OLFACTION

CHRISTOPHER E. CALAQUIAN,
MD, DPBO-HNS
 RHINENCEPHALON
• Rostral portion of the brain
• Consists of the
(1)olfactory nerves,
(2)olfactory bulbs,
(3)olfactory tracts,
(4)a portion of the anterior perforated substance,
(5)pyriform region of the cortex,
(6)entorhinal cortex of the parahippocampus and
(7)the corticomedial division of the amygdala
 PERIPHERAL OLFACTORY
APPARATUS
• Found in a specialized area of the nasal
mucosa ------OLFACTORY EPITHELIUM
• Pseudostratified columnar olfactory
epithelium on the superior concha, the
roof of the nasal chamber, and upper
portion of the septum
• Scents or chemicals trigger/stimulate receptors
in the epithelium via voltage channels or ligand-
receptor mediated 2nd messenger system
LATERAL MEDIAL
 PATTERN OF PERIPHERAL
APPARATUS
olfactory epithelium

olfactory nerves

cribriform plate of -------------------------

ethmoid
olfactory bulb
 OLFACTORY BULBS AND
PATHWAYS
• OLFACTORY BULB - contains layers of
different neuron cell types (laminar)

Mitral cells - receive direct synaptic input

from olfactory nerve fibers and send out
their axons to the lateral olfactory tract
 CROSSING OVER
• Occurs in the anterior olfactory nucleus
• Located in the olfactory stalk
• contains cells coming from the olfactory
portion of the anterior commissure
• sends fibers from IPSILATERAL bulb to
CONTRALATERAL bulb
 Anterior Olfactory
Nucleus

Crossing
over
(Olfactory
trigone)

Lateral Olfactory
Nucleus
 OLFACTORY TRACT
• Has two stria - a medial and a lateral
striae
MEDIAL STRIAE ANTERIOR
OLFACTORY
NUCLEUS

LATERAL STRIAE LATERAL

OLFACTORY
NUCLEUS
 LATERAL OLFACTORY
TRACT
• Mitral cells that skirts the lateral margin

anterior perforated substance

pyriform cortex (primary olfactory

cortex)
entorhinal cortex (secondary olfactory
cortex)
amygdala
 Primary
olfactory
Entorhinal
 PRIMARY OLFACTORY
CORTEX
• THREE layered paleocortex, older than the
neocortex of the visual, auditory and
somatosensory systems
• The olfactory cortex connects with the
neocortex via :
(1) projections directly to the
orbitofrontal cortex
(2) projections to the thalamus* which
connects to the orbitofrontal cortex
Orbitofrontal
Cortex
 OLFACTORY
DISCRIMINATION
• Subserved by the connection of the
olfactory cortex to the orbitofrontal
cortex
• When severed in experimental animals,
they cannot discriminate or identify
differences in odor (although they can
only distinguish the presence or
absence of the odor)
• May also be possible via connections
with the temporal lobe
 AMYGDALA
• Regulation of the chemosensory control of
social behaviors
√ sexual
√ aggressive
√ maternal responses
 ENTORHINAL AREA,
AMYGDALA & HIPPOCAMPUS

• Integration of olfactory information with

visual, auditory and somatosensory
information
• Learned emotional response
 Parahippocampus

Amygdala
NERVES AFFECTING
OLFACTION
 Trigeminal
(Pterygopalatine)