The past 15 years have seen significant advances in the study of olfaction, with particular emphasis on elucidating the molecular building blocks of the sensory process. However, much of the systems-level organization of olfaction remains unexplored. Here, we provide an overview at this level, highlighting results obtained from studying humans, whom we think provide an underutilized, yet critic...

High cervical spinal cord injuries induce extreme handicap and tactile isolation. Tracheotomised tetraplegic patients are also bound to be olfaction deprived. By restoring negative pressure inspiration, diaphragm pacing (DP) should improve olfaction. We tested olfaction in 10 consecutive tetraplegics during positive pressure mechanical ventilation and DP, using the University of Pennsylvania Sm...

BACKGROUND Olfaction dysfunction is linked to neurodegenerative diseases, therefore the evaluation of this function is becoming important AIM To evaluate olfaction in healthy participants. MATERIAL AND METHODS We evaluated 44 healthy males and 55 females, aged 21 to 89 years with the Sniffing Sticks battery to determine normal values in Chilean population. During the test, participants must...

Olfaction is an important mechanism by which humans and animals communicate with environment. Odorant-binding proteins (OBPs) play crucial role in the olfactory mechanism. Here, we briefly discuss about the role of OBPs and their importance in industrial, pest management and therapeutic developments.

Olfaction is characterized by a salient hedonic dimension. Previous studies have shown that these affective responses to odors are modulated by physicochemical, physiological, and cognitive factors. The present study examined expertise influenced processing of pleasant and unpleasant odors on both perceptual and verbal levels. For this, performance on two olfactory tasks was compared between no...