Chem. Senses 26: 449-458,
2001
© Oxford University Press 2001
Female Marmoset Monkeys (Callithrix jacchus) Can Be Identified from the Chemical Composition of their Scent Marks
1 School of Biology and Biochemistry, Queen’s University of Belfast, Medical Biology Centre, Belfast, UK, 2 The Biomedical Mass Spectrometry Facility, Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, MN 55905, USA, 3 Dalgety Food Technology Centre, Dalgety plc, Station Road, Cambridge, UK and 4 Wisconsin Regional Primate Research Center and Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, University of Wisconsin, Madison, WI 53715, USA
Correspondence to be sent to: Tessa E. Smith, School of Biology and Biochemistry, Queen’s University of Belfast, Medical Biology Centre, Belfast BT9 7BL, UK. e-mail: t.smith{at}qub.ac.uk
The present study analyzed 42 organic solvent extracts of scent mark pools from five dominant female common marmosets by gas chromatography (GC) and combined GC and mass spectrometry. We determined whether there were qualitative or quantitative differences between the chemical composition of scent marks from individual females. Gas chromatography and mass spectral analysis detected the same 162 chemicals in 86% (36/42) of scent mark pools from five dominant females. This near identical chemical composition of scent marks suggested there were few, if any, qualitative differences between the chemical composition of scent marks from individual females. Instead, quantitative differences in scent may provide the key factor distinguishing individual females. Using the relative concentration of highly volatile chemicals detected by GC in scent marks, linear discriminant analysis classified scent mark pools to their correct donor 
91% of the time. Such highly reliable statistical matching of scent to donor suggested that each individual female common marmoset has a unique ratio of highly volatile chemicals in their scent marks which may permit individual identification of females from odors in their scent alone.
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