TY - JOUR
T1 - Emerging views on the distinct but related roles of the main and accessory olfactory systems in responsiveness to chemosensory signals in mice
AU - Restrepo, Diego
AU - Arellano, Julie
AU - Oliva, Anthony M.
AU - Schaefer, Michele L.
AU - Lin, Weihong
N1 - Funding Information:
We would like to thank Audrey Hathaway for genotyping of the CNGA2 knockout mice and Dr. Burt Slotnick for advice with the operant conditioning experiments. This work was supported by NIH grants DC00566, DC04657, DC006070 (DR), and DC0043 (WL).
Copyright:
Copyright 2018 Elsevier B.V., All rights reserved.
PY - 2004/9
Y1 - 2004/9
N2 - In rodents, the nasal cavity contains two separate chemosensory epithelia, the main olfactory epithelium, located in the posterior dorsal aspect of the nasal cavity, and the vomeronasal/accessory olfactory epithelium, located in a capsule in the anterior aspect of the ventral floor of the nasal cavity. Both the main and accessory olfactory systems play a role in detection of biologically relevant odors. The accessory olfactory system has been implicated in response to pheromones, while the main olfactory system is thought to be a general molecular analyzer capable of detecting subtle differences in molecular structure of volatile odorants. However, the role of the two systems in detection of biologically relevant chemical signals appears to be partially overlapping. Thus, while it is clear that the accessory olfactory system is responsive to putative pheromones, the main olfactory system can also respond to some pheromones. Conversely, while the main olfactory system can mediate recognition of differences in genetic makeup by smell, the vomeronasal organ (VNO) also appears to participate in recognition of chemosensory differences between genetically distinct individuals. The most salient feature of our review of the literature is that there are no general rules that allow classification of the accessory olfactory system as a pheromone detector and the main olfactory system as a detector of general odorants. Instead, each behavior must be considered within a specific behavioral context to determine the role of these two chemosensory systems. In each case, one system or the other (or both) participates in a specific behavioral or hormonal response.
AB - In rodents, the nasal cavity contains two separate chemosensory epithelia, the main olfactory epithelium, located in the posterior dorsal aspect of the nasal cavity, and the vomeronasal/accessory olfactory epithelium, located in a capsule in the anterior aspect of the ventral floor of the nasal cavity. Both the main and accessory olfactory systems play a role in detection of biologically relevant odors. The accessory olfactory system has been implicated in response to pheromones, while the main olfactory system is thought to be a general molecular analyzer capable of detecting subtle differences in molecular structure of volatile odorants. However, the role of the two systems in detection of biologically relevant chemical signals appears to be partially overlapping. Thus, while it is clear that the accessory olfactory system is responsive to putative pheromones, the main olfactory system can also respond to some pheromones. Conversely, while the main olfactory system can mediate recognition of differences in genetic makeup by smell, the vomeronasal organ (VNO) also appears to participate in recognition of chemosensory differences between genetically distinct individuals. The most salient feature of our review of the literature is that there are no general rules that allow classification of the accessory olfactory system as a pheromone detector and the main olfactory system as a detector of general odorants. Instead, each behavior must be considered within a specific behavioral context to determine the role of these two chemosensory systems. In each case, one system or the other (or both) participates in a specific behavioral or hormonal response.
KW - Accessory olfactory system
KW - Cyclic nucleotide gated channel
KW - Main olfactory system
KW - Odor mosaic
KW - Odortype
KW - Pheromone
KW - Vomeronasal organ
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U2 - 10.1016/j.yhbeh.2004.02.009
DO - 10.1016/j.yhbeh.2004.02.009
M3 - Article
C2 - 15325226
AN - SCOPUS:1842640877
SN - 0018-506X
VL - 46
SP - 247
EP - 256
JO - Hormones and Behavior
JF - Hormones and Behavior
IS - 3
ER -