior.
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38
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Catala A, Grandgeorge M, Schaff JL, Cousillas H, Hausberger M, Cattet J. Dogs demonstrate the existence of an epileptic seizure odour in humans. Sci Rep 2019; 9:4103. [PMID: 30923326 PMCID: PMC6438971 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-019-40721-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 32] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/08/2018] [Accepted: 02/19/2019] [Indexed: 11/09/2022] Open
Abstract
Although different studies have shown that diseases such as breast or lung cancer are associated with specific bodily odours, no study has yet tested the possibility that epileptic seizures may be reflected in an olfactory profile, probably because there is a large variety of seizure types. The question is whether a “seizure-odour”, that would be transversal to individuals and types of seizures, exists. This would be a pre requisite for potential anticipation, either by electronic systems (e.g., e-noses) or trained dogs. The aim of the present study therefore was to test whether trained dogs, as demonstrated for cancer or diabetes, may discriminate a general epileptic seizure odor (different from body odours of the same person in other contexts and common to different persons). The results were very clear: all dogs discriminated the seizure odour. The sensitivity and specificity obtained were amongst the highest shown up to now for discrimination of diseases. This constitutes a first proof that, despite the variety of seizures and individual odours, seizures are associated with olfactory characteristics. These results open a large field of research on the odour signature of seizures. Further studies will aim to look at potential applications in terms of anticipation of seizures.
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Affiliation(s)
- Amélie Catala
- Univ Rennes, Normandie Univ, CNRS, EthoS (Éthologie animale et humaine) - UMR 6552, F-35380 Paimpont, France. .,Association Handi'Chiens, 13 Rue de l'Abbé Groult, Paris, France.
| | - Marine Grandgeorge
- Univ Rennes, Normandie Univ, CNRS, EthoS (Éthologie animale et humaine) - UMR 6552, F-35380 Paimpont, France
| | - Jean-Luc Schaff
- Association Handi'Chiens, 13 Rue de l'Abbé Groult, Paris, France.,Centre d'Observation et de Cure pour Enfants Epileptiques, Ets OHS de Lorraine, 46 rue du doyen J. Parisot, Flavigny-sur-Moselle, France.,Service de Neurologie du CHRU de Nancy, 29, avenue du Maréchal de Lattre de Tassigny, Nancy, France
| | - Hugo Cousillas
- Univ Rennes, Normandie Univ, CNRS, EthoS (Éthologie animale et humaine) - UMR 6552, F-35000 Rennes, France
| | - Martine Hausberger
- CNRS, Univ Rennes, Normandie Univ, EthoS (Éthologie animale et humaine) - UMR 6552, F-35380 Paimpont, France
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Women smelling men's masked body odors show enhanced harm aversion in moral dilemmas. Physiol Behav 2019; 201:212-220. [PMID: 30639588 DOI: 10.1016/j.physbeh.2019.01.007] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/29/2018] [Revised: 01/09/2019] [Accepted: 01/09/2019] [Indexed: 12/18/2022]
Abstract
Among the most unnoticeable stimuli providing social information, body odors are powerful social tools that can modulate behavioral and neural processing. It has recently been shown that body odors can affect moral decision-making, by increasing the activations in neural areas processing social and emotional information during the decision process. The aim of the present study was twofold: 1) to test whether body odors selectively affect decisions to real dilemmatic moral scenario (incongruent) vs. fake (congruent) dilemmas, and 2) to characterize whether the impact of masked body odors is modulated by four conceptual factors: personal force, intentionality, benefit recipient and evitability. Women chose between utilitarian (sacrificing a person's life in order to save other lives) or deontological actions (deciding against the harmful action) in 64 moral dilemmas under the exposure of a neutral fragrance (masker) or a masked male body odor. Our results showed that the masked male body odor did not specifically affect the answers to real and fake dilemmas but instead, its effect is modulating whether the agent harms the victim in a direct or indirect manner (personal force) to save herself or only other people (benefit recipient). In particular, when exposed to the masked body odor participants gave more deontological answers when the harm was indirect and only other people were saved. These data support the hypothesis that body odors induce participants to perceive the individuals described in moral dilemmas as more real, triggering harm avoidance.
