Sulfur-containing malodorant vapors enhance responsiveness to the sensory irritant capsaicin.

The nose is innervated with both odor responsive olfactory (cranial nerve I) and irritant responsive trigeminal (cranial nerve V) nerves. The nature and extent of any interactions between these two nerves is poorly understood. The aim of the current study was to determine if two sulfur-containing malodorants, ethyl sulfide and t-butyl sulfide, modulated responsiveness to the trigeminal C fiber stimulant capsaicin using female C57Bl/6J mice as an experimental model.