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Related Concept Videos

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...
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...
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...
Association Areas of the Cortex01:21

Association Areas of the Cortex

Association areas are regions of the cerebral cortex that do not have a specific sensory or motor function. Instead, they integrate and interpret information from various sources to enable higher cognitive processes such as memory, learning, and decision-making. Some key association areas include the following:
Prefrontal Association Area: This area is located in the frontal lobe and is involved in planning, decision-making, and moderating social behavior. It connects with primary motor areas,...
Motor and Sensory Areas of the Cortex01:14

Motor and Sensory Areas of the Cortex

The cerebral cortex, the brain's outermost layer, is pivotal in processing complex cognitive tasks, emotions, and various sensory inputs and executing voluntary motor activities. This intricate structure is divided into three primary functional areas: the motor areas, sensory areas, and association areas.
Motor Areas
The motor areas located in the frontal lobe are central to controlling voluntary movements. This region is further subdivided into the primary motor cortex and the premotor cortex.
Auditory Pathway01:15

Auditory Pathway

Auditory pathways constitute the complex neural circuits responsible for transmitting and interpreting auditory information from the peripheral auditory system to the brain. Sound waves are initially captured by the outer ear, funneled through the ear canal, and reach the tympanic membrane (eardrum). These vibrations are transmitted via the middle ear's ossicles to the inner ear's cochlea.
When viewed cross-sectionally, the cochlea reveals the scala vestibuli and scala tympani flanking the...

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Related Experiment Video

Updated: May 19, 2026

Constructing an Olfactometer for Rodent Olfactory Behavior Studies
08:36

Constructing an Olfactometer for Rodent Olfactory Behavior Studies

Published on: April 11, 2025

Olfactory input is critical for sustaining odor quality codes in human orbitofrontal cortex.

Keng Nei Wu1, Bruce K Tan, James D Howard

  • 1Department of Neurology, Feinberg School of Medicine, Northwestern University, Chicago, Illinois, USA. kengwu2008@u.northwestern.edu

Nature Neuroscience
|August 14, 2012
PubMed
Summary

Olfactory deprivation alters brain odor representations in piriform cortex and orbitofrontal cortex (OFC). These reversible changes in the olfactory system help maintain odor perception despite disrupted sensory input.

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Constructing an Olfactometer for Rodent Olfactory Behavior Studies
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Published on: April 11, 2025

A Free-breathing fMRI Method to Study Human Olfactory Function
10:42

A Free-breathing fMRI Method to Study Human Olfactory Function

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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
  • Sensory processing

Background:

  • Sensory input is crucial for internal world representations.
  • Olfactory system is vulnerable to sensory deprivation due to common conditions like rhinosinusitis.
  • Brain mechanisms for odor information maintenance during deprivation are unclear.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate how the brain encodes and maintains odor information during olfactory deprivation.
  • To understand the neural basis of olfactory perceptual plasticity following sensory disruption.

Main Methods:

  • Functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) combined with multivariate pattern analyses.
  • Psychophysical approaches to assess olfactory perception.
  • A 7-day period of olfactory deprivation in human participants.

Main Results:

  • Olfactory deprivation caused reversible changes in odor-evoked fMRI activity in the piriform cortex and orbitofrontal cortex (OFC).
  • Multivoxel odor quality codes in the OFC became decorrelated after deprivation.
  • The degree of neural code decorrelation predicted subsequent olfactory perceptual plasticity.

Conclusions:

  • Transient changes in the piriform cortex and OFC are key to sustaining odor perception integrity after sensory input disruption.
  • The brain dynamically adapts olfactory representations to maintain perceptual function.
  • Findings provide insights into neural plasticity in the olfactory system.