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40
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Mahmut MK, Stevenson RJ. Do Single Men Smell and Look Different to Partnered Men? Front Psychol 2019; 10:261. [PMID: 30814968 PMCID: PMC6381011 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2019.00261] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/12/2018] [Accepted: 01/28/2019] [Indexed: 01/12/2023] Open
Abstract
Previous research indicates human body odor (BO) can signal kinship, sickness and genetic compatibility. Based on research indicating single males have higher testosterone levels than partnered males and that higher testosterone levels are associated with stronger smelling BO, the current study aimed to determine if, by extension of previous findings, single males’ BO smells stronger than partnered males’ BO. Eighty-two heterosexual women aged 18–35 years rated the BO and faces of six different males also aged 18–35 years. Consistent with the hypothesis, single men’s BO smelled stronger than partnered men’s BO and single men’s faces were rated as more masculine than partnered men’s faces. The possible advantages of females being able to identify single males are addressed in the Discussion.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mehmet K Mahmut
- Food, Flavor and Fragrance Lab, Department of Psychology, Macquarie University, Sydney, NSW, Australia
| | - Richard J Stevenson
- Food, Flavor and Fragrance Lab, Department of Psychology, Macquarie University, Sydney, NSW, Australia
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41
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Hoffmann H. The aroma of arousal: Effects of menstrual cycle phase and women's sexual arousal state on men's responsiveness to women's body odor. Biol Psychol 2019; 142:54-61. [PMID: 30690055 DOI: 10.1016/j.biopsycho.2019.01.012] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/05/2018] [Revised: 01/17/2019] [Accepted: 01/21/2019] [Indexed: 12/28/2022]
Abstract
Humans can detect aspects of identity, reproductive status, and emotional state from body odor. Women have shown a distinctive neural response to male sexually-aroused (vs. resting) sweat. The present study examined olfactory sexual arousal contagion in men. Axial sweat was collected from naturally cycling women when they were sexually aroused and when they were resting, during both their follicular and their luteal phase. Men were exposed to both aroused and resting sweat in a state of low-level sexual arousal. Participants smelling follicular phase sweat reported greater subjective sexual arousal and an increased likelihood to self-disclose than men smelling luteal phase sweat. They also showed increased genital arousal but this effect was moderated by the arousal state of the women; genital responding was greater in men smelling sexually aroused (vs. resting) sweat for those exposed to luteal (but not those exposed to follicular) phase body odor. Being able to detect the scent of sexual arousal could enhance perceiver arousal and provide information on whether to approach someone for sexual interaction.
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Affiliation(s)
- Heather Hoffmann
- Department of Psychology, 2 East South St., Box 59, Knox College, Galesburg, IL 61401, United States.
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42
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Lobmaier JS, Fischbacher U, Wirthmüller U, Knoch D. The scent of attractiveness: levels of reproductive hormones explain individual differences in women's body odour. Proc Biol Sci 2018; 285:rspb.2018.1520. [PMID: 30209229 DOI: 10.1098/rspb.2018.1520] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/05/2018] [Accepted: 08/16/2018] [Indexed: 01/02/2023] Open
Abstract
Individuals are thought to have their own distinctive body odour which reportedly plays an important role in mate choice. In the present study we investigated individual differences in body odours of women and examined whether some women generally smell more attractive than others or whether odour preferences are a matter of individual taste. We then explored whether levels of reproductive hormones explain women's body odour attractiveness, to test the idea that body odour attractiveness may act as a chemosensory marker of reproductive fitness. Fifty-seven men rated body odours of 28 healthy, naturally cycling women of reproductive age. We collected all odours at peak fertility to control for menstrual cycle effects on body odour attractiveness. Women's salivary oestradiol, progesterone, testosterone and cortisol levels were assessed at the time of odour collection to test whether hormone levels explain body odour attractiveness. We found that the men highly agreed on how attractive they found women's body odours. Interestingly, women's body odour attractiveness was predicted by their oestradiol and progesterone levels: the higher a woman's levels of oestradiol and the lower her levels of progesterone, the more attractive her body odour was rated. In showing that women's body odour attractiveness is explained by levels of female reproductive hormones, but not by levels of cortisol or testosterone, we provide evidence that body odour acts as a valid cue to potential fertility.
