# New nerve discovered connected from the nose to the brain **URL:** \ **Category:** Studies & Abstracts\ **Created:** [March 26, 2008, 1:03am UTC](https://pheromonetalk.com/t/new-nerve-discovered-connected-from-the-nose-to-the-brain/10442 "2008-03-26T01:03:30Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 8\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Eldros](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/flex016/user_avatar/pheromonetalk.com/eldros/32/279_2.png) [@Eldros](https://pheromonetalk.com/u/Eldros)\ **Post date:** [March 26, 2008, 1:03am UTC](https://pheromonetalk.com/t/new-nerve-discovered-connected-from-the-nose-to-the-brain/10442/1 "2008-03-26T01:03:30Z")
What makes us fall in love? Is it lust, mutual interests, shared life goals, or something much more intangible? Recent research suggests the latter. Researchers have only recently discovered an olfactory nerve that they believe is the route through which [pheromones](https://pheromonelabs.com/) are processed. Nerve “O,” as it is called, slipped under the radar for many years because it is so tiny. However, when the nerve was discovered in a whale, scientists surmised that this little nerve might be found in humans as well. And it was! So what is the role of Nerve “O”? Nerve “O” has endings in the nasal cavity, but the fibers go directly to the sexual regions of the brain. Indeed, these endings entirely bypass the olfactory cortex! Hence we know the role of Nerve “O” is not to consciously smell, but to identify sexual cues from our potential partners. What sexual cues do our scents give off? For one thing, we are more likely to be attracted to people whose scent is dissimilar to our own. Family members often share similar chemicals, so our attraction to differing chemical makeup suggests that sexual cues evolved to protect close family members from procreating together. On the other hand, pregnant women have been shown to be more drawn to people with similar chemical makeup, which might be due to the fact that during this crucial time, women are more apt to seek out family members than potential mates. Research has also shown that these unconscious cues processed in Nerve “O” can make or break a relationship. Couples who have high levels of chemicals in common are more likely to encounter fertility issues, miscarriage and infidelity. The more dissimilar your and your partner’s chemical makeup, the better chance you will have at successfully procreating and staying together. So how can you create the scent that will keep you and your partner in the land of happily ever after? Unfortunately, you can’t. Perfumes and colognes can’t fool Nerve “O” — the scents that humans and animals are attracted to are intangible and instinctive. Even the most expensive designer perfume can’t fool Mother Nature. When it comes to sexual attraction, it seems you really have to leave things in the air! However, if you are taking a hormonal contraceptive, you might be bucking an evolutionary tide. Women who are on the pill are more likely to be attracted to men with similar chemical makeup — most likely because their bodies are fooling them into believing they are pregnant, and so much like actual pregnant women, their Nerve “O” leads them to kin and not mates. So if you were on the pill when you met your mate, you might experience a diminishing attraction when you cease taking it. OOnly time will tell what role Nerve “O” plays in future sex research, but one thing is for sure: When it comes to true love, follow your nose! Dr. Laura Berman is the director of the _Berman Center_\ ([http://www.bermancenter.com/](http://www.bermancenter.com/)) in Chicago, a specialized health care facility dedicated to helping women and couples find fulfilling sex lives and enriched relationships. She is also an assistant clinical professor of OB-GYN and psychiatry at the Feinberg School of Medicine at Northwestern University. She has been working as a sex educator, researcher and therapist for 18 years. - **© 2007 MSNBC Interactive** © **2008 [MSNBC.com](http://MSNBC.com)** ---
**Author:** ![bond007](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/flex016/user_avatar/pheromonetalk.com/bond007/32/1076_2.png) [@bond007](https://pheromonetalk.com/u/bond007)\ **Post date:** [March 26, 2008, 1:15am UTC](https://pheromonetalk.com/t/new-nerve-discovered-connected-from-the-nose-to-the-brain/10442/2 "2008-03-26T01:15:15Z")
wow… a phero canal to the brain… helpful highway ---
