PMID- 20943935
OWN - NLM
STAT- MEDLINE
DCOM- 20101203
LR  - 20110311
IS  - 1535-3699 (Electronic)
IS  - 1535-3699 (Linking)
VI  - 235
IP  - 11
DP  - 2010 Nov
TI  - In the nose of the beholder: are olfactory influences on human mate choice driven 
      by variation in immune system genes or sex hormone levels?
PG  - 1277-81
LID - 10.1258/ebm.2010.010112 [doi]
AB  - The human leukocyte antigen (HLA) is the most polymorphic region of the genome, 
      coding for proteins that mediate human immune response. This polymorphism may be 
      maintained by balancing selection and certain populations show deviations from 
      expected gene frequencies. Supporting this hypothesis, studies into olfactory 
      preferences have suggested that females prefer the scent of males with dissimilar 
      HLA to their own. However, it has also been proposed that androstenones play a 
      role in female mate choice, and as these molecules inhibit the immune system, 
      this has implications for the theory of HLA-driven mate preference. This review 
      will critically analyze the findings of studies investigating olfactory 
      preference in humans, and their implications for these two contrasting theories 
      of mate choice.
FAU - Roberts, Thomas
AU  - Roberts T
AD  - 1UCL Anthropology, University College London, London, UK.
FAU - Roiser, Jonathan P
AU  - Roiser JP
LA  - eng
PT  - Journal Article
PT  - Review
DEP - 20101013
PL  - Switzerland
TA  - Exp Biol Med (Maywood)
JT  - Experimental biology and medicine (Maywood, N.J.)
JID - 100973463
RN  - 0 (Androstenes)
RN  - 0 (Sex Attractants)
SB  - IM
MH  - Androstenes/*metabolism
MH  - Choice Behavior/physiology
MH  - Female
MH  - *Genetic Variation
MH  - Haplotypes
MH  - Humans
MH  - Major Histocompatibility Complex/*genetics
MH  - Male
MH  - Nose
MH  - *Olfactory Perception
MH  - Sex Attractants/*metabolism
MH  - *Sexual Behavior
MH  - Smell
EDAT- 2010/10/15 06:00
MHDA- 2010/12/14 06:00
CRDT- 2010/10/15 06:00
PHST- 2010/10/15 06:00 [entrez]
PHST- 2010/10/15 06:00 [pubmed]
PHST- 2010/12/14 06:00 [medline]
AID - ebm.2010.010112 [pii]
AID - 10.1258/ebm.2010.010112 [doi]
PST - ppublish
SO  - Exp Biol Med (Maywood). 2010 Nov;235(11):1277-81. doi: 10.1258/ebm.2010.010112. 
      Epub 2010 Oct 13.