Jove
Visualize
Contact Us
JoVE
x logofacebook logolinkedin logoyoutube logo
ABOUT JoVE
OverviewLeadershipBlogJoVE Help Center
AUTHORS
Publishing ProcessEditorial BoardScope & PoliciesPeer ReviewFAQSubmit
LIBRARIANS
TestimonialsSubscriptionsAccessResourcesLibrary Advisory BoardFAQ
RESEARCH
JoVE JournalMethods CollectionsJoVE Encyclopedia of ExperimentsArchive
EDUCATION
JoVE CoreJoVE BusinessJoVE Science EducationJoVE Lab ManualFaculty Resource CenterFaculty Site
Terms & Conditions of Use
Privacy Policy
Policies

Related Concept Videos

Olfaction01:25

Olfaction

50.0K
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...
50.0K
Physiology of Smell and Olfactory Pathway01:20

Physiology of Smell and Olfactory Pathway

14.3K
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...
14.3K
Olfactory Receptors: Location and Structure01:03

Olfactory Receptors: Location and Structure

14.6K
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...
14.6K
Introduction to Special Senses01:26

Introduction to Special Senses

9.6K
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...
9.6K
Motor and Sensory Areas of the Cortex01:14

Motor and Sensory Areas of the Cortex

9.3K
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....
9.3K
Gustation01:43

Gustation

53.7K
Gustation is a chemical sense that, along with olfaction (smell), contributes to our perception of taste. It starts with the activation of receptors by chemical compounds (tastants) dissolved in the saliva. The saliva and filiform papillae on the tongue distribute the tastants and increase their exposure to the taste receptors.
53.7K

You might also read

Related Articles

Articles linked to this work by shared authors, journal, and citation graph.

Sort by
Same author

Dexterous single sniffs for ethological active olfaction.

Science advances·2026
Same author

In-dwelling microfluidic device for precise and reliable intranasal drug delivery during freely moving behavior.

Lab animal·2026
Same author

Medullary and C3-C4 propriospinal pathways underlying mammalian forelimb movement control.

Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America·2026
Same author

Directing negative emotional states through parallel genetically-distinct basolateral amygdala pathways to ventral striatum subregions.

Molecular psychiatry·2025
Same author

In-dwelling microfluidic device for precise and reliable intranasal drug delivery during freely-moving behavior.

bioRxiv : the preprint server for biology·2025
Same author

Dopaminergic signaling to ventral striatum neurons initiates sniffing behavior.

Nature communications·2025

Related Experiment Video

Updated: Apr 11, 2026

Quadruple Immunostaining of the Olfactory Bulb for Visualization of Olfactory Sensory Axon Molecular Identity Codes
06:32

Quadruple Immunostaining of the Olfactory Bulb for Visualization of Olfactory Sensory Axon Molecular Identity Codes

Published on: June 5, 2017

7.7K

Coding of odor stimulus features among secondary olfactory structures.

Christina Z Xia1, Stacey Adjei1, Daniel W Wesson2

  • 1Department of Neurosciences, Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland, Ohio; and.

Journal of Neurophysiology
|June 5, 2015
PubMed
Summary

The mammalian olfactory system processes odor intensity and duration differently in the piriform cortex (PCX) and olfactory tubercle (OT). While both regions represent odor intensity similarly, the OT shows less adaptation to prolonged or repeated odor exposure than the PCX.

Keywords:
adaptationintensitylearningolfactionperception

More Related Videos

Constructing an Olfactometer for Rodent Olfactory Behavior Studies Near-Infrared Spectroscopy Hyperscanning Study in Psychological Counseling
08:36

Constructing an Olfactometer for Rodent Olfactory Behavior Studies Near-Infrared Spectroscopy Hyperscanning Study in Psychological Counseling

Published on: April 11, 2025

1.1K
Real-time In Vitro Monitoring of Odorant Receptor Activation by an Odorant in the Vapor Phase
09:53

Real-time In Vitro Monitoring of Odorant Receptor Activation by an Odorant in the Vapor Phase

Published on: April 23, 2019

7.6K

Related Experiment Videos

Last Updated: Apr 11, 2026

Quadruple Immunostaining of the Olfactory Bulb for Visualization of Olfactory Sensory Axon Molecular Identity Codes
06:32

Quadruple Immunostaining of the Olfactory Bulb for Visualization of Olfactory Sensory Axon Molecular Identity Codes

Published on: June 5, 2017

7.7K
Constructing an Olfactometer for Rodent Olfactory Behavior Studies Near-Infrared Spectroscopy Hyperscanning Study in Psychological Counseling
08:36

Constructing an Olfactometer for Rodent Olfactory Behavior Studies Near-Infrared Spectroscopy Hyperscanning Study in Psychological Counseling

Published on: April 11, 2025

1.1K
Real-time In Vitro Monitoring of Odorant Receptor Activation by an Odorant in the Vapor Phase
09:53

Real-time In Vitro Monitoring of Odorant Receptor Activation by an Odorant in the Vapor Phase

Published on: April 23, 2019

7.6K

Area of Science:

  • Neuroscience
  • Sensory Systems
  • Olfactory Processing

Background:

  • Sensory systems encode stimuli based on factors like intensity and duration.
  • The brain may distribute complex processing tasks across different neural nodes.
  • The mammalian olfactory system, with its distinct processing stages, serves as a model for studying sensory network function.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To explore how the mammalian olfactory system processes odor intensity and duration.
  • To investigate the unique contributions of the piriform cortex (PCX) and olfactory tubercle (OT) to odor coding.
  • To understand the neural coding of odor intensity and duration in these secondary olfactory structures.

Main Methods:

  • Recorded and analyzed neuronal responses in the PCX and OT.
  • Examined responses to varying odor intensities and durations.
  • Assessed neuronal adaptation to repeated and prolonged odor presentations.

Main Results:

  • Both PCX and OT neurons similarly represent decreasing odor intensities through reduced neuronal recruitment and modulation.
  • OT neurons adapt to odor exposure but show a reduced capacity for adaptation to repeated or prolonged odor stimuli compared to PCX neurons.
  • Distinct adaptation properties suggest unique roles for PCX and OT in representing olfactory stimulus features.

Conclusions:

  • The piriform cortex and olfactory tubercle exhibit differential adaptation capacities to odor stimuli.
  • These findings suggest that secondary olfactory structures uniquely contribute to the representation of stimulus features.
  • This research provides insights into the functional specialization within the mammalian olfactory system.