Powerful scent: NZ mice study reveals intriguing effect on weight loss, life span

New Zealand scientists have revealed intriguing effects that female odours and pheromones appear to cause in mice. Photo / File

New Zealand scientists have revealed intriguing effects that female odours and pheromones appear to cause in mice, including weight loss and longer life span.

The Otago University researchers’ recently-published observations, thought to be world-first, may also have implications for humans.

While it was already known that sensory cues in humans and animals could influence the release of sex hormones, the new findings show how these cues could have more wide-spread physiological effects on metabolism and ageing.

“Our studies show that female odours slow the sexual development of female mice, but consequently extends their lifespan,” said study leader Dr Michael Garratt, of Otago’s Department of Anatomy.

“And we also show that the smell of females can increase male mouse energy expenditure, which subsequently influences their body weight and body fat levels.”

Newborn mice were exposed to odours from adult females until they were 60 days old.

Those females exposed to the odours reached sexual maturity later and lived an average 8 per cent longer than those not exposed.

There was no effect of male odours on female mouse lifespan, or changes in lifespan in males in response to odours from either sex.

“As far as we know, this is the first observation that lifespan can be increased in a mammal by olfactory signals, or indeed secreted factors found in soiled bedding and urine,” Garratt said.

“More generally, the work hints that sensory cues from our social environment can cause changes to our physiology and development, which may have long-term effects that extend to influence how we age.”

While male mice did not directly benefit in terms of longevity from female odours during development, when they are exposed to female odours as adults, their weight and metabolism was substantially affected, he says.

“We have found that exposing male mice to female odours increases their energy expenditure for several hours after exposure.

“These effects are sufficient to induce weight loss and protect against males getting very fat when they are fed a diet that has an excess of energy.”

Regardless of the cause for improved metabolic health and longevity with female pheromones, the results suggest olfactory cues from other individuals may induce more widespread changes across the body.

“We would now like to understand how information received by the olfactory system is capable of inducing widespread effects.

“It is also possible that exposing male mice to female odours when they are adults may influence their lifespans and that’s a question we are currently pursuing.”