Mammals odor thresholds

In some mammals, the sexes differ in their odor thresholds. The sow detects the boar pheromone androstenone (5o -androsten-16-en-3-one) easily at 3.67 x 10 mol/l, while this concentration is near or below the threshold for boars. Boars initially could not detect the odor at all but became more sensitive after repeated exposure (Dorries etal, 1991). 

Persons undergoing severe exposure to this compound should have continuing medical attention for possible development of cancer. INHALATION obtain with soap and water. INGESTION get medical anention. Toxicity by Inhalation (Threshold Limit Value) Data not available Short-Term Inhalation Limits Data not available Toxicity by Ingestion Grade 2 oral LDjo =779 mg/kg (rat), 4,(X)0 mg/kg (mammal) Late Toxicity Considered cancer-producing, particularly since it may contain up to 0.5% of 2-naphthylamine. Vapor (Gas) Irritant Characteristics Data not available Odor Threshold Data not available. 

The other major class of extracellular LBPs of mammals is the lipocalins (Flower, 1996). These are approximately 20 kDa, P-sheet-rich proteins, performing functions such as the transport of retinol in plasma or milk, the capture of odorants in olfaction, invertebrate coloration, dispersal of pheromones, and solubilizing the lipids in tears (Flower, 1996). The retinol-binding protein (RBP) of human plasma is found in association with a larger protein, transthyretin, the complex being larger than the kidney threshold and thus not excreted, although the RBP itself may dissociate from the complex to interact with cell surface receptors in the delivery of retinol (Papiz et al., 1986 Sundaram et al., 1998). 

Since we now know that birds rely on odors in a variety of contexts, we are interested in how sensitive they are to odorants and how their olfac-toiy performance compares with mammals. Birds sensitivity has been measured in different ways behavioral thresholds differ from electrophysiological... 

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