The experimental device combining the artificial nose and the stimulator. Credit: Science Advances (2025). DOI: 10.1126/sciadv.adu7926
There is new hope for people who have lost their smell. Scientists have successfully tested a breakthrough device that lets people detect the presence of certain odors. This innovative system helps them "smell" again by translating odors into feelings (like touch) inside the nose.
The loss of smell (anosmia or hyposmia) is a major problem that affects around 20% of the global population. It can be caused by a variety of factors, such as infections, medications, or injuries and may be permanent or temporary. Unlike hearing loss or vision impairment, where cochlear implants or prosthetics are available, there are no implants or devices that can restore the sense of smell. This new research may be a vital step toward developing a practical solution for more than a billion people.
How it works
The team behind the device describes their work in a paper published in the journal Science Advances. They developed a system that captures odors using an artificial nose (e-nose) and translates that chemical information into a specific digital code. This code is then passed through an intranasal electrical stimulator (a small magnetic clip) placed on the septum, the wall separating the nostrils, to trigger the trigeminal nerve.
Once triggered by an electrical pulse, individuals perceive the code as a distinct sensation. They're not actually smelling, rather, their brain is learning to associate this unique feeling with a specific odor so that they can tell different odors apart.
The concept behind the technology is called sensory substitution, where one functional sense transmits information from a sense that is defective. The nasal cavity has two sensory systems, which are the olfactory system for smell and the trigeminal system for temperature, touch and irritation. In this research, the device leverages the trigeminal nerve to deliver information that the olfactory nerve can no longer transmit.
"This substitution approach does not allow patients to smell real odors, it is a genuine first substitution solution that we could imagine offering to patients in the future," wrote the researchers in their paper.
Trial success
The study authors tested their innovation on 65 people (13 with normal smell and 52 with smell loss) across four experiments. All were able to detect odorant molecules, and most could distinguish between two distinct odors. The device also worked just as well for patients who couldn't smell as it did for healthy people, meaning the trigeminal system is a reliable pathway for transmitting coded signals for everyone.
The work is still in the early stages. Among the next steps for the researchers will be to increase the number of odorants and stimulation patterns tested and to turn the lab prototype into a wearable, miniaturized device for everyday use.
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