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The activity of olfactory receptor cells is affected by acetylcholine and substance P
J F Bouvet1, J C Delaleu, A Holley
1Laboratoire de Physiologie Neurosensorielle Associé au C.N.R.S. no. 180, Université Claude-Bernard, Villeurbanne, France.
Abstract:
The effects of acetylcholine (ACh) and substance P (SP) on the unit activity of receptor cells recorded from the superfused frog olfactory mucosa were studied. Single neurones were excited or, more rarely, depressed by the application of chemicals. Cholinergic antagonists were used to investigate the involvement of nicotinic and muscarinic receptors in the recorded responses. The ACh-evoked firing was antagonized by D-tubocurarine (D-TC), atropine (ATR) and SP. Responses to SP appeared to be D-TC resistant, but activation by the peptide was moderately antagonized by ATR. The results suggest that ACh and SP could affect the functioning of the olfactory receptor cells.