2023-06-25 06:11:23
By Redacción Radio Formula
Written in LIFESTYLE on 6/24/2023 1:19 p.m.
Mice run away from cats for a powerful reason that perhaps very few know. According to experts, mice can smell fear and flee from their predator.
According to research from the Scripps Research Institute in La Jolla, California, United States, cats, rats and other predators produce a chemical in their saliva with which they terrorize mice.
Why mice run away from cats?
The researchers discovered that when mice detect this compound – which is also found in rat urine – they react with fear. This compound, called major urinary protein or Mup (in its acronym in English) acts on the cells of a special sensory organ in mice, called the Jacobson’s or vomeronasal organ, causing a terror reaction in the mouse.
Do mice detect the smell of meido?
According to experts, the vomeronasal organ contains neurons that detect chemical signals and is connected to areas of the brain involved with memory, emotions and the release of hormones.
The scientists discovered that in mice the neurons of the vomeronasal organ are also stimulated by the chemical signals emitted by their predators, such as cats in this case.
In mice, these proteins cause the animal to emit fear signals such as “freezing” or “playing dead” while carefully sniffing and investigating its surroundings.
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