Identifying Pharmaceutical-Grade Essential Oils and Using Them Safely and Effectively in Integrative Medicine
Aruna Bakhru in Nutrition and Integrative Medicine, 2018
Essential oils are unique remedies because they simultaneously influence psychological, biological, and cognitive health. The sense of smell—10,000 times more powerful than the sense of taste—is the only of the major senses that is directly connected to the brain (through the olfactory bulb). Airborne odor molecules enter the nostrils and dissolve in the nasal mucosa. Under the nasal mucosa, olfactory receptor neurons detect the odor molecules and transmit information to the olfactory bulb at the back of the nasal cavity. Sensory receptors of the olfactory bulb are part of the brain and send messages to the most primitive brain centers (limbic system structures) and the neo-cortex, which influence memory, emotions, and conscious thought. Therefore, the administration of essential oils produces a complete psychophysiological response that causes automatic adaptations by the central nervous system.
Nervous system
David Sturgeon in Introduction to Anatomy and Physiology for Healthcare Students, 2018
The final part of the limbic system (to be discussed here) are the olfactory bulbs that transmit sensory information regarding odours to the amygdala, hippocampus, thalamus and cerebrum via the olfactory tract. The olfactory receptors are embedded in a specialised area of mucous membrane in the roof of the nasal cavity. The olfactory bulbs are situated directly above on either side of the cribiform plate of the ethmoid bone and are innervated by the olfactory nerve (cranial nerve I). The association between smell and memory is particularly strong because of the connection between the olfactory bulb and other parts of the limbic system such as the amygdala and hippocampus. Some smells are closely associated with particular events, people, moods and emotions, and can prompt very different responses from people depending on their experiences. For example, the smell of chlorine might be associated by one person with the swimming pool (good experience) and by another with the hospital (bad experience). I know somebody who still feels nauseous every time they smell a particular soft drink because it was the last thing they drank before surgery some thirty years previously.
Frailty, Nutrition, and the Elderly
David Heber, Zhaoping Li in Primary Care Nutrition, 2017
The sense of smell is mediated through stimulation of the olfactory receptor cells by volatile chemicals. To stimulate the olfactory receptors, airborne molecules must pass through the nasal cavity with relatively turbulent air currents and contact the receptors. Odorants can also be perceived by entering the nose posteriorly through the nasopharynx to reach the olfactory receptor via retronasal olfaction. Each olfactory receptor cell is a primary sensory bipolar neuron. The average nasal cavity contains more than 100 million such neurons. There are more than 900 genes encoding these receptors. The olfactory neurons are unique because they are generated throughout life by the underlying basal cells. New receptor cells are generated approximately every 30–60 days.
Analyses on the influence of normal nasal morphological variations on odorant transport to the olfactory cleft
Published in Inhalation Toxicology, 2022
Ryan M. Sicard, Reanna Shah, Dennis O. Frank-Ito
Olfaction is the sensation arising from the nasal cavity following stimulation of the olfactory receptors by odorant molecules. Olfactory dysfunction is characterized by reduced or absent sense of smell, ranging from hyposmia to anosmia (Guss et al. 2009). While olfactory perception is effective when the combination of sensorineural components and conductive factors function properly, the role of conductive factors (respiratory effort and nasal anatomical structure) in olfaction has been given less attention. The nasal cavity plays an essential role in odor perception, which consists of the transportation of volatile chemical molecules via airflow to the olfactory receptors (Zhao et al. 2004). In order to completely understand human olfaction, it is crucial to gain knowledge of the airflow patterns in the human nasal cavity and quantify the transport of odorant-laden air to the olfactory region.
Activation of ectopic olfactory receptor 544 induces GLP-1 secretion and regulates gut inflammation
Published in Gut Microbes, 2021
Chunyan Wu, Mi-Young Jeong, Jung Yeon Kim, Giljae Lee, Ji-Sun Kim, Yu Eun Cheong, Hyena Kang, Chung Hwan Cho, Jimin Kim, Min Kyung Park, You Kyoung Shin, Kyoung Heon Kim, Geun Hee Seol, Seung Hoi Koo, GwangPyo Ko, Sung-Joon Lee
Olfaction is the most sensitive sensory system in mammals that has evolved to optimize survival in nature.1 Olfactory receptors (ORs), which are primarily expressed in the cilia of olfactory sensory neurons, recognize odorants as ligands and stimulate signal transduction pathways to transfer odorant information to the brain.2 ORs are classic G protein-coupled receptors, which constitute approximately 5–10% of the mammalian genome. The results of RNA-Seq analysis demonstrated that ORs are also ectopically expressed in extra-nasal tissues.3 Ectopic ORs play tissue-specific functions, including the regulation of sperm chemotaxis, adiposity, lipid metabolism, wound healing, hair growth, muscle regeneration, and cancer cell growth.4 These findings suggest that extra-nasal tissues can also sense odors in an OR-dependent manner to regulate several cellular activities.
Nose to brain transport pathways an overview: potential of nanostructured lipid carriers in nose to brain targeting
Published in Artificial Cells, Nanomedicine, and Biotechnology, 2018
Kousalya Selvaraj, Kuppusamy Gowthamarajan, Veera Venkata Satyanarayana Reddy Karri
The nose is a complex structure. The nasal cavity is divided into three regions namely vestibule, respiratory and olfactory region. Vestibule region is not involved in the absorption functions and it is the anterior external region opening to the nasal cavity. The respiratory epithelium consists of ciliated and non-ciliated columnar cells, mucus secreting goblet cells and basal cells. The respiratory region is mainly involved in the drug absorption and the surface area of respiratory region is approximately 160 cm2 in humans. The third region is olfactory region consists of olfactory receptor cells, basal and sustentacular cells. The olfactory region has a surface area of 10 cm2. Olfactory receptor neurons are bipolar neurons involves in the transduction of information from epithelium to olfactory bulb [13]. The olfactory pathway is explained in the following section.
Related Knowledge Centers
- Action Potential
- Aroma Compound
- Chemoreceptor
- Olfactory Receptor Neuron
- Cell Membrane
- Sense of Smell
- Rhodopsin-Like Receptors
- G Protein-Coupled Receptor
- Insect Olfactory Receptor
- Antenna