Persistent effects on sense of smell after Covid-19 infection

Pune In a new paper published in March 2023 in the journal, “Current Research in Neurobiology”, Dr Nixon Abraham’s group of researchers from Indian Institute of Science Education and Research Pune, in collaboration with researchers from B J Government Medical College and Sassoon General Hospitals Pune, reported on persistent olfactory learning deficits during and after Covid-19 infection. Dr Abraham said, “Participants in the study were presented with certain odours at intervals and the following aspects were looked for and measured quantitatively by the team: did the participants detect the odour correctly, were they able to tell apart one odour from another, and were there any changes to olfactory matching accuracy after multiple sessions.” The team then compared and analysed the data that they had gathered through the olfactometer from each of these sessions, which together represented about 12,000 behavioural read-outs from a total 200 participants. Its design prevents cross-contamination between different tests, which is a unique feature, and also allows us to generate stimuli of varying complexity by using multiple odours.” Dr Abraham’s group of researchers works on deciphering the neural circuits involved in olfaction, or the sense of smell, with the goal of obtaining insights into animal behavioural responses, decision-making processes, and brain function in health and disease. When losses or deficits in the sense of smell due to Covid-19 infection had just about begun to be reported, Dr Abraham’s group opted to probe the matter and initiated a collaboration with doctors from B J Government Medical College and Sassoon General Hospitals in Pune.