Search research articles

ABOUT JoVE

Overview Leadership Blog JoVE Help Center

AUTHORS

Publishing Process Editorial Board Scope & Policies Peer Review FAQ Submit

LIBRARIANS

Testimonials Subscriptions Access Resources Library Advisory Board FAQ

RESEARCH

JoVE Journal Methods Collections JoVE Encyclopedia of Experiments Archive

EDUCATION

JoVE Core JoVE Business JoVE Science Education JoVE Lab Manual Faculty Resource Center Faculty Site

Terms & Conditions of Use

Related Concept Videos

Olfaction

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 Pathway

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 Structure

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...

Motor and Sensory Areas of the Cortex

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....

You might also read

Related Articles

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

Sort by

Same author

Spectral envelopes of facial movements predict intention, cortical representations, and neural prosthetic control.

bioRxiv : the preprint server for biology·2026

Same author

A spatial code governs olfactory receptor choice and aligns sensory maps in the nose and brain.

Cell·2026

Same author

Spontaneous behavior is a succession of self-directed tasks.

Neuron·2026

Same author

Brain wide engraftment of human monocytes induces neurodegeneration and cognitive dysfunction.

Research square·2025

Same author

Concerted modulation of spontaneous behavior and time-integrated whole-brain neuronal activity by serotonin receptors.

bioRxiv : the preprint server for biology·2024

Same author

A Perspective on Neuroscience Data Standardization with Neurodata Without Borders.

The Journal of neuroscience : the official journal of the Society for Neuroscience·2024

Same journal

Sparse component analysis: A method that uncovers separable computations within neural population activity.

Neuron·2026

Same journal

Spatiomolecular mapping reveals anatomical organization of heterogeneous cell types in the human nucleus accumbens.

Neuron·2026

Same journal

TGF-β1-induced endothelial transcytosis drives blood-brain barrier leakage during aging.

Neuron·2026

Same journal

Image space opens up for visual neuroscience.

Neuron·2026

Same journal

Septal GLP-1 receptors control alcohol taking and seeking.

Neuron·2026

Same journal

Microglial fitness in moderation: Tuning TREM2 signaling through Ptpn6.

Neuron·2026

See all related articles

Search research articles

Related Experiment Video

Updated: Mar 7, 2026

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

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

Published on: June 5, 2017

Population Coding in an Innately Relevant Olfactory Area.

Giuliano Iurilli¹, Sandeep Robert Datta¹

¹Department of Neurobiology, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA 02115, USA.

|February 28, 2017

Summary

This summary is machine-generated.

Neural ensembles in the piriform cortex (PCx) and posterolateral cortical amygdala (plCoA) equally discriminate odors. This suggests distributive population codes are used in both odor learning and innate olfactory behaviors.

Keywords:

cortical amygdala innate innate behavior olfaction piriform cortex population coding sensory tuning

More Related Videos

New Methods to Study Gustatory Coding

New Methods to Study Gustatory Coding

Published on: June 29, 2017

Perforated Patch-clamp Recording of Mouse Olfactory Sensory Neurons in Intact Neuroepithelium: Functional Analysis of Neurons Expressing an Identified Odorant Receptor

Perforated Patch-clamp Recording of Mouse Olfactory Sensory Neurons in Intact Neuroepithelium: Functional Analysis of Neurons Expressing an Identified Odorant Receptor

Published on: July 13, 2015

Related Experiment Videos

Last Updated: Mar 7, 2026

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

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

Published on: June 5, 2017

New Methods to Study Gustatory Coding

New Methods to Study Gustatory Coding

Published on: June 29, 2017

Perforated Patch-clamp Recording of Mouse Olfactory Sensory Neurons in Intact Neuroepithelium: Functional Analysis of Neurons Expressing an Identified Odorant Receptor

Perforated Patch-clamp Recording of Mouse Olfactory Sensory Neurons in Intact Neuroepithelium: Functional Analysis of Neurons Expressing an Identified Odorant Receptor

Published on: July 13, 2015

Area of Science:

Neuroscience
Olfactory system research

Background:

Different olfactory cortical regions have distinct roles in odor perception and behavior.
The piriform cortex (PCx) uses distributed neural ensembles for odor learning.
The posterolateral cortical amygdala (plCoA) has hardwired inputs for innate olfactory behaviors.

Purpose of the Study:

To investigate and compare the neural population coding of odors in the PCx and plCoA.
To determine if brain regions involved in innate behaviors utilize similar coding strategies as those involved in learning.

Main Methods:

Electrophysiological recordings in the PCx and plCoA.
Analysis of odor-evoked neural ensemble activity.
Comparison of odor tuning, reliability, and correlation structure between the two regions.

Main Results:

Despite differences in input patterns, both PCx and plCoA neural ensembles effectively discriminate odors.
Odor tuning, reliability, and correlation structure were similar in both areas.
Distributed population coding is evident in both learning and innate behavior circuits.

Conclusions:

Brain regions mediating innate olfactory behaviors can represent odor objects using distributive population codes, similar to areas involved in odor learning.
These findings suggest alternative mechanisms for innate odor-driven behaviors.
The plCoA may have additional roles in general odor perception beyond innate behaviors.