This report describes the volatile organic compounds (VOCs) associated with 
human cerumen (earwax) and the effects of ethnicity/race and variation on the 
ATP-binding cassette, sub-family C, member 11 gene (ABCC11). A single nucleotide 
polymorphism (SNP) in ABCC11 affects the cerumen VOC profiles of individuals 
from African, Caucasian, and Asian descent. Employing gas chromatography/mass 
spectrometry (GC/MS) we have identified the nature and relative abundance of 
cerumen VOCs from 32 male donors. Our results show that cerumen contains a 
complex mixture of VOCs and that the amounts of these compounds vary across 
individuals as well as across ethnic/racial groups. In six of the seven 
compounds whose detected concentrations were found to be statistically different 
across groups, individuals of African descent (AfD) > Caucasian descent (CaD) > 
Asians descent (AsD). Our findings also reveal that ABCC11 genotype alone does 
not predict the type and relative levels of volatiles found in human cerumen, 
and suggest that other biochemical pathways must be involved. Examination of the 
composition and diversity of external auditory canal microbiota in a small 
subset of our subject population revealed that the ear microbiota may not be 
directly correlated with either ethnic group membership or ABCC11 genotype.