Obiaks Blog

Research Shows That Our Skin Can Perceive Odors

We actually limit our minds when it comes to smelling odors to be strictly a function of the nose, However, scientific researches have proven that the skin can perceive odor 1,000 times more than the nose. A research conducted by Hanns Hatt of Ruhr University Bochum in Germany and colleagues some time in 2014, explained the result of their research. They examined the response of epidermal cells known as keratinocytes, which express an olfactory receptor called OR2AT4, along with at least four others receptors in the skin. The researchers found that "Sandalore", a synthetic sandalwood oil used in perfumes, and other skin care products all bound to the receptor, triggering cells to divide and migrate, a process that occur during skin healing.

If the skin can respond to this process, it there by means that the skin have an olfactory abilities, the process of smelling. However, more researches are still on to further understand this process but from the look of things, it seems that smell may have other functions in the body that we still don't know yet according to this research.