February 8, 2017 Nikolina Jovancevic and Hanns Hatt research why the heart is able to smell. Credit: RUB, Kramer

Researchers have for the first time identified the function of olfactory receptors in the human heart muscle, such as are also present in the nose. One of the receptors reacts to fatty acids that occur in the blood, in patients with diabetes significantly above the normal range. If a fatty acid activates the receptor, it triggers a negative effect: the heart rate and the force of muscular contraction are reduced. The team headed by Dr Nikolina Jovancevic and Prof Dr Dr Dr habil. Hanns Hatt from Ruhr-Universitt Bochum has published its findings in the journal “Basic Research in Cardiology”.

The researchers analysed the genetic composition of myocardial cells using state-of-the-art gene sequencing technology. They discovered active genes for ten olfactory receptors. The OR51E1 receptor occurred very frequently. For the purpose of additional experiments, the researchers generated myocardial cells from embryonic stem cells and human skin cells, in collaboration with the lab headed by Prof Dr Jrgen Hescheler at the University of Cologne. In the cardiomyocytes, they activated the OR51E1 receptor with the odorant nonanoic/decanoic acid, which causes a rancid-fatty olfactory sensation. It reduced the pulse frequency of the cultivated mini hearts; the higher the odorant concentration, the more significant the reduction. Once the researchers removed the odorant, the mini hearts returned to their normal rate.

Reduced cardiovascular capacity

Moreover, in collaboration with Prof Dr Henrik Milting at the Heart and Diabetes Center in Bad Oeynhausen, the researchers from Bochum analysed isolated myocardial cells from explanted hearts of patients. If they activated the OR51E1 receptor with fatty-acid scent, the force of muscular contraction was reduced. These results were verified in experiments with tissue slices of explanted human hearts, which were conducted in collaboration with Prof Dr Andreas Dendorfer from the clinic at Ludwig-Maximilians-Universitt Mnchen.

In humans, the fatty acids that have the capability of docking to OR51E1 occur in the blood and the fat tissue of the heart in a concentration that is sufficiently high to activate the receptor. That was confirmed in analyses carried out in collaboration with Prof Dr Erwin Schleicher from the University Hospital in Tbingen. The blood of diabetic patients, in particular, contains high concentrations of these fatty acids.

Negative effect in diabetic patients assumed

“This might have a negative effect on the cardiac functions of diabetic patients,” speculates Hanns Hatt, Head of the Department of Cellphysiology in Bochum. His team has now developed a blocker for the OR51E1 receptor that blocks the negative effect of the activating scents. That blocker is the molecule 2-ethylhexanoic acid.

“Applying a blocker might help to reduce the negative effects on the human heart that are caused by medium-chain fatty acids, especially in patients with increased fatty acid levels in blood,” concludes Hatt. He also believes it is possible that the treatment might be beneficial for patients with dramatically increased heart rates. According to the Bochum-based scent researcher, it is conceivable that the odorant might be administered percutaneously. “If the ointment is applied over the heart, the concentration of odorants that penetrate through the skin might be sufficient to have an effect on the heart; there are some hints of that,” says Hatt.

Explore further: Olfactory receptors discovered in bronchi

More information: Nikolina Jovancevic et al. Medium-chain fatty acids modulate myocardial function via a cardiac odorant receptor, Basic Research in Cardiology (2017). DOI: 10.1007/s00395-017-0600-y

Researchers identified two types of olfactory receptors in human muscle cells of bronchi. If those receptors are activated by binding an odorant, bronchi dilate and contract a potential approach for asthma therapy.

Human blood cells have olfactory receptors that respond to Sandalore. This could provide a starting point for new leukaemia therapies, as researchers from Bochum report in in the journal Cell Death Discovery.

Capsaicin, an active ingredient of pungent substances such as chilli or pepper, inhibits the growth of breast cancer cells. This was reported by a team headed by the Bochum-based scent researcher Prof Dr Dr Dr habil Hanns …

Biologists from Bochum and Bonn have detected a cannabinoid receptor in spermatozoa. Endogenous cannabinoids that occur in both the male and the female genital tract activate the spermatozoa: they trigger the so-called acrosome …

Skin cells possess an olfactory receptor for sandalwood scent, as researchers at the Ruhr-Universitt Bochum have discovered. Their data indicate that the cell proliferation increases and wound healing improves if those …

In the weeks following a heart attack, the injured heart wall acquires more collagen fibers that are significantly less stiff due to a lack of fiber crosslinks, according to a new study by a University of Arkansas researcher …

A major report led by Vanderbilt investigators found that the mere presence of even a small amount of calcified coronary plaque, more commonly referred to as coronary artery calcium (CAC), in people under age 50even small …

Small ubiquitin-like modifier (SUMO) proteins are small peptides that get added on to other proteins to regulate their activity. While SUMO has many regulatory roles in cells, it is especially important for controlling gene …

Of the more than 700,000 Americans who suffer a heart attack each year, about a quarter go on to develop heart failure. Scientists don’t fully understand how one condition leads to the other, but researchers in the Perelman …

An anticancer agent in development promotes regeneration of damaged heart muscle 0- an unexpected research finding that may help prevent congestive heart failure in the future.

A higher volume of a certain type of fat that surrounds the heart is significantly associated with a higher risk of heart disease in women after menopause and women with lower levels of estrogen at midlife, according to new …

Please sign in to add a comment. Registration is free, and takes less than a minute. Read more

Continue reading here:
Function of olfactory receptor in the human heart identified – Medical Xpress

Comments are closed.