How is a smell created in the brain?

Reserved for subscribers by Pauline Castellani published, updated

DÉCRYPTAGE - Dans Le Grand Livre du parfum, Hirac Gurden explique les trois étapes olfactives entre les narines et le cerveau.

• Detection of fragrant molecules

The first step in our perception of smells is made at inspiration, when hundreds of odorous molecules conveyed by air enter the nostrils and walk to the nasal cavities, where our smell detectors are located.These receivers are located at the end of specialized cells that line the millions of the nose: olfactory neurons.When we smell a smell, these cells are activated and send a signal to the brain.

• Reading the perfume

Information from receptor olfactory neurons arrive at the first relay of the training of odors in the brain: the olfactory bulb, an organ common to all vertebrates.Like any brain zone, it is made up of neurons, which here has the specific role of reading information from receptor olfactory neurons and building an "identity card" for each odorous molecule.The bulb neurons then send it to the parts of the brain involved in sensory perception ...

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