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Affiliation(s)
- Janek S Lobmaier
- Department of Social Psychology and Social Neuroscience, Institute of Psychology, University of Bern, Bern, Switzerland
| | - Urs Fischbacher
- Department of Economics, University of Konstanz, Konstanz, Germany.,Thurgau Institute of Economics, Kreuzlingen, Switzerland
| | - Urs Wirthmüller
- Universitätsinstitut für Klinische Chemie, University of Bern, Bern, Switzerland
| | - Daria Knoch
- Department of Social Psychology and Social Neuroscience, Institute of Psychology, University of Bern, Bern, Switzerland
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43
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Probst F, Fischbacher U, Lobmaier JS, Wirthmüller U, Knoch D. Men's preferences for women's body odours are not associated with human leucocyte antigen. Proc Biol Sci 2018; 284:rspb.2017.1830. [PMID: 29021177 DOI: 10.1098/rspb.2017.1830] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/16/2017] [Accepted: 09/05/2017] [Indexed: 11/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Body odours reportedly portray information about an individual's genotype at the major histocompatibility complex (MHC, called human leucocyte antigen, HLA, in humans). While there is strong experimental support for MHC-associated mating behaviour in animals, the situation in humans is more complex. A lot of effort has been spent on testing HLA-associated odour preferences of women. To date, only very few studies have looked at HLA-linked olfactory preferences in men and these studies have revealed inconsistent results. Here, we investigate men's HLA-associated preferences for women's body odours. Importantly, and in contrast to previous studies, these odours were gathered at peak fertility (i.e. just before ovulation) when any HLA-associated odour preferences should be strongest. We scrutinized whether men's preference for women's body odours is influenced by (i) the number of shared HLA alleles between men and women, (ii) HLA heterozygosity, and (iii) the frequency of rare HLA alleles. We found that men could readily differentiate between odours they found attractive and odours they found less attractive, but that these preferences were not associated with HLA. Specifically, men did not prefer odours from women who are HLA dissimilar, HLA heterozygous, or who have rare HLA alleles. Together, these findings suggest that HLA has no effect on men's odour preferences.
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Affiliation(s)
- Fabian Probst
- Institute of Psychology, University of Bern, Bern, Switzerland
| | - Urs Fischbacher
- Department of Economics, University of Konstanz, Konstanz, Germany.,Thurgau Institute of Economics, Kreuzlingen, Switzerland
| | | | - Urs Wirthmüller
- Universitätsinstitut für Klinische Chemie, University of Bern, Fabrikstrasse 8, Bern 3012, Switzerland
| | - Daria Knoch
- Institute of Psychology, University of Bern, Bern, Switzerland
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44
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Fialová J, Sorokowska A, Roberts SC, Kubicová L, Havlíček J. Human Body Odour Composites Are Not Perceived More Positively than the Individual Samples. Iperception 2018; 9:2041669518766367. [PMID: 29770184 PMCID: PMC5946647 DOI: 10.1177/2041669518766367] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/17/2017] [Accepted: 02/26/2018] [Indexed: 11/17/2022] Open
Abstract
