Abstract
In many mammalian species, the accessory olfactory system plays a central role in guiding behavioral and physiological responses to social and reproductive interactions. Because of its relatively compact structure and its direct access to amygdalar and hypothalamic nuclei, the accessory olfactory pathway provides an ideal system to study sensory control of complex mammalian behavior. During the last several years, many studies employing molecular, behavioral, and physiological approaches have significantly expanded and enhanced our understanding of this system. The purpose of the current review is to integrate older and newer studies to present an updated and comprehensive picture of vomeronasal signaling and coding with an emphasis on early accessory olfactory system processing stages. These include vomeronasal sensory neurons in the vomeronasal organ, and the circuitry of the accessory olfactory bulb. Because the overwhelming majority of studies on accessory olfactory system function employ rodents, this review is largely focused on this phylogenetic order, and on mice in particular. Taken together, the emerging view from both older literature and more recent studies is that the molecular, cellular, and circuit properties of chemosensory signaling along the accessory olfactory pathway are in many ways unique. Yet, it has also become evident that, like the main olfactory system, the accessory olfactory system also has the capacity for adaptive learning, experience, and state-dependent plasticity. In addition to describing what is currently known about accessory olfactory system function and physiology, we highlight what we believe are important gaps in our knowledge, which thus define exciting directions for future investigation.
Original language | American English |
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Pages (from-to) | 667-695 |
Number of pages | 29 |
Journal | Chemical Senses |
Volume | 43 |
Issue number | 9 |
DOIs | |
State | Published - 1 Nov 2018 |
Bibliographical note
Funding Information:We thank C.H. Engelhardt and J. von Bongartz (RWTH-Aachen University) for technical support. M.S. is a Lichtenberg-Professor of the Volkswagen Foundation. J.M., M.N., and M.S. are members of the International Research Training Group “The Neuroscience of Modulating Aggression and Impulsivity in Psychopathology” (IRTG 2150), which is funded by the Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG). Y.B.S. is a Mercator Fellow of IRTG 2150. M.S. acknowledges support by the FENS-Kavli Network of Excellence (http:// fenskavlinetwork.org/).
Publisher Copyright:
© 2018 The Author(s).
Keywords
- accessory olfactory bulb
- accessory olfactory system
- pheromones
- social behavior
- vomeronasal organ
- vomeronasal sensory neurons