**Author:** ![Eldros](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/flex016/user_avatar/pheromonetalk.com/eldros/32/279_2.png) [@Eldros](https://pheromonetalk.com/u/Eldros)\ **Post date:** [March 27, 2008, 2:47am UTC](https://pheromonetalk.com/t/new-nerve-discovered-connected-from-the-nose-to-the-brain/10442/3 "2008-03-27T02:47:38Z")
Does anyone else think that this disproves the belief that a vestigial VNO = no pheromone detection? So in other words, everybody on earth is affected by pheromones. ---
**Author:** ![mark-in-dallas](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/flex016/user_avatar/pheromonetalk.com/mark-in-dallas/32/860_2.png) [@mark-in-dallas](https://pheromonetalk.com/u/mark-in-dallas)\ **Post date:** [March 27, 2008, 5:26am UTC](https://pheromonetalk.com/t/new-nerve-discovered-connected-from-the-nose-to-the-brain/10442/4 "2008-03-27T05:26:50Z")
Well I seem to remember reading that Androstadienone has been proven to be transmitted to the brain through the VNO, which in my opinion obsoletes the theory of a vestigial VNO. Whether pheromones are transmitted through the VNO the Olfactory Bulb, Zero Nerve, or even different systems for different pheromones, I have absolutely no doubt that pheromones are detected and processed by the brain. We know that the VNO was at least active and connected to the Limbic System in the brain, which is a primitive area controlling emotions and some cognitive processing. I have also read that Androstadienone is known to be processed though the VNO which makes perfect sense: fight-flight-comfort. I might also surmise that one day Androsterone will be found to be processed through the VNO. I would guess that the Zero Nerve likely connects to the the Septum and that is the nerve transmitting Androstenone to the brain. Evolution has been unconditionally proven, and even for the creationists, something had to create the big bang to begin with. I believe in both: we evolved over the Millennium, but some greater power had to create and mold the universe then put life in motion. The universe and earth are to perfectly balanced to believe that it came about out of random chaos. It only makes sense that our interactions and relations with others are guided by the same processes that guide virtually every other creature on earth. ---
**Author:** ![z414a4d](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/flex016/user_avatar/pheromonetalk.com/z414a4d/32/1299_2.png) [@z414a4d](https://pheromonetalk.com/u/z414a4d)\ **Post date:** [April 2, 2008, 8:11pm UTC](https://pheromonetalk.com/t/new-nerve-discovered-connected-from-the-nose-to-the-brain/10442/5 "2008-04-02T20:11:58Z")
this is really interesting. It still boggles my mind to see there are still lots of things with out anatomy that has yet to be discovered. Good find! ---
**Author:** ![diane999](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/flex016/user_avatar/pheromonetalk.com/diane999/32/1110_2.png) [@diane999](https://pheromonetalk.com/u/diane999)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2008, 2:44am UTC](https://pheromonetalk.com/t/new-nerve-discovered-connected-from-the-nose-to-the-brain/10442/6 "2008-10-01T02:44:30Z")
I’d be more interested in this “study” if there were any actual citations to back it up. I haven’t been able to find any. Diane ---
**Author:** ![bosshank](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/91b2a8/32.png) [@bosshank](https://pheromonetalk.com/u/bosshank)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2008, 8:27pm UTC](https://pheromonetalk.com/t/new-nerve-discovered-connected-from-the-nose-to-the-brain/10442/7 "2008-10-01T20:27:10Z")
Interesting article and it ties in research from another article that was also posted … but like Diane said, some more info would be nice. ---
**Author:** ![jvkohl](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/flex016/user_avatar/pheromonetalk.com/jvkohl/32/1297_2.png) [@jvkohl](https://pheromonetalk.com/u/jvkohl)\ **Post date:** [October 18, 2008, 1:33am UTC](https://pheromonetalk.com/t/new-nerve-discovered-connected-from-the-nose-to-the-brain/10442/8 "2008-10-18T01:33:10Z")
> [@bosshank](#): > > Interesting article and it ties in research from another article that was also posted … but like Diane said, some more info would be nice. Was this the “other article?” [Little-known nerve may be secret to lust — JSCMS](http://jscms.jrn.columbia.edu/cns/2007-04-24/russell-sexnerve) Not much is known, but that doesn’t keep ‘celebrity authorities’ from making it appear that they know everything. The researcher who did most of the work that I know about is Celeste Wirsig. Nerve zero has not been linked to the non-existent human VNO. James V. Kohl