It is well established that composite facial images are perceived as more attractive compared with individual images, suggesting a preference for heterozygosity. Similarly, there is evidence that preferences for body odours might be linked to heterozygosity. Here, we tested whether blending individual body odours into composites would follow a similar pattern as observed in the perception of faces. We collected axillary odour samples from 38 individuals, which were subsequently assessed individually and as composites of two (N = 19) or four (N = 9) body odours regarding their pleasantness, attractiveness and intensity. We found no significant differences between mean ratings of individual odour samples or composites of two or four odour samples. Our results indicate that, in contrast to faces, composite body odours are not rated as more attractive. Composite body odours retain similar hedonic perceptual qualities as individual odours, thus highlighting differences in visual and chemosensory perceptual mechanisms.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jitka Fialová
- Faculty of Science, Charles University, Prague, Czech Republic; National Institute of Mental Health, Klecany, Czech Republic
| | - Agnieszka Sorokowska
- Institute of Psychology, University of Wroclaw, Poland; Smell & Taste Clinic, Department of Otorhinolaryngology, TU Dresden, Germany
| | | | - Lydie Kubicová
- Faculty of Humanities, Charles University, Prague, Czech Republic
| | - Jan Havlíček
- Faculty of Science, Charles University, Prague, Czech Republic; National Institute of Mental Health, Klecany, Czech Republic
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45
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Alves-Oliveira P, Carvalho J, Ferreira J, Alho L, Nobre P, Olsson MJ, Soares SC. Influence of Body Odors and Gender on Perceived Genital Arousal. ARCHIVES OF SEXUAL BEHAVIOR 2018; 47:661-668. [PMID: 29247299 DOI: 10.1007/s10508-017-1091-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/19/2016] [Revised: 07/06/2017] [Accepted: 09/25/2017] [Indexed: 05/25/2023]
Abstract
Olfaction is often linked to mating behavior in nonhumans. Additionally, studies in mating behavior have shown that women seem to be more affected by odor cues than men. However, the relationship between odor cues and sexual response-specifically, sexual arousal-has not been studied yet. The aim of this study was to evaluate the impact of the exposure to human body odors (from individuals of the opposite gender) on perceived genital arousal, while these were presented concomitantly to sexually explicit video clips. Eighty university students (40 women) rated their perceived genital arousal (perceived degree of erection/genital lubrication) in response to an audiovisual sexual stimulus, while simultaneously exposed to a body odor from an opposite-gender donor or no odor. Participants also rated each odor sample's (body odor and no odor) perceived pleasantness, intensity, and familiarity. Findings indicated that odor condition had an effect on women's (but not men's) perceived genital arousal, with women showing higher levels of perceived genital arousal in the no odor condition. Also, results showed that women rated body odors as less pleasant than no odor. Notwithstanding, the odor ratings do not seem to explain the association between body odor and perceived genital arousal. The current results support the hypothesis that women, rather than men, are sensitive to odors in the context of sexual response. The findings of this study have relevance for the understanding of human sexuality with respect to chemosensory communication.
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Affiliation(s)
- Patrícia Alves-Oliveira
- Instituto Universitário de Lisboa (ISCTE-IUL), CIS-IUL, 1600-077, Lisbon, Portugal
- Instituto de Engenharia de Sistemas e Computadores - Investigação e Desenvolvimento, Porto Salvo, Portugal
| | - Joana Carvalho
- Escola de Psicologia e Ciências da Vida, Universidade Lusófona de Humanidades e Tecnologias, Lisbon, Portugal.
- Centro de Psicologia da Universidade do Porto, Porto, Portugal.
