The Accessory Olfactory Bulb in : A Neuroanatomical Study in a Subterranean Mammal.

The accessory olfactory bulb (AOB) processes chemical signals crucial for species-specific socio-sexual behaviors. There is limited information about the AOB of wild rodents, and this study aims to characterize the neurochemical organization of the AOB in the fossorial water vole (), a subterranean Cricetidae rodent. We employed histological, immunohistochemical, and lectin-histochemical techniques.

Functional Role of the Incisive Duct in Neonatal Dogs.

Introduction: The detection of chemical signals by the vomeronasal organ (VNO) is critical for mammals from an early age, influencing behaviors such as suckling and recognition of the mother. Located at the base of the nasal cavity, the VNO features a duct covered with a sensory epithelium. A critical aspect of VNO functionality is the efficient access of stimuli from the nasal and oral cavities to the receptors.

Biostimulation methods based on chemical communication improve semen quality in male breeder rabbits.

Biostimulation aims to optimize reproductive parameters as part of animal management practices by modulating animal sensory systems. Chemical signals, mostly known as pheromones, have a great potential in this regard. This study was conducted to determine the influence of short-term male rabbit exposure to different biological secretions, potentially pheromone-mediated, on reproductive parameters of males.

In-depth histological, lectin-histochemical, immunohistochemical and ultrastructural description of the olfactory rosettes and olfactory bulbs of turbot (Scophthalmus maximus).

Chemical communication through olfaction is crucial for fish behaviours, mediating in socio-sexual behaviours as reproduction. Turbot, a flatfish with significant aquaculture production, possesses a well-developed olfactory system from early developmental stages. After metamorphosis, flatfish acquire their characteristic bilateral asymmetry with an ocular side facing the open water column, housing the dorsal olfactory rosette, and a blind side in contact with the sea bottom where the ventral rosette is located.

Dissecting the Effects of on the Olfactory Turbinates and Nasopharynx of Roe Deers ().

Nasopharyngeal myiasis in European roe deer is a pathological condition caused by the larval stages of , a fly from the Oestridae family. These larvae reside in the host's upper respiratory tract for months, inducing significant tissue damage and clinical symptoms. The lifecycle of is complex, involving three larval stages before maturation into adult flies, with each stage contributing to the progressive pathology observed in the host.

Histological evaluation of the alpaca (Vicugna pacos) vomeronasal organ.

Little is known about the neuronal structure of the vomeronasal organ (VNO), a receptor organ responsible for pheromone perception, in the alpaca (Vicugna pacos). This study was performed to determine the localization of neuronal elements, including protein gene product 9.5 (PGP 9.

The vomeronasal system of the wolf (Canis lupus signatus): The singularities of a wild canid.

Wolves, akin to their fellow canids, extensively employ chemical signals for various aspects of communication, including territory maintenance, reproductive synchronisation and social hierarchy signalling. Pheromone-mediated chemical communication operates unconsciously among individuals, serving as an innate sensory modality that regulates both their physiology and behaviour. Despite its crucial role in the life of the wolf, there is a lacuna in comprehensive research on the neuroanatomical and physiological underpinnings of chemical communication within this species.

Key Genes in Olfactory Disorder in Experimental Autoimmune Encephalomyelitis Identified by Transcriptomic Analysis of the Olfactory Bulbs.

Experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis (EAE) is an animal model of multiple sclerosis that shows demyelination in the central nervous system and functional deficits, including olfactory impairment. However, the genes related to olfactory impairment in EAE are unknown. We evaluated hub genes of the olfactory bulb in EAE mice.

Do fossorial water voles have a functional vomeronasal organ? A histological and immunohistochemical study.

The fossorial water vole, Arvicola scherman, is an herbivorous rodent that causes significant agricultural damages. The application of cairomones and alarm pheromones emerges as a promising sustainable method to improve its integrated management. These chemical signals would induce stress responses that could interfere with the species regular reproductive cycles and induce aversive reactions, steering them away from farmlands and meadows.

Immunohistological study of the unexplored vomeronasal organ of an endangered mammal, the dama gazelle (Nanger dama).

Dama gazelle is a threatened and rarely studied species found primarily in northern Africa. Human pressure has depleted the dama gazelle population from tens of thousands to a few hundred individuals. Since 1970, a founder population consisting of the last 17 surviving individuals in Western Sahara has been maintained in captivity, reproducing naturally.

The olfactory limbus of the red fox (). New insights regarding a noncanonical olfactory bulb pathway.

The olfactory system in most mammals is divided into several subsystems based on the anatomical locations of the neuroreceptor cells involved and the receptor families that are expressed. In addition to the main olfactory system and the vomeronasal system, a range of olfactory subsystems converge onto the transition zone located between the main olfactory bulb (MOB) and the accessory olfactory bulb (AOB), which has been termed the olfactory limbus (OL). The OL contains specialized glomeruli that receive noncanonical sensory afferences and which interact with the MOB and AOB.

A chromosome-level genome assembly enables the identification of the follicule stimulating hormone receptor as the master sex-determining gene in the flatfish Solea senegalensis.

Sex determination (SD) shows huge variation among fish and a high evolutionary rate, as illustrated by the Pleuronectiformes (flatfishes). This order is characterized by its adaptation to demersal life, compact genomes and diversity of SD mechanisms. Here, we assembled the Solea senegalensis genome, a flatfish of great commercial value, into 82 contigs (614 Mb) combining long- and short-read sequencing, which were next scaffolded using a highly dense genetic map (28,838 markers, 21 linkage groups), representing 98.

Sex separation unveils the functional plasticity of the vomeronasal organ in rabbits.

Chemosensory cues are vital for social and sexual behaviours and are primarily detected and processed by the vomeronasal system (VNS), whose plastic capacity has been investigated in mice. However, studying chemosensory plasticity outside of laboratory conditions may give a more realistic picture of how the VNS adapts to a changing environment. Rabbits are a well