INDIVIDUAL VARIATION IN HUMAN OLFACTATION

近日，有报道称，“......大约200万美国成年人 有味觉和嗅觉障碍。 1975年和1976年合并， 化学感觉问题是主要的表现症状， 435，000次到医生办公室就诊。“在建立任何 成功的临床计划，还有很多关于基本的知识需要学习。 化学感受机制。 我们的研究计划使用了遗传学和 行为遗传学方法在个体差异研究中的应用 嗅觉，努力为未来的研究提供模型。 许多嗅觉功能完好的人无法闻到一些气味。 物质. 在以前对雄烯酮的气味盲的研究中， 气味类固醇，我们发现，无法感知气味， 这是遗传的，正如一项双胞胎研究的结果所证明的。 试点工作 表明发育因素和环境暴露可能 影响或改变雄烯酮气味的感知。 基于这些 研究结果，我们建议i）确定气味的传输模式 通过进行家族谱系分析对雄甾烯酮失明，ii） 确定发展因素在认知中的作用 通过测试不同年龄的儿童和成人，和iii） 试图改变个人的敏感性，这种气味的长期 暴露于雄烯酮。 这些研究将为人类嗅觉提供基础信息。 他们将提供一个综合研究的因素（遗传，发育， 实验性的），这可能会影响对特定气味的敏感性。 的 获得的数据可用作未来调查的基础， 为使用现代神经生物学技术的研究奠定了基础， 确定那些谁之间的差异负责的因素 感知雄甾酮和那些无法感知雄甾酮的人。

Recently, it was reported that "...approximately 2 million American adults have disorders of taste and smell. For 1975 and 1976 combined, a chemosensory problem was the major presenting symptom in approximately 435,000 visits to a physician's office." Prior to establishing any successful clinical program, much remains to be learned about the basic mechanisms of chemoreception. Our research program has used genetic and behavioral genetic methods in studies of individual differences in olfaction in an effort to provide models for future investigations. Many people with otherwise intact olfactory capabilities cannot smell some substances. In previous studies of odor blindness to androstenone, an odorous steroid, we found that the inability to perceive an odor is inherited, as evidenced by the results of a twin study. Pilot work suggested that developmental factors and environmental exposures may influence or alter perception of the odor of androstenone. Based on these findings, we propose i) to determine the mode of transmission of odor blindness to androstenone by conducting family pedigree analyses, ii) to determine the role of developmental factors in the perception of androstenone by testing children and adults of different ages, and iii) to attempt to alter individual sensitivity to this odorant by long-term exposure to androstenone. These studies will produce fundamental information on human olfaction. They will provide an integrated study of factors (genetic, developmental, experimential) which may influence sensitivity to a particular odor. The data obtained can be used as a foundation for future investigations and may set the stage for studies using the techniques of modern neurobiology to determine the factors responsible for differences between those who perceive androstenone and those who cannot.