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Related Concept Videos

Olfactory Receptors: Location and Structure01:03

Olfactory Receptors: Location and Structure

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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...
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Olfaction01:25

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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...
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Physiology of Smell and Olfactory Pathway01:20

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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.
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Related Experiment Video

Updated: Apr 12, 2026

Simple and Computer-assisted Olfactory Testing for Mice
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Olfactory Function Assessment of Blind Subjects Using the Sniffin' Sticks Test.

Şenol Çomoğlu1, Kadir Serkan Orhan2, Selin Ünsaler Kocaman2

  • 1Istanbul University, Istanbul Medical Faculty, Department of ORL, Istanbul, Turkey drcomoglu@gmail.com.

Otolaryngology--Head and Neck Surgery : Official Journal of American Academy of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery
|May 14, 2015
PubMed
Summary

Blind individuals demonstrate enhanced olfactory abilities, particularly in odor discrimination and threshold tasks, compared to sighted individuals. Congenital and acquired blindness did not significantly impact these sensory differences.

Keywords:
blinddiscriminationidentificationsmellthreshold

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Area of Science:

  • Neuroscience
  • Sensory Perception
  • Ophthalmology

Background:

  • Studies increasingly explore sensory compensation in blind individuals, focusing on non-visual senses.
  • Olfactory abilities in blind populations remain an area of active research interest.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate olfactory function in early- and late-blind individuals compared to sighted controls.
  • To assess odor threshold, discrimination, and identification using the Sniffin' Sticks test battery.

Main Methods:

  • Prospective clinical study conducted at a tertiary referral center.
  • Inclusion of 66 subjects: 33 sighted controls, 17 with congenital blindness, and 16 with acquired blindness.
  • Utilized the Sniffin' Sticks test to evaluate olfactory parameters.

Main Results:

  • Blind subjects outperformed sighted controls in odor discrimination and odor threshold tasks.
  • No significant differences were observed in odor identification between blind and sighted groups.
  • No statistically significant differences in olfactory parameters were found between congenitally and acquired blind subjects.

Conclusions:

  • Blind individuals may possess superior odor discrimination and threshold capabilities compared to sighted individuals.
  • The onset of blindness (congenital vs. acquired) does not appear to influence olfactory performance differences.