| | - Jacqueline Ferreira
- Department of Education and Psychology, University of Aveiro, Aveiro, Portugal
- Center for Health Technology and Services Research, Faculty of Medicine, University of Porto, Porto, Portugal
- Institute for Biomedical Imaging and Life Sciences, Faculty of Medicine, University of Coimbra, Coimbra, Portugal
| | - Laura Alho
- Escola de Psicologia e Ciências da Vida, Universidade Lusófona de Humanidades e Tecnologias, Lisbon, Portugal
- Centro de Psicologia da Universidade do Porto, Porto, Portugal
| | - Pedro Nobre
- Faculdade de Psicologia e Ciências da Educação, Universidade do Porto, Porto, Portugal
| | - Mats J Olsson
- Division of Psychology, Department of Clinical Neuroscience, Karolinska Institute, Solna, Sweden
| | - Sandra C Soares
- Department of Education and Psychology, University of Aveiro, Aveiro, Portugal
- Center for Health Technology and Services Research, Faculty of Medicine, University of Porto, Porto, Portugal
- Division of Psychology, Department of Clinical Neuroscience, Karolinska Institute, Solna, Sweden
- William James Center for Research, ISPA University Institute, Lisbon, Portugal
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46
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Weiß BM, Kücklich M, Thomsen R, Henkel S, Jänig S, Kulik L, Birkemeyer C, Widdig A. Chemical composition of axillary odorants reflects social and individual attributes in rhesus macaques. Behav Ecol Sociobiol 2018; 72:65. [PMID: 29606788 PMCID: PMC5871651 DOI: 10.1007/s00265-018-2479-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/31/2017] [Revised: 03/07/2018] [Accepted: 03/12/2018] [Indexed: 02/03/2023]
Abstract
Abstract Scents play an important role in the life of most terrestrial mammals and may transmit valuable information about conspecifics. Olfaction was long considered of low importance in Old World monkeys due to their relative reduction of olfactory structures and low incidence of scent-marking behavior but has been increasingly recognized for mediating social relationships in recent years. Yet, studies investigating the composition of their chemical cues remain scarce. In the present study, we analyzed the potential information content of chemicals present on the skin of rhesus macaques (Macaca mulatta). We collected axillary secretions from 60 animals of the semifree-ranging population on Cayo Santiago (Puerto Rico, USA) with precleaned cotton swabs from which the secretions were subsequently extracted and analyzed by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry. Rhesus macaque axillary odorants varied in their overall similarity and composition. This variation was attributable to differences in sex, group membership, and kinship and further appeared to reflect age and rank in parts of our sample. The compounds most strongly associated with this variation primarily comprised larger molecular weight aldehydes and steroids. Such compounds are considered to be perceivable by the primate olfactory system through close-range interactions or through breakdown into smaller molecules by bacterial fermentation. Overall, our results provide additional evidence that odors of Old World monkeys reflect a wealth of potential information about their carrier, which provides the basis for chemical communication via body odors; however, its use by conspecifics needs to be confirmed in bioassays. Significance statement One prerequisite for olfactory communication is the presence of systematic variation in animal odors that is related to attributes such as age, sex, or kinship. The composition of odors has been examined in numerous mammals but, with the exception of humans, remains poorly understood in Old World monkeys and apes, taxonomic groups in which most species do not show scent-marking behavior. In the present study, we show that the composition of axillary secretions of an Old World monkey, the rhesus macaque, reflects sex, group membership, relatedness, and possibly also age and rank. This variation thus provides a basis for olfactory communication in Old World monkeys.
