Sniffing patterns uncover implicit memory for undetected odors.
Consciously undetected events are represented at the sensory-motor level and in the neurons of sensory-motor control, for example, consciously undetected visual targets drive eye movements [1] and neural activity [2]. Olfaction offers an opportunity to investigate processing of undetected stimuli through measurements of the sniff-response: odorant-specific modulations of nasal airflow [3-6]. Here, we report evidence that consciously undetected odorants modulate sniffing in a predicted manner. Moreover, in our study we observed that sniff-modulations recurred at least 10 seconds after the onset of an undetected odor, implying that information which was not consciously perceived was nevertheless maintained in memory, available for future decision making.
Department of Neurobiology, Weizmann Institute of Science, Rehovot 76100, Israel.
Anat
A
Arzi
Department of Neurobiology, Weizmann Institute of Science, Rehovot 76100, Israel.
Liron
L
Rozenkrantz
Department of Neurobiology, Weizmann Institute of Science, Rehovot 76100, Israel.
Yael
Y
Holtzman
Department of Neurobiology, Weizmann Institute of Science, Rehovot 76100, Israel.
Lavi
L
Secundo
Department of Neurobiology, Weizmann Institute of Science, Rehovot 76100, Israel. Electronic address: noam.sobel@weizmann.ac.il.
Noam
N
Sobel
D000704:Analysis of Variance; D006801:Humans; D009812:Odorants; D011597:Psychomotor Performance; D012903:Smell / Q000502:physiology*; D013997:Time Factors