Timberol® Inhibits TAAR5-Mediated Responses to Trimethylamine and Influences the Olfactory Threshold in Humans

PLoS One. 2015 Dec 18;10(12):e0144704. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0144704. eCollection 2015.

Abstract

In mice, trace amine-associated receptors (TAARs) are interspersed in the olfactory epithelium and constitute a chemosensory subsystem that is highly specific for detecting volatile amines. Humans possess six putative functional TAAR genes. Human TAAR5 (hTAAR5) is highly expressed in the olfactory mucosa and was shown to be specifically activated by trimethylamine. In this study, we were challenged to uncover an effective blocker substance for trimethylamine-induced hTAAR5 activation. To monitor blocking effects, we recombinantly expressed hTAAR5 and employed a commonly used Cre-luciferase reporter gene assay. Among all tested potential blocker substances, Timberol®, an amber-woody fragrance, is able to inhibit the trimethylamine-induced hTAAR5 activation up to 96%. Moreover, human psychophysical data showed that the presence of Timberol® increases the olfactory detection threshold for the characteristic fishy odor of trimethylamine by almost one order of magnitude. In conclusion, our results show that among tested receptors Timberol® is a specific and potent antagonist for the hTAAR5-mediated response to trimethylamine in a heterologous system. Furthermore, our data concerning the observed shift of the olfactory detection threshold in vivo implicate that hTAAR5 or other receptors that may be inhibited by Timberol® could be involved in the high affinity olfactory perception of trimethylamine in humans.

Publication types

  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Adult
  • Cell Line
  • Differential Threshold / drug effects
  • Female
  • Humans
  • Male
  • Methylamines / pharmacology*
  • Middle Aged
  • Oils, Volatile / pharmacology*
  • Olfactory Mucosa / drug effects*
  • Olfactory Mucosa / metabolism
  • Olfactory Perception / drug effects
  • Receptors, G-Protein-Coupled / antagonists & inhibitors*
  • Receptors, G-Protein-Coupled / genetics
  • Receptors, G-Protein-Coupled / metabolism
  • Recombinant Proteins / genetics
  • Recombinant Proteins / metabolism
  • Wood / chemistry

Substances

  • Methylamines
  • Oils, Volatile
  • Receptors, G-Protein-Coupled
  • Recombinant Proteins
  • TAAR5 protein, human
  • trimethylamine

Grants and funding

Supported by the grants SFB642 and SPP1932 by Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (www.dfg.de). The funder had no role in study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript. Symrise AG provided support in the form of salaries for authors MS and JP, but did not have any additional role in the study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript. The specific roles of these authors are articulated in the ‘author contributions’ section.