صدق الله العظيم الاسراء اية 58

By Dr. Abdel Aziz M. Hussein Lecturer of Physiology Member of American Society of Physiology

The olfactory (smell) sensation is a chemical sense involving receptors which are sensitive to volatile chemical substances

It is located on the superior nasal concha and the upper third of the nasal septum. Its total area in both sides is about 5 cm 2. Olfactory mucosa is distinguished from the surrounding respiratory mucosa by: 1.Its distinctive yellow-brown pigments 2.The presence of many tubular Bowman's glands 3.The absence of rhythmic ciliary movements that characterize the respiratory mucosa

The olfactory mucosa is innervated by; 1.Olfactory (cranial I) nerves which are stimulated by the odorant substances 2.Branches of the trigeminal (cranial V) nerve which are stimulated by the irritative effect of some odors as peppermint, menthol, and chlorine. They are responsible for initiating sneezing, lacrimation, respiratory inhibition, and other reflex responses to nasal irritants.

consists of 3 types of cells; a) Olfactory receptor cells; Bipolar neurons which have: 1.A short thick dendrite with an expanded end called an olfactory rod. Each rod has cilia 2.Axons → pierce the cribriform plate of the ethmoid bone and enter the olfactory bulbs. Each olfactory mucosa contains 100 million olfactory cells Their life span is about 60 days. b) Supporting or (sustentacular) cells. c) Basal cells: Are stem (progenitor) cells for production of new receptor cells.

Olfactory rod

The odorant substance must be; 1.Volatile in order to be sniffed into the nose 2.Sufficiently water soluble in order to pass through mucous layer 3.Lipid soluble in order to penetrate the cells membrane Olfactory cells are stimulated when air blasts upwards into the superior region of the nose. Amount of air reaching this region is greatly increased by sniffing (contraction of the lower part of the nares on the septum, deflecting the airstream upward)

Odorant substance diffuses into the mucus that covers the cilia, then binds with odorant-binding proteins (OBP) that trap and concentrate the substances and transfer them to the olfactory receptors. Binding the odour to the receptor activates Golf → stimulates adenylate cyclase → produce cAMP→ cAMP opens Na, Ca channels → depolarization and generation of receptor potential which at threshold levels will fire an action potential

3 order neurons; 1) First order neurons:1) First order neurons: Olfactory receptors are the first order neurons. Each has a single nonmyelinated axon which must pass through the cribriform plate to end in the glomeruli in the olfactory bulb.

2) Olfactory bulb and 2 nd order neurons:2) Olfactory bulb and 2 nd order neurons: 2 nd order neurons are mitral and tufted cells present in the olfactory bulbs. Dendrites synapse with the axons of the olfactory receptors in globular structures called the olfactory glomeruli. Each glomerulus contains the synapses of about 25,000 olfactory receptors and 100 of 2 nd order neurons. About 60 glomeruli in each bulb. Axons of the mitral and tufted cells form the olfactory tract that leaves the bulb to the olfactory cortex.

2 types of inhibitory interneurons present in the bulb: 1.Periglomerular cells → short inhibitory feedback loops among the glomeruli. 2.Granule cells → reciprocal synapses with neuronal processes of the mitral and tufted cells. Form long inhibitory feedback loop involving the olfactory cortex.

The axons of the mitral and tufted cells form the olfactory tract which enters the brain between the cerebellum and mesencephalon They divide into 2 tracts that terminate on medial and lateral olfactory areas 1.Medial olfactory area 2.Lateral olfactory area

A) The medial olfactory area:A) The medial olfactory area: The medial olfactory area consists of a group of nuclei located in the immediately anterior to the hypothalamus e.g. septal nuclei, and primitive portions of limbic system. This olfactory area is concerned with: 1.Primitive responses to olfaction, such as licking the lips, salivation caused by the smell of food. 2.Primitive emotional drives associated with smell.

B) The Lateral Olfactory Area:B) The Lateral Olfactory Area: 1) To Prepyriform and pyriform cortex and amygdaloid nuclei → almost all portions of the limbic system, especially the hippocampus concerned with: 1.Learning to like or dislike certain foods. 2.Behavioral responses to food e.g. development of absolute aversion to foods 3.Olfactory conditioned reflexes

B) The Lateral Olfactory Area:B) The Lateral Olfactory Area: 2) To the dorsomedial thalamic nucleus → orbitofrontal cortex. This system is responsible for the conscious perception of olfaction i.e. analysis, interpretation and significance of the odour.

Adaptation of olfactory receptors is; 1.Specific i.e. occurs for this odour only and not for the other odours 2.Rapid i.e. occurs within few minutes (about 50% in the first second thereafter, they adapt very little and very slowly). 3.It is mainly central due to large number of centrifugal nerve fibers 4.Peripheral mechanism of adaptation is also present and believed to be due to an odorant eating enzymes in the mucus layer

1.Stimulation of all GIT secretions e.g. salivary secretion through conditioned reflexes 2.Determination of the flavor of food with taste 3.Selection of the type of food i.e. separation of undesirable foods from those are nutritious. 4.Control of sexual functions particularly in animals. Smell is acute in women particularly at the time of ovulation.

Man can recognize more than 10,000 different odors. Determination of differences in the intensity of any given odor is poor. The concentration of an odor-producing substance must be changed by about 30% (it is 1% in visual receptors) before a difference can be detected. So, concerned mainly with detection of the presence or absence of the odours rather than with detection of their intensities.

Methyl mercaptan, one of the substances in garlic, can be smelled at a concentration of less than 500 pg/L of air.

1.Anosmia: complete absence of the sense of smell 2.Hyposmia: diminished olfactory sensitivity. More than 75% of humans over the age of 80 have an impaired ability to identify smells. 3.Dysosmia: distorted sense of smell e.g. Olfactory hallucinations due to lesion in the prepyriform cortex. Hypersensitivity for both smell and taste as in Addison diseases

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