Q2 (B)

ANSWER;;

Indeed, results from a number of experiments indicate that all areas of the mouth
containing taste buds – including several parts of the tongue, the soft palate (on the
roof of your mouth) and the throat – are sensitive to all taste qualities.

Our understanding of how taste information is carried from the tongue to the brain
shows that individual taste qualities are not restricted to a single region of the
tongue. There are two cranial nerves responsible for taste perception in different
areas of the tongue: the glossopharyngeal nerve in the back and the chorda tympani
branch of the facial nerve in the front. If tastes were exclusive to their respective
areas, then damage to the chorda tympani, for instance, would take away one’s ability
to taste sweet.

Taste buds are found elsewhere too – in the roof of the mouth and even in the throat

Two cranial nerves contribute to taste perception. They’re located in different parts
of the tongue. The first is the glossopharyngeal nerve, located in the back of the
muscle. The second is the chorda tympani branch of the facial nerve in the front. By
studying patients who have had their chorda tympani anesthetized or accidentally
cut, they’ve discovered that patients can still taste sweet. Even with the tips of their
tongue effectively removed from the equation.

Q3(A)

ANSWER;;

All odors that we perceive are molecules in the air we breathe. If a substance
does not release molecules into the air from its surface, it has no smell. If a
human or other animal does not have a receptor that recognizes a specific
molecule, then that molecule has no smell. Humans have about 350 olfactory
receptor subtypes that work in various combinations to allow us to sense
about 10,000 different odors. Compare that to mice, for example, which have
about 1,300 olfactory receptor types and, therefore, probably sense many
more odors.
The senses of smell and taste combine at the back of the throat. When you
taste something before you smell it, the smell lingers internally up to the nose
causing you to smell it. Both smell and taste use chemoreceptors, which
essentially means they are both sensing the chemical environment. This
chemoreception in regards to taste, occurs via the presence of specialized
taste receptors within the mouth that are referred to as taste cells and are
bundled together to form taste buds.

Q3(B)
ANSWER;;
Small differences in olfactory receptor genes, which are extremely common in humans, can
affect the way each receptor functions. These genetic differences mean that when two people
smell the same molecule, one person may detect a floral odor while another smells nothing at all.

The scientists also obtained DNA samples from the subjects and used high-throughput
sequencing technology to identify differences in the DNA of over 400 olfactory receptor genes
from each subject. Finally, using sophisticated mathematical models, they asked if and how
differences in each gene affected odor perception.

 A change in a single receptor was often sufficient to affect a person's odor perception.

 a receptor's functionality frequently was tied to changes in an odor's perceived strength. For
example, people with a less-functional version of an olfactory receptor known as OR11A1 found
the odor molecule 2-ethylfenchol to be less intense than did individuals with a better-functioning
version of this receptor.
"The odor associated with 2-ethylfenchol is part of the reason root vegetables like beets have an
earthy flavor, so differences in the OR11A1 receptor