Common Chemical Sense: pungency, not odor

[Guest guest]

> " In addition to mucous membrane irritation, fungal volatile

compounds may impact the " common chemical sense " which senses

pungency and responds to it. This sense is primarily associated with

the trigeminal nerve (and to a lesser extent the vagus nerve). This

mixed (sensory and motor) nerve responds to pungency, not odor, by

initiating avoidance reactions, including breath holding,

discomfort, or paresthesias, or odd sensations, such as itching,

burning, and skin crawling. Changes in sensation, swelling of mucous

membranes, constriction of respiratory smooth muscle, or dilation of

surface blood vessels may be part of fight or flight reactions in

response to trigeminal nerve stimulation. Decreased attention,

disorientation, diminished reflex time, dizziness and other effects

can also result from such exposures (Otto et al., 1989) " <