What is olfactory epithelium?

olfactory epithelium is an area inside the nose that is responsible for capturing odors and handing them to the brain. The olfactory epithelium mechanics are not fully understood; This structure contains a huge amount of neurons, but the exact way they interact and distinguish between odors is a bit of a mystery. The larger the area covered with olfactory epithelium, the more neurons and the better it is the sense of smell. These cells include specialized neurons that communicate with the olfactory bulb through long axons, and olfactory hair cells that have highly sensitive receptors that pick up odors. The olfactory epithelium is also relatively fine and can be damaged by exposure to chemicals, strong odors and head injury.

olfactory epithelium is located inside the back of the nose. As people inhale bears, fine hairs and mucus near the hole of the nasal trap particles that could be harmful, and the rest of the air passes through the olfactory epithelium. Neurons in the epithelium respond to specific odors and send a signal to the brain to tell him what his nose knows.Basically, the olfactory epithelium is like a laboratory: when people are exposed to odors, they do not feel them immediately, but rather wait for them to be processed and their brains return the results.

different animals have different degrees of sensitivity to the aroma. Animals rely on their olfactory epithelium to draw attention to the presence of predators, potential food sources or contamination, which could cause food or water. It seems that certain odors cause stronger reactions than others; For example, sour milk is often very easy to detect because drinking can be dangerous, while humans and animals are less sensitive to more benign odors.

Some people can train to have an excellent sense of smell, the skill achieved partly with the olfactory epithelium with whom someone was born, and partly with patient training. For example, wine experts can feel wines while they are tied to learn identificationT specific fragrances, and perfume "noses" use similar techniques in their training. People who rely on their smell for life also take steps to protect it, such as avoiding hard chemicals and strong odors.

damage that leads to the loss of odor sensitivity is not only unfortunate, because people can no longer stop and feel roses. Anosmia, because the loss of smell is known, may actually be quite dangerous, because people lack important allusions of danger, such as the smell of gas leakage when they cannot feel.