brain processing of biologically relevant odors in the awake rat, as revealed by manganese-enhanced mri在清醒大鼠大脑处理与生物相关的气味,manganese-enhanced mri所显示的.pdfVIP

Brain Processing of Biologically Relevant Odors in the Awake Rat, as Revealed by Manganese-Enhanced MRI 1 2 2 ´ ˆ 2 2 Benoist Lehallier , Olivier Rampin , Audrey Saint-Albin , Nathalie Jerome , Christian Ouali , 2 1 Yves Maurin , Jean-Marie Bonny * ` 1 UR370 QuaPA, INRA, Saint-Genes-Champanelle, France, 2 UR1197 NOeMI, INRA, Jouy-en-Josas, France Abstract Background: So far, an overall view of olfactory structures activated by natural biologically relevant odors in the awake rat is not available. Manganese-enhanced MRI (MEMRI) is appropriate for this purpose. While MEMRI has been used for anatomical labeling of olfactory pathways, functional imaging analyses have not yet been performed beyond the olfactory bulb. Here, we have used MEMRI for functional imaging of rat central olfactory structures and for comparing activation maps obtained with odors conveying different biological messages. Methodology/Principal Findings: Odors of male fox feces and of chocolate flavored cereals were used to stimulate conscious rats previously treated by intranasal instillation of manganese (Mn). MEMRI activation maps showed Mn enhancement all along the primary olfactory cortex. Mn enhancement elicited by male fox feces odor and to a lesser extent that elicited by chocolate odor, differed from that elicited by deodorized air. This result was partly confirmed by c-Fos immunohistochemistry in the piriform cortex. Conclusion/Significance: By providing an overall image of brain structures activated in awake rats by odorous stimulation, and