Monell Chemical Senses Center

University of Pennsylvania

The United States Government As Represented by the Department of Veterans Affairs

Temple University

Danielle Reed

Joseph G Brand

Xia Li

Weihua Li

Alexander Bachmanov

Noam A Cohen

Robert J Lee

Valentina Parma

Mackenzie Hannum

Pamela H Dalton

Maureen O'Leary

Provided are systems, methods, and kits for multifunctional smell assessment. The kits may comprise a first surface adhered by a first releasable adhesive comprising an odorous volatile compound; and the system for registering if the odorous volatile compound is detected by a user. The system or method may comprise queries for obtaining a first input on whether the user detects and identifies the odorous volatile compound, and an intensity by which the odor is perceived.

Multifunctional smell test

The invention provides methods and compositions for the diagnosis, prognosis and treatment of respiratory tract diseases. Specifically, the invention provides diagnosis, prognosis and treatment of respiratory infections using bitter and sweet taste signal transduction pathways. In one aspect, the invention relates to a method for treating a respiratory infection by administering a composition to the respiratory tract of a subject in an amount capable of activating bitter taste signaling and/or inhibiting sweet taste signaling. The composition comprises at least a bitter receptor agonist and, optionally, a pharmaceutically acceptable carrier for delivering the composition to the respiratory tract. In another aspect, the invention relates to a composition for treatment of a respiratory infection. Such composition comprises at least a bitter receptor agonist and, optionally, a pharmaceutically acceptable carrier for delivering the composition to the respiratory tract.

Diagnosis and treatment for respiratory tract diseases

The present invention relates to the discovery of several genes of the domestic cat () associated with taste perception. The invention provides, inter alia, the nucleotide sequence of the feline Tas1r1, Tas1r2, and Tas1r3 receptor genes, the amino acid sequences of the polypeptides encoded thereby, and antibodies to the polypeptides. The present invention also relates to methods for screening for compounds that modify the genes' function or activity, the compounds identified by such screens, and mimetics of the identified compounds. The invention further provides methods for modifying the taste preferences, ingestive responses, or general behavior of a mammal, such as a cat, by administering compounds that affect the function or activity of the gene or the polypeptide encoded thereby.

Taste receptors of the T1R family from domestic cat

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Glenside, PA, United States of America

Danielle Reed