STUDIES OF HUMAN OLFACTION FROM THE UNIVERSITY-OF-PENNSYLVANIA SMELL AND TASTE CENTER

This paper, presented in part as an invited lecture on the occasion of Professor E.P. Koster's retirement from Utrecht University, summarize s a large body of human studies performed at the University of Pennsyl vania Smell and Taste Center during the last 17 years. Details of the development of standardized olfactory tests are provided, including th eir validation and application in a wide variety of clinical and labor atory settings. Included are studies related to transduction mechanism s in olfactory coding and factors that adversely influence olfactory f unction (e.g. age, gender, smoking, exposure to environmental chemical s, numerous diseases). A brief discussion of the strengths and weaknes ses of the olfactory vector hypothesis for neurodegenerative diseases is also presented.