Today, perhaps, you will not meet a person who does not know what pheromones are. Perfume with pheromones, the "aroma of seduction" and the smell of love are terms widely used by marketers and advertisers. The olfactory system, which is responsible for the recognition of volatile chemosignals associated with sexual and maternal instincts, controls neuroendocrine and behavioral responses, is called vomeronasal. And the main receptor department of this system is the vomeronasal organ. Responsible for the interaction of organisms of the same species, it was recently discovered in humans and its decisive role in the formation of behavioral reflexes has been proven.
Pheromone romance
It all started in 1870, when the French biologist Jean-Henri Casimir Fabre (1823-1915) briefly left a butterfly in his laboratory. Returning to the laboratory, he saw that several male butterflies had gathered at the window. And no matter what room he carried the female, the males inseparably followed her. Soin biology, the concept of "attractants" appeared - substances that a female individual secretes to attract males. Only by 1959, having accumulated enough knowledge about volatile substances and their role in reproductive behavior, the Swiss entomologist Martin Luscher (1917-1979) introduced the concept of "pheromones" (pheromone), as a term formed from the merger of the Greek words "transfer" and " stimulate".
Pheromones of plants and animals
Modern biology understands this concept as a group of volatile chemical compounds that plants and animals secrete to provide communication, signaling and sexual stimulation. Pheromones carry more than just sexual meaning, although it is this part of their action that is most mysterious and interesting. In their meaning, they can be territorial (animals mark the territory), guides (ants show the way to their brethren), repellent (plants emit signaling substances when attacked by pests), and many others. The first pure pheromone was isolated in 1956 and was a powerful attractant of the silkworm butterfly - it made the males beat their wings in a "flutter dance" in the most minimal doses. It is believed that if one female butterfly releases the entire supply of this pheromone at once, she can attract a trillion males. Since there are pheromones, there must be a system for their perception.
Evolution of the vomeronasal sense of smell
For the first time, the vomeronasal organ appears in amphibians, in animals this system already includes a separate nerve and bulb, cartilage,vessels and glands. In embryogenesis, all groups have this organ: from amphibians to humans. In sexually mature individuals, its development is different: from actively working (amphibians, snakes, cats, dogs) to reduced and complete absence (whales, dolphins, bats).
Jacobson Organ
Two centuries ago, the Dane Ludwig Jacobson (1783-1843) described a group of cells located in the bones of the skull between the nose and mouth. These islands of receptors, distinct from the olfactory and gustatory ones, will later be called the vomeronasal organ. Jacobson's organ has been described in insects, snakes, rodents, domestic animals. When sniffing, cats sometimes open their mouths, as if grimacing. It is believed that this increases the flow of air into the vomeronasal organ in cats. But snakes increase the perception of pheromones by the translational movements of the tongue. Therefore, when a snake makes such movements, it does not try to scare you, it sniffs you.
Vomeronasal human organ
For a long time it was believed that a person has these islands of sensitive cells only in the embryonic state, and then they disappear. In 1703, the military surgeon Frederick Ruysch (1638-1731) described unusual pits in a soldier with a wound in the nose. And in 1891, already the French doctor Potikier (1841-1903) discovered the vomeronasal organ in 25% of the 200 patients examined. Numerous experiments and histological studies have divided biologists. And today in the scientific community there are disagreements about the vomeronasal organ and its role in people's lives: from complete denialeven its existence in adults to its critical maximum value.
Sensitive Jacobson Islets
The vomeronasal organ is narrow sacs, a few millimeters long, lined with sensitive epithelium. They are located on both sides of the nasal septum (the bone at the intersection of the nasal septum and the palate is called the vomer), very far from the olfactory zone. In humans, the vomeronasal olfactory organ is represented by a small (up to 1 mm in diameter) pit, which continues with a tube 2 to 10 mm long. The size of this organ is very different in all people and can change throughout life. Available in all races and in both sexes. The histology of the vomeronasal organ is composed of a receptor epithelium with sensory neurons, the axons of which end in the amygdala, a special area of the brain in the hypothalamus.
