Blood molecule attracts predators and warns prey – including humans
[PRESS RELEASE 2017-10-20] Researchers at Karolinska Institutet in Sweden have identified an evolutionarily preserved scent molecule in mammalian blood that attracts predators and repels prey. In the study, published in Scientific Reports, they also report that humans exposed to the smell become stressed and react to it as if they were prey.Most animals use their sense of smell to find partners, hunt for food and detect danger. These natural smells, or chemical signals, normally comprise hundreds of scent molecules, which are often species-specific. The smell of blood, on the other hand, is
