Comparison of the sensitivity of C57BL/6J and AKR/J mice to airborne molecules of isovaleric acid and amyl acetate.

Wysocki et al. (1977) have previously compared the abilities of several inbred strains of mice to avoid odorized drinks after odor-aversion conditioning and have proposed C57BL/6 mice as an animal model to study the specific anosmia to isovaleric acid. We have compared the olfactory performances of C57BL/6J mice and AKR/J mice using one-bottle and two-bottle tests to study the latencies of contacts with odorized or control drinks after odor-aversion conditioning. In both inbred strains, sensitivities to airborne molecules of amyl acetate (control odor) or isovaleric acid are demonstrated. Differences in behavioral strategies are suggested but the results are consistent with the hypothesis of a selective hyposmia to isovaleric acid in C57BL/6J mice.