Special scent
What is the difference between the vomeronasal organ and the sense of smell? The perception of odors is carried out in the epithelial cells of the sinuses, where the chemical stimulus is converted into an electrical stimulus and transmitted through the nerve cells to the cerebral cortex. Here the analysis of the signal and its tone, recognition and formation of the image takes place. The endings of vomeronasal neurons are located in the amygdala, a zone that is responsible for mood and emotions and does not affect the cerebral cortex. That is why these attractants or pheromones defy description and act exclusively on a subconscious level.
Mother-child system
The role of the vomeronasal sense of smell in the relationship between a mother and her baby has been proven in animal experiments. Young mammals secrete specific pheromones that stimulate the manifestation of maternal instincts in the female. Removal of the vomeronasal organ in females leads to a sharp suppression of maternal behavior. There is a theory that sexual disorders and homosexual addictions in people can form disruptions in the level of sex hormones during the mother's pregnancy. This area of work of the vomeronasal olfactory system is still little studied and holds many discoveries.
Vomeronasal organ and partner choice
Influence through the subconscious explains the impossibility of controlling jealousy, attraction, the pangs of unrequited love and passion. Human skin, and especially the nasolabial folds and armpits, is a whole pheromone factory. They are almost odorless, but it is they who, through vomeronasal perception, determine the sexual attractiveness of a partner and decide who is nice to us and who is not at all. It is sex pheromones that are responsible for love at first sight, or rather, from the first smell. The study of the effects of pheromones on humans began in the 1990s, but today there is real evidence about their role in shaping sexual behavior. Pheromones have been found that form sexual dislike for close relatives and prevent incest. The pheromones that the mother's nipple produces have been identified, and the child knows exactly where the milk is and whether it is his mother. There are pheromones that calm, lower blood pressure anddecrease heart rate.
Life Sync
It has been experimentally proven that when several women live in the same area or work in a confined space, their menstrual cycles are synchronized (Prof. Martha McClintock, University of Chicago, 1970). The cycle is controlled by several hormones, which serve as a signal for the production of various pheromones. Gradually, the difference in the date of the onset of menstruation in women is reduced and, in the end, the cycles come to synchrony. The same results are shown in animal experiments.
Sexual formula
Another experiment was conducted by Czech scientists led by Jan Galviček. For a month, the women were forbidden to use deodorant, and they wore pads under their arms. Men were asked to test these pads, choosing the most attractive ones. According to the results, the smell of women who were in the stage of entry into ovulation, that is, were in a state of readiness for conception, was the most popular. Which once again demonstrates the wisdom of nature in organizing life on earth.
Fragrance of Passion
Scientists never stop looking for that secret ingredient that will pave the way to a partner's heart and be able to maintain a romantic relationship. You will not surprise anyone with perfume products with pheromones. Many firms and corporations declare their products as containing pheromones andpossessing the properties of attracting people of the opposite sex. The secret of production and the composition of perfumes are kept in the strictest confidence. And you can not believe in the effectiveness of synthetic pheromones, but the facts speak for themselves.
Remedy for romance
The effect of synthetic hormones was clearly demonstrated by the experiment of psychology professor Norma McCoy from the University of San Francisco. To test a tool that will make life more romantic, offered 30 women aged 19 to 48 years. Every day, the test and control (placebo) groups added a drop of the resulting substance to their perfumes. After three menstrual cycles, the result was summed up. Sexual activity increased in 74% of participants who used synthetic pheromones, compared to 24% in the control group.
And yet, synthetic pheromones are just a temporary veil, under which our essence is hidden. And even in experiments with animals, sexual behavior arose not only in response to the spraying of pheromones, but also in the presence of individuals of the opposite sex. In addition, the “sixth sense” is also the sixth, because when choosing a partner, we rely not only on him, but also on our other five senses. Search for a partner using synthetic pheromones or rely on existing reality - you choose.
