title: Cross-modal integration of emotions in the chemical senses.
abstract: Although the brain structures involved in integrating odorant and trigeminal stimuli are well-documented, there is still a need to clarify (1) how emotional response is represented in the human brain during cross-modal interaction between odors and trigeminal stimuli, and (2) whether the degree of congruency between the two types of stimuli influences these emotional responses and their neural processing. These questions were explored combining psychophysics, event-related potentials (ERP) and fMRI in the same group of 17 subjects under a "congruent condition" (intranasal carbon dioxide mixed with the smell of orange, a combination found in soda drinks, for example), and an "incongruent condition" (intranasal carbon dioxide mixed with the smell of rose, a combination not encountered in everyday life). Responses to the 3 constituent stimuli (carbon dioxide, orange, and rose) were also measured. Hedonic and intensity ratings were collected for all stimulations. The congruent bimodal stimulus was rated as more pleasant than the incongruent. This behavioral effect was associated with enhanced neural activity in the hippocampus and anterior cingulate gyrus, indicating that these brain areas mediate reactivation of pleasant and congruent olfactory-trigeminal associations.
authors.affiliation: CNRS UMR5292, INSERM U1028, Lyon Neuroscience Research Center, University Lyon Lyon, France.
authors.forename: Moustafa
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Bensafi
authors.affiliation: Smell and Taste Clinic, Department of Otorhinolaryngology, University of Dresden Medical School Dresden, Germany.
authors.forename: Emilia
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Iannilli
authors.affiliation: Smell and Taste Clinic, Department of Otorhinolaryngology, University of Dresden Medical School Dresden, Germany.
authors.forename: Valentin A
authors.initials: VA
authors.lastname: Schriever
authors.affiliation: CNRS UMR5292, INSERM U1028, Lyon Neuroscience Research Center, University Lyon Lyon, France.
authors.forename: Johan
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Poncelet
authors.affiliation: Department of Food Science, University of Arkansas Fayetteville, AR, USA.
authors.forename: Han-Seok
authors.initials: HS
authors.lastname: Seo
authors.affiliation: Department of Neuroradiology, University of Dresden Medical School Dresden, Germany.
authors.forename: Johannes
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Gerber
authors.affiliation: CNRS UMR5292, INSERM U1028, Lyon Neuroscience Research Center, University Lyon Lyon, France.
authors.forename: Catherine
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Rouby
authors.affiliation: Smell and Taste Clinic, Department of Otorhinolaryngology, University of Dresden Medical School Dresden, Germany.
authors.forename: Thomas
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Hummel
keywords: congruency; emotion; fMRI; olfaction; trigeminal