Recently published work and emerging research efforts have suggested that the olfactory system is intimately linked with the endocrine systems that regulate or modify energy balance. Although much attention has been focused on the parallels between taste transduction and neuroendocrine controls of digestion due to the novel discovery of taste receptors and molecular components shared by the tongue and gut, the equivalent body of knowledge that has accumulated for the olfactory system, has largely been overlooked. During regular cycles of food intake or disorders of endocrine function, olfaction is modulated in response to changing levels of various molecules, such as ghrelin, orexins, neuropeptide Y, insulin, leptin, and cholecystokinin. In view of the worldwide health concern regarding the rising incidence of diabetes, obesity, and related metabolic disorders, we present a comprehensive review that addresses the current knowledge of hormonal modulation of olfactory perception and how disruption of hormonal signaling in the olfactory system can affect energy homeostasis.

It was previously shown that fully grown ovarian germinal vesicle (GV) oocytes of adult mice exhibit several nuclear configurations that differ essen

The molecular mechanisms underlying odorant detection have been investigated using the chip based SPR technique by focusing on the dynamic interactions between transmembrane Olfactory Receptor OR1740, odorant ligands and soluble Odorant-Binding Protein (OBP-1F). The OR1740 present in the lipid bilayer of nanosomes derived from transformed yeasts specifically bound OBP-1F. The receptor preferential odorant ligand helional released bound OBP-1F from the OR-OBP complex, while unrelated odorants failed to do so. OBP-1F modified the functional OR1740 dose–response to helional, from a bell-shaped to a saturation curve, thus preserving OR activity at high ligand concentration. This unravels an active role for OBPs in olfaction, in addition to passive transport or a scavenger role. This sensorchip technology was applied to assessing native OBP-1F in a biological sample: rat olfactory mucus also displayed significant binding to OR1740 nanosomes, and the addition of helional yielded the dissociation of mucus OBP from the receptor.