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Affiliation(s)
- Brigitte M. Weiß
- Junior Research Group of Primate Kin Selection, Department of Primatology, Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology, Deutscher Platz 6, 04103 Leipzig, Germany
- Research Group of Behavioural Ecology, Institute of Biology, Faculty of Life Sciences, University of Leipzig, Talstraße 33, 04103 Leipzig, Germany
| | - Marlen Kücklich
- Junior Research Group of Primate Kin Selection, Department of Primatology, Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology, Deutscher Platz 6, 04103 Leipzig, Germany
- Research Group of Behavioural Ecology, Institute of Biology, Faculty of Life Sciences, University of Leipzig, Talstraße 33, 04103 Leipzig, Germany
| | - Ruth Thomsen
- Research Group of Behavioural Ecology, Institute of Biology, Faculty of Life Sciences, University of Leipzig, Talstraße 33, 04103 Leipzig, Germany
- Department of Anthropology, University College London, Gower Street, London, WC1E 6BT UK
| | - Stefanie Henkel
- Research Group of Behavioural Ecology, Institute of Biology, Faculty of Life Sciences, University of Leipzig, Talstraße 33, 04103 Leipzig, Germany
- Department of Developmental and Comparative Psychology, Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology, Deutscher Platz 6, 04103 Leipzig, Germany
| | - Susann Jänig
- Junior Research Group of Primate Kin Selection, Department of Primatology, Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology, Deutscher Platz 6, 04103 Leipzig, Germany
- Research Group of Behavioural Ecology, Institute of Biology, Faculty of Life Sciences, University of Leipzig, Talstraße 33, 04103 Leipzig, Germany
| | - Lars Kulik
- Junior Research Group of Primate Kin Selection, Department of Primatology, Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology, Deutscher Platz 6, 04103 Leipzig, Germany
- Research Group of Behavioural Ecology, Institute of Biology, Faculty of Life Sciences, University of Leipzig, Talstraße 33, 04103 Leipzig, Germany
| | - Claudia Birkemeyer
- Institute of Analytical Chemistry, Mass Spectrometry Research Group, University of Leipzig, Linnéstrasse 3, 04103 Leipzig, Germany
| | - Anja Widdig
- Junior Research Group of Primate Kin Selection, Department of Primatology, Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology, Deutscher Platz 6, 04103 Leipzig, Germany
- Research Group of Behavioural Ecology, Institute of Biology, Faculty of Life Sciences, University of Leipzig, Talstraße 33, 04103 Leipzig, Germany
- German Center for Integrative Biodiversity Research (iDiv), Deutscher Platz 5E, 04103 Leipzig, Germany
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47
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Allen C, Havlíček J, Williams K, Roberts SC. Perfume experts' perceptions of body odors: Toward a new lexicon for body odor description. J SENS STUD 2018. [DOI: 10.1111/joss.12314] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/27/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- C. Allen
- Institute of Neuroscience, Henry Wellcome Building; Newcastle University; Newcastle upon Tyne, NE2 4HH United Kingdom
- Division of Psychology; University of Stirling; Stirling United Kingdom
| | - J. Havlíček
- Department of Zoology; Charles University; Prague Czech Republic
| | | | - S. C. Roberts
- Division of Psychology; University of Stirling; Stirling United Kingdom
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48
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Kücklich M, Möller M, Marcillo A, Einspanier A, Weiß BM, Birkemeyer C, Widdig A. Different methods for volatile sampling in mammals. PLoS One 2017; 12:e0183440. [PMID: 28841690 PMCID: PMC5571906 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0183440] [Citation(s) in RCA: 20] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/20/2017] [Accepted: 08/03/2017] [Indexed: 12/04/2022] Open
Abstract
Previous studies showed that olfactory cues are important for mammalian communication. However, many specific compounds that convey information between conspecifics are still unknown. To understand mechanisms and functions of olfactory cues, olfactory signals such as volatile compounds emitted from individuals need to be assessed. Sampling of animals with and without scent glands was typically conducted using cotton swabs rubbed over the skin or fur and analysed by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS). However, this method has various drawbacks, including a high level of contaminations. Thus, we adapted two methods of volatile sampling from other research fields and compared them to sampling with cotton swabs. To do so we assessed the body odor of common marmosets (Callithrix jacchus) using cotton swabs, thermal desorption (TD) tubes and, alternatively, a mobile GC-MS device containing a thermal desorption trap. Overall, TD tubes comprised most compounds (N = 113), with half of those compounds being volatile (N = 52). The mobile GC-MS captured the fewest compounds (N = 35), of which all were volatile. Cotton swabs contained an intermediate number of compounds (N = 55), but very few volatiles (N = 10). Almost all compounds found with the mobile GC-MS were also captured with TD tubes (94%). Hence, we recommend TD tubes for state of the art sampling of body odor of mammals or other vertebrates, particularly for field studies, as they can be easily transported, stored and analysed with high performance instruments in the lab. Nevertheless, cotton swabs capture compounds which still may contribute to the body odor, e.g. after bacterial fermentation, while profiles from mobile GC-MS include only the most abundant volatiles of the body odor.
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Affiliation(s)
- Marlen Kücklich
- Junior Research Group of Primate Kin Selection, Department of Primatology, Max-Planck-Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology, Leipzig, Germany
- Behavioural Ecology Research Group, Institute of Biology, University of Leipzig, Leipzig, Germany
- * E-mail:
| | - Manfred Möller
- Institute and Out-patient Clinic of Occupational Medicine, RWTH Aachen University, Aachen, Germany
| | - Andrea Marcillo
- Research Group of Mass Spectrometry, Institute of Analytical Chemistry, University of Leipzig, Leipzig, Germany
| | - Almuth Einspanier
- Institute of Physiological Chemistry, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Leipzig, Leipzig, Germany
| | - Brigitte M. Weiß
- Junior Research Group of Primate Kin Selection, Department of Primatology, Max-Planck-Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology, Leipzig, Germany
- Behavioural Ecology Research Group, Institute of Biology, University of Leipzig, Leipzig, Germany
| | - Claudia Birkemeyer
- Institute and Out-patient Clinic of Occupational Medicine, RWTH Aachen University, Aachen, Germany
| | - Anja Widdig
- Junior Research Group of Primate Kin Selection, Department of Primatology, Max-Planck-Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology, Leipzig, Germany
- Behavioural Ecology Research Group, Institute of Biology, University of Leipzig, Leipzig, Germany
- German Centre for Integrative Biodiversity Research (iDiv), Leipzig, Germany
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49
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Achyuthan KE, Harper JC, Manginell RP, Moorman MW. Volatile Metabolites Emission by In Vivo Microalgae-An Overlooked Opportunity? Metabolites 2017; 7:E39. [PMID: 28788107 PMCID: PMC5618324 DOI: 10.3390/metabo7030039] [Citation(s) in RCA: 49] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/28/2017] [Revised: 07/19/2017] [Accepted: 07/25/2017] [Indexed: 01/04/2023] Open
Abstract
Fragrances and malodors are ubiquitous in the environment, arising from natural and artificial processes, by the generation of volatile organic compounds (VOCs). Although VOCs constitute only a fraction of the metabolites produced by an organism, the detection of VOCs has a broad range of civilian, industrial, military, medical, and national security applications. The VOC metabolic profile of an organism has been referred to as its 'volatilome' (or 'volatome') and the study of volatilome/volatome is characterized as 'volatilomics', a relatively new category in the 'omics' arena. There is considerable literature on VOCs extracted destructively from microalgae for applications such as food, natural products chemistry, and biofuels. VOC emissions from living (in vivo) microalgae too are being increasingly appreciated as potential real-time indicators of the organism's state of health (SoH) along with their contributions to the environment and ecology. This review summarizes VOC emissions from in vivo microalgae; tools and techniques for the collection, storage, transport, detection, and pattern analysis of VOC emissions; linking certain VOCs to biosynthetic/metabolic pathways; and the role of VOCs in microalgae growth, infochemical activities, predator-prey interactions, and general SoH.
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Affiliation(s)
- Komandoor E Achyuthan
- Nano and Microsensors Department, Sandia National Laboratories, Albuquerque, NM 87185, USA.
| | - Jason C Harper
- Bioenergy and Defense Technology Department, Sandia National Laboratories, Albuquerque, NM 87185, USA.
| | - Ronald P Manginell
- Nano and Microsensors Department, Sandia National Laboratories, Albuquerque, NM 87185, USA.
| | - Matthew W Moorman
- Nano and Microsensors Department, Sandia National Laboratories, Albuquerque, NM 87185, USA.
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50
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Gilfillan GD, Vitale JD, McNutt JW, McComb K. Spontaneous discrimination of urine odours in wild African lions, Panthera leo. Anim Behav 2017. [DOI: 10.1016/j.anbehav.2017.02.003] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/01/2023]
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