Is It Possible to Predict the Odor of a Molecule on the Basis of its Structure?

International Journal of Molecular Sciences

Manon Genva¹  Tierry Kenne Kemene¹  Marie-Laure Fauconnier¹  Magali Deleu²  Laurence Lins² 

[1] Laboratory of Chemistry of Natural Molecules, Gembloux Agro-Bio Tech, University of Liège, 5030 Gembloux, Belgium;Laboratory of Molecular Biophysics at Interfaces, Gembloux Agro-Bio Tech, University of Liège, 5030 Gembloux, Belgium;

关键词: olfaction;    odor;    sensory perception;    flavor;    volatile organic compounds;    structure-function relationship;    olfactory sense;    odorant;   

DOI  :  10.3390/ijms20123018

来源: DOAJ

【 摘 要 】

The olfactory sense is the dominant sensory perception for many animals. When Richard Axel and Linda B. Buck received the Nobel Prize in 2004 for discovering the G protein-coupled receptors’ role in olfactory cells, they highlighted the importance of olfaction to the scientific community. Several theories have tried to explain how cells are able to distinguish such a wide variety of odorant molecules in a complex context in which enantiomers can result in completely different perceptions and structurally different molecules. Moreover, sex, age, cultural origin, and individual differences contribute to odor perception variations that complicate the picture. In this article, recent advances in olfaction theory are presented, and future trends in human olfaction such as structure-based odor prediction and artificial sniffing are discussed at the frontiers of chemistry, physiology, neurobiology, and machine learning.

【 授权许可】

Unknown