Sneezing mechanism study

[brokensneeze]

Maybe this would be the dream research project of some people on here 😃.

Out of all the brain functions, such as sensory processing, higher cognition, fear and pleasure responses, etc., there aren't too many of them that deal with how sneezing works. Here's one, that ended up in Cell! (for those who don't know, Cell is probably THE most prestigious biology journal in the world).https://www.the-scientist.com/the-literature/bless-you-mouse-model-reveals-molecular-pathway-behind-sneezing-69217

Though I suppose that would disappoint many people here, this research might lead to a treatment for sneezing that is more specific in effect and yet more generalized across causes than antihistamines, because it showed that a specific neurotransmitter produced by only a small number of cells in the brain is involved. Though for what it's worth, even animals totally lacking this neurotransmitter were only said to have a "significantly reduced sneezing reflex", so it's not clear that they couldn't sneeze at all. More interestingly perhaps for us, the involvement of this neurotransmitter and its receptor may possibly explain some of the unique quality of the "sneezy feeling" as compared to other reflexes.

[brokensneeze]

I've looked a bit more into the functioning of this molecule, and some of the things it's involved in are interesting. For instance, it causes intense itching and scratching when injected into the brain https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3101014/, increases anxiety, and promotes contraction of smooth muscle in the gut and excretory and reproductive tracts: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/8381528/. Its involvement in itch and various forms of tension (both metaphorical/emotional and physically in the internal organs) could indicate that there's some related evolutionary origin in all these sensations including sneezing, which is interesting to think about as a biologist. Though maybe we shouldn't take it TOO literally as the same molecule is apparently abundantly expressed by many cancers, which of course don't feel "sneezy", teasing, sexy, or anything even remotely like that!

[strong sneeze32]

Wow! This is my dream research project!

It is such a surprise, because there has been very little research on sneezing in the past.