It may be wise to trust the female nose when it comes to body odor. According to new research from the Monell Center, it is more difficult to mask underarm odor when women are doing the smelling.

Researchers in Portugal are reporting development of a new type of "microcapsule" filled with perfume and embedded in fabric for production of scented suits, socks, undergarments and other clothing.

What makes one smell pleasant and another odious? Is there something in the chemistry of a substance that can serve to predict how we will perceive its smell? Scientists at the Weizmann Institute of Science and the University of California at Berkeley have now discovered that there is, indeed, such a link, and knowing the molecular structure of a substance can help predict whether we will find its smell heavenly or malodorous.

Why the same sweaty man smells pleasant to one person and repellant to another comes down to the smeller’s genes.

Brown University chemists have found the origins of an odor – the sweet smell of fresh dirt. In Nature Chemical Biology, the Brown team shows that the protein that makes geosmin – source of the good earth scent – has two similar but distinct halves, each playing a critical role in making this organic compound.

Largest study of its kind reveals that an ingredient in male body odor can smell like urine or take on a vanilla scent depending on single odorant receptor gene