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Related Concept Videos

Physiology of Smell and Olfactory Pathway01:20

Physiology of Smell and Olfactory Pathway

Humans detect odors with the help of specialized cells located in the upper part of the nasal cavity, called olfactory receptor neurons (ORNs). ORNs possess hair-like structures called cilia, which are receptive to sensations from the inhaled air. When an odorant molecule binds to a specific receptor on the cell of the cilia, it leads to a series of events that ultimately cause the ORN to send electrical signals to the olfactory bulb in the brain through the olfactory nerves.
The olfactory...
Olfaction01:25

Olfaction

The sense of smell is achieved through the activities of the olfactory system. It starts when an airborne odorant enters the nasal cavity and reaches olfactory epithelium (OE). The OE is protected by a thin layer of mucus, which also serves the purpose of dissolving more complex compounds into simpler chemical odorants. The size of the OE and the density of sensory neurons varies among species; in humans, the OE is only about 9-10 cm2.
The olfactory receptors are embedded in the cilia of the...
Olfactory Receptors: Location and Structure01:03

Olfactory Receptors: Location and Structure

The process of olfaction, also known as the sense of smell, is a sophisticated chemical response system. The specialized sensory neurons that facilitate this process, known as olfactory receptor neurons, are situated in an upper segment of the nasal cavity, known as the olfactory epithelium. Olfactory sensory neurons are bipolar, with their dendrites extending from the epithelium's apex into the mucus that lines the nasal cavity. Airborne molecules, when inhaled, traverse the olfactory...
Tactile and Chemical Senses01:27

Tactile and Chemical Senses

Tactile senses encompass touch, temperature, and pain, each mediated by specific receptors. Touch receptors detect mechanical energy or pressure against the skin. Sensory fibers from these receptors enter the spinal cord and relay information to the brain stem. Here, most fibers cross over to the opposite side of the brain. The touch information then moves to the thalamus, which projects a map of the body's surface onto the somatosensory areas of the parietal lobes in the cerebral cortex. This...
G-Protein Gated Ion Channels01:21

G-Protein Gated Ion Channels

GPCRs are primarily responsible for our sense of smell, taste, and vision.  The binding of a sensory stimulus activates GPCR to stimulate effector proteins, many of which are ion channels in the sensory organs. GPCRs modulate the opening and closing of the target ion channels either directly by binding them, or by releasing second messengers that activate these channels. As ions move across the membrane, the membrane potential is altered, which induces an appropriate response.
Sensory organs,...
Introduction to Special Senses01:26

Introduction to Special Senses

Sensory receptors play an integral part in comprehending our external and internal environments. They receive diverse stimuli, converting them into the nervous system's electrochemical signals. This conversion occurs as the stimulus alters the sensory neuron's cell membrane potential, instigating the generation of an action potential. This action potential is subsequently transmitted to the central nervous system (CNS), which integrates with other sensory data or higher cognitive functions.

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Related Experiment Video

Updated: Jun 3, 2026

Olfactory Context Dependent Memory: Direct Presentation of Odorants
04:47

Olfactory Context Dependent Memory: Direct Presentation of Odorants

Published on: September 18, 2018

Olfactory bulb: odor signals put into context.

Donald B Katz1, Joost X Maier

  • 1Volen National Center for Complex Systems, Brandeis University, Waltham, MA 02454, USA. dbkatz@brandeis.edu

Neuron
|March 26, 2011
PubMed
Summary
This summary is machine-generated.

Researchers found that the olfactory bulb uniquely processes odor-reward information in its neural activity. This discovery reshapes our understanding of the central nervous system's initial olfactory processing and coding mechanisms.

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The Olfactory System as a Model to Study Axonal Growth Patterns and Morphology In Vivo
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The Olfactory System as a Model to Study Axonal Growth Patterns and Morphology In Vivo

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Imaging Odor-Evoked Activities in the Mouse Olfactory Bulb using Optical Reflectance and Autofluorescence Signals
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Imaging Odor-Evoked Activities in the Mouse Olfactory Bulb using Optical Reflectance and Autofluorescence Signals

Published on: October 31, 2011

Related Experiment Videos

Last Updated: Jun 3, 2026

Olfactory Context Dependent Memory: Direct Presentation of Odorants
04:47

Olfactory Context Dependent Memory: Direct Presentation of Odorants

Published on: September 18, 2018

The Olfactory System as a Model to Study Axonal Growth Patterns and Morphology In Vivo
08:29

The Olfactory System as a Model to Study Axonal Growth Patterns and Morphology In Vivo

Published on: October 30, 2014

Imaging Odor-Evoked Activities in the Mouse Olfactory Bulb using Optical Reflectance and Autofluorescence Signals
08:30

Imaging Odor-Evoked Activities in the Mouse Olfactory Bulb using Optical Reflectance and Autofluorescence Signals

Published on: October 31, 2011

Area of Science:

  • Neuroscience
  • Olfactory system research
  • Sensory processing

Background:

  • The olfactory bulb is the first central nervous system relay for olfactory information.
  • Understanding how the brain processes odor-reward associations is crucial for explaining motivated behaviors.

Discussion:

  • Doucette and colleagues reveal that odor-reward linkage information is uniquely represented in olfactory bulb population activity.
  • This finding challenges previous notions about the olfactory bulb's role, suggesting it encodes more than just odor identity.

Key Insights:

  • Population activity in the olfactory bulb uniquely signals current odor-reward associations.
  • This provides novel insights into the neural coding strategies employed by the primary olfactory center.
  • It demonstrates a sophisticated level of information processing at the earliest stage of central olfactory analysis.

Outlook:

  • Further research can explore how this olfactory bulb coding is integrated with higher brain centers.
  • Investigating the plasticity of these odor-reward representations will be key.
  • This work opens new avenues for understanding olfactory learning and memory.