* 13 August 2008

    * From New Scientist Print Edition. Subscribe and get 4 free issues.

HAVING trouble finding Mr Right? It could be that taking the contraceptive pill is to blame.

Craig Roberts of the University of Liverpool, UK, and colleagues investigated the controversial claim that body odours dictated by genetic factors subconsciously help women to choose suitable, genetically dissimilar partners, as this leads to fitter offspring.

When they asked women to rate the attractiveness of odours from T-shirts previously worn by men, those who were on the pill were more likely to find the "wrong" partner attractive (Proceedings of the Royal Society B, DOI: 10.1098/rspb.2008.0825). "It's only one piece of the mating jigsaw, but it's potentially important and could merit further study," Roberts says.