Creators of personal hygiene goods might be scenting new product development opportunities amid news that researchers have identified the olfactory receptors (OR) involved in perceiving body odour.
Scientists from the University of Pennsylvania and the Monell Chemical Senses Center asked 1,000 Han Chinese volunteers to rate ten odours for intensity and pleasantness on a 100-point scale, with the validation cohort comprising 357 participants collected in New York City rating six of these ten odours.
Among the odours rated were the synthetic musk galaxolide and 3-methyl-2-hexenoic acid (3M2H), one of the approximately 120 chemicals that make up body odour, but which also carries the signature BO ‘whiff’ on its own.
The results were then combined with genetic analysis of each participant.
Among the team’s findings, published in Plos Genetics as ‘From musk to body odor: Decoding olfaction through genetic variation’, were genetic variants linked to the perception of galaxolide and 3M2H.
A single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) in OR51B2 was found relating to 3M2H, while two linked SNPs associated with galaxolide were discovered in a novel musk receptor OR4D6, which was also revealed as the first human OR to drive specific anosmia to a musk compound.
OR4D6 variant alleles M263T and S151T were shown to be linked to a decrease in galaxolide perception intensity, while OR51B2 variant allele L134F was demonstrated as associated with increased 3M2H intensity.
The research put forward OR4D6 as a strong candidate for the mechanism underlying specific anosmia to galaxolide, suggesting that it is possible for a single receptor to represent musk perception. Until now, the fact that individuals perceive musk intensity differently had suggested that several receptors or groups of receptors may have a contributing role.
Speaking to The Guardian, Dr Joel Mainland, a co-author of the research, suggested the findings could have practical applications in the development of personal hygiene products which block the perception of bad smells.