There is no consensus among researchers regarding what qualifies a substance as a pheromone. While most agree on a basic definition of pheromones as chemicals released by one individual of a species which, when detected by another individual of the same species, elicit a specific behavioral or physiological response, some researchers also specify that the response to pheromones must be unconscious. In addition, the distinction between pheromones and odorants - chemicals that are consciously detected as odors-can be blurry, and some researchers classify pheromones as a type of odorant. Evidence that pheromone responses may not involve conscious odor perception comes from the finding that in many species, pheromones are processed by the vomeronasal (or accessory olfactory) system, which uses a special structure in the nose, the vomeronasal organ (VNO), to receive chemical signals. The neural connections between the VNO and the brain are separate from those of the main olfactory system, whose processing of odorants triggers sensations of smell. But while the VNO does process many animal pheromone signals, not all animal pheromones work through the VNO. Conversely, not all chemical signals transmitted via the VNO quality as pheromones. For example, garter snakes detect a chemical signal from earthworms-one of their favorite foods-via the VNO, and they use this signal to track their prey.


The primary purpose of the passage is to


compare and contrast the ways in which the vomeronasal organ and the main olfactory system process chemicals

summarize the debate over the role the vomeronasal organ plays in odor perception

present some of the issues involved in the debate over what constitutes a pheromone

propose a new definition of pheromones based on recent research

argue that pheromones should be classified as a type of odorant

考题讲解

此讲解的内容由AI生成,还未经人工审阅,仅供参考。

正确答案是 C。本文主要讨论的是对什么构成“信息素”(pheromone)的争论。文中提到,学者们就信息素是否需要无意识反应存在分歧,而信息素和气味分子(odorants)之间的区分也模糊不清。文章进一步指出,有证据表明信息素反应可能不涉及有意识的气味感知,因为它们是由位于鼻腔的特殊结构——息肉样嗅觉器官(VNO)处理的,但其不一定所有动物信息素都通过VNO传播。因此,本文主要讨论的是对什么构成“信息素”(pheromone)的争论,故 C 选项最能代表文章大意。

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