Cat Noses Keep Smells Separate Courtesy of a Complex Structure

Researchers recently published a new study shedding light on the complex structure of cat noses and the way cats’ sense of smell works. Although cats may not receive the same amount of glory as their canine counterparts, they too have a sophisticated sense of smell. Using scans and tissue samples from a house cat (whose body was donated to science after its death), researchers were able to create a model of a cat nose. They discovered that when cats smell, a series of channels and sensors in their noses allow them to separate the airflow into different scents. These networks of channels are called turbinates. The nasal mucus in a cat’s nose allows easily soluble smells to travel less far than smells that are not as soluble. This means that different smells are bound to different smell receptors. Cats are therefore able to distinguish separate smells. 

Source: Cats Protection/YouTube

Cat noses have complex turbinate structures when compared to many other mammals. They have a greater number of turbinates than either rats or humans. This complexity shows how good cats’ sense of smell truly is. Cats use smell for many things including to detect food or danger and to identify other cats. The next phase of research is to identify how soluble different scents are in cats’ nasal mucus and where they bind to different smell receptors. However, research should never be done on living animals. Additionally, no animals should ever be killed for research purposes. 

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