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The olfactory system is the sensory system that is responsible for the sense of smell (olfaction). It receives, processes and interprets odour information.
Sensory processing can be influenced by non-sensory signals. Here, the authors demonstrate that, in the primary olfactory cortex, odour-responsive neurons acquire multiple non-sensory signals through learning, improving odor decoding and discrimination.
Swarms of desert locusts form via crowding-induced plasticity from solitary to gregarious lifestyles. Synergistic processing of food and social odors informs foraging decisions, providing a mechanism for enhanced food detection in swarms.
Brain evolution at the cellular level is understudied. Here, the authors compare olfactory circuits from three Drosophila species, finding species-specific connectivity patterns associated with food odours and suggesting that more connectivity may be related to learning performance.
The role of olfactory pathways in the development of neurodegeneration in Alzheimer’s disease is not well understood. Here, the authors show odor identification deficits are predictive of tau accumulation and progression in olfactory pathways, and that tau spreads from medial temporal lobe structures towards the olfactory system.
Innate fear-like responses are thought to involve the amygdala, but here a tetra-synaptic pathway is identified that mediates odour-evoked innate fear in mice.
Infant attachment to the mother in rodents and monkeys is shown to rely on regulation of hypothalamic oxytocin release by a serotonergic projection from the raphe nucleus.