Age-associated loss of selectivity in human olfactory sensory neurons.
Publication/Presentation Date
9-1-2012
Abstract
We report a cross-sectional study of olfactory impairment with age based on both odorant-stimulated responses of human olfactory sensory neurons (OSNs) and tests of olfactory threshold sensitivity. A total of 621 OSNs from 440 subjects in 2 age groups of younger (≤ 45 years) and older (≥ 60 years) subjects were investigated using fluorescence intensity ratio fura-2 imaging. OSNs were tested for responses to 2 odorant mixtures, as well as to subsets of and individual odors in those mixtures. Whereas cells from younger donors were highly selective in the odorants to which they responded, cells from older donors were more likely to respond to multiple odor stimuli, despite a loss in these subjects' absolute olfactory sensitivity, suggesting a loss of specificity. This degradation in peripheral cellular specificity may impact odor discrimination and olfactory adaptation in the elderly. It is also possible that chronic adaptation as a result of reduced specificity contributes to observed declines in absolute sensitivity.
Volume
33
Issue
9
First Page
1913
Last Page
1919
ISSN
1558-1497
Published In/Presented At
Rawson, N. E., Gomez, G., Cowart, B. J., Kriete, A., Pribitkin, E., & Restrepo, D. (2012). Age-associated loss of selectivity in human olfactory sensory neurons. Neurobiology of aging, 33(9), 1913–1919. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.neurobiolaging.2011.09.036
Disciplines
Business Administration, Management, and Operations | Health and Medical Administration | Management Sciences and Quantitative Methods
PubMedID
22074806
Department(s)
Administration and Leadership
Document Type
Article