title: Non-redundant coding of aversive odours in the main olfactory pathway.
abstract: Many species are critically dependent on olfaction for survival. In the main olfactory system of mammals, odours are detected by sensory neurons that express a large repertoire of canonical odorant receptors and a much smaller repertoire of trace amine-associated receptors (TAARs). Odours are encoded in a combinatorial fashion across glomeruli in the main olfactory bulb, with each glomerulus corresponding to a specific receptor. The degree to which individual receptor genes contribute to odour perception is unclear. Here we show that genetic deletion of the olfactory Taar gene family, or even a single Taar gene (Taar4), eliminates the aversion that mice display to low concentrations of volatile amines and to the odour of predator urine. Our findings identify a role for the TAARs in olfaction, namely, in the high-sensitivity detection of innately aversive odours. In addition, our data reveal that aversive amines are represented in a non-redundant fashion, and that individual main olfactory receptor genes can contribute substantially to odour perception.
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurobiology, Northwestern University, Evanston, Illinois 60208, USA.
authors.forename: Adam
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Dewan
authors.forename: Rodrigo
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Pacifico
authors.forename: Ross
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Zhan
authors.forename: Dmitry
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Rinberg
authors.forename: Thomas
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Bozza
mesh_terms: D000588:Amines / Q000032:analysis / Q000737:chemistry; D000818:Animals; D001362:Avoidance Learning / Q000502:physiology*; D005260:Female; D008297:Male; D051379:Mice; D008959:Models, Neurological; D009812:Odorants / Q000032:analysis*; D009830:Olfactory Bulb / Q000502:physiology; D009833:Olfactory Pathways / Q000502:physiology*; D018034:Olfactory Receptor Neurons / Q000378:metabolism; D011235:Predatory Behavior; D043562:Receptors, G-Protein-Coupled / Q000172:deficiency / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism; D018035:Receptors, Odorant / Q000172:deficiency / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism; D012903:Smell / Q000235:genetics / Q000502:physiology*; D014556:Urine / Q000737:chemistry; D000095383:Trace Amine-Associated Receptors
chemical_list: D000588:Amines; D043562:Receptors, G-Protein-Coupled; D018035:Receptors, Odorant; C579631:TAAR4 protein, mouse; D000095383:Trace Amine-Associated Receptors