| 01/16/2005 |
| Scientists may have to rethink sense of smell theories |
| By SZYMON TWAROG , The Herald Press |
MIDDLETOWN -- A new study co-authored by Robert Lane, assistant professor of Molecular Biology and Biochemistry at Wesleyan University, suggests that scientists may have been completely wrong in looking at the advanced sense of smell in animals.
Known as pheromone detection, animals are able to detect many things -- from whether another animal is in heat to class standing in a particular group -- through their sense of smell.
For years scientist have credited this ability to the vomeronasal organ or VNO rather than the nose itself. But in an article due out in the February issue of Genome Research, Lane provides evidence that scientists may have overestimated the use of this organ. "As keen as the dog sense of smell is and as elaborate a pheromonal system dogs seem to have, it could be that the main nose, not the VNO, underlies elaborate pheromonal communication in dogs," said Lane. Previous studies were based mostly on rodents, but Lane and his group discovered that the main pheromone receptor inside the VNO had been decimated in domesticated dogs suggesting that the VNO may play a diminished role in dogs and perhaps other non-rodent mammals. "Dogs, you would assume, are the most likely to use pheromone detection," said Lane. "Yet dogs have a very small number of the receptors." Lane said it is very difficult to estimate the long-term importance of the finding, but believes it is a major discovery in the world of pheromone study. To contact Szymon Twarog, call (860) 347-3331 ext. 220 or email stwarog@middletownpress.com.
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