Reduction in the sweaty smell of 3-methyl-2-hexenoic acid by cross-adaptation using its pleasant-smelling methyl esters

Magnitude estimates for a 10:1 mixture of (E)- and (Z)-3-methyl-2-hexenoic acid (3M2H), a principal component of human underarm odor, decreased following adaptation to a mixture of methyl esters of 3M2H (ME3M2H), which possess a pleasant, fruity odor. These results provide further demonstration that structurally similar, yet perceptually distinct, odorants may cross-adapt and suggest that the extent of cross-adaptation may be affected by the degree of structural, as well as perceptual, similarity.