Volatile Signals During Pregnancy: A Possible Chemical Basis for Mother–Infant Recognition

Abstract

Publisher's copyright statement:The nal publication is available at Springer via http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s10886-008-9573-5. Use policyThe full-text may be used and/or reproduced, and given to third parties in any format or medium, without prior permission or charge, for personal research or study, educational, or not-for-prot purposes provided that:• a full bibliographic reference is made to the original source • a link is made to the metadata record in DRO • the full-text is not changed in any way The full-text must not be sold in any format or medium without the formal permission of the copyright holders.Please consult the full DRO policy for further details. Abstract Human pheromones have a role in regulating relationships, and apparently influence partner choice and mother-infant recognition. We analyzed the chemical content of volatiles from sweat patch samples from the para-axillary and nipple-areola regions of women during pregnancy and after childbirth. Solid phase microextraction (SPME) was used to extract the volatile compounds, which were then characterized and quantified by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS). During pregnancy, women developed a distinctive pattern of five volatile compounds common to the para-axillary and nipple-areola regions (1-dodecanol, 1-1΄-oxybis octane, isocurcumenol, α-hexyl-cinnamic aldehyde, and isopropyl myristate). These compounds were absent outside pregnancy and had slightly different patterns in samples from the two body areas. Differentiation of the volatile patterns among pregnant women may help newborns to distinguish their own mothers.

Baby on board: olfactory cues indicate pregnancy and fetal sex in a non-human primate

“…The observation that pregnancy alters scent profiles in lemurs (this study) and in humans [11] suggests that olfactory cues of pregnancy may be widespread or highly conserved among primates. Such findings highlight the importance of considering multiple sensory modalities when examining reproductive signals, even in taxa historically thought to rely relatively little on olfaction [7,30,31].…”

“…Given the established link between sex steroids and olfactory profiles [7], these findings suggest possible endocrine involvement (or competing energy allocation) in the production of olfactory gestational cues. Gestational cues could serve various functions across primate species, from promoting social cohesion [3] to engendering parental investment [4] or kin recognition [11]. To the extent that olfactory cues of pregnancy occur in other primates, our findings could be relevant to these existing hypotheses, as well as to theories on the functionality of multiple mating.…”

“…[5,6]); nonetheless, there is growing recognition of reproductive signalling via olfactory channels [7]. As in several non-primate species [8][9][10], olfactory cues of pregnancy occur in humans, possibly facilitating mother-infant recognition [11]; otherwise, the potential for olfactory gestational cues in primates has been ignored. Here, we investigate pregnancy effects on olfactory cues in a promiscuous, non-human primate, the ring-tailed lemur (Lemur catta).…”

Mutual Olfactory Recognition Between Mother and Child

“…If we interpret the results at face value, it may be that recognition of mother's smells in infanthood is possible because her odour is more distinctive around the perinatal period. According to Vaglio (2009), mothers develop a distinctive pattern of 5 volatile compounds common to the nipple-areola and para-axillary regions in late pregnancy and early post-partum, and perhaps these odour changes shape their distinctiveness. In addition, it is possible that the benefits of recognition are simply more important when at this time, since babies must find the breast for nourishment, compared to post-weaning, and perhaps because they rely more on olfaction than vision at this time of their development.…”

Two-day-old newborn infants recognise their mother by her axillary odour

“…Vaglio et al (20) confirmed that during pregnancy, and immediately after delivery, women develop a particular chemical profile of volatile molecules that are different from the profile of women who have not given birth and from women who are caring for infants they did not give birth to. In particular, five specific different volatile molecules -1-dodecanol, 1-1 0 -octane Oxybis, isocurcumenol, ð-hexylcinnamic, aldehyde and isopropyl mystrate -have been identified in samples collected from the area of the nipple, the areola and the axilla of pregnant women and women after childbirth.…”