Olfactory Information Processing by The Olfactory Bulb
嗅球对嗅觉信息的处理

The mammalian olfactory system has incredible ability to detect and discriminate a large number of volatile chemicals. Recent molecular and physiological studies have revealed the genetic basis of odor detection and wiring of the olfactory system. The olfactory sensing is accomplished by ~1000 odorant receptor genes expressed by olfactory sensory neurons in the nose. Olfactory sensory neurons expressing the same odorant receptor gene project to one or a few glomeruli in the olfactory bulb, thus forming an intricate two-dimensional olfactory map. Understanding how the incoming olfactory signals are processed in the olfactory bulb is central to information coding in the olfactory system. This review summarizes current progresses concerning different strategies used by the olfactory bulb to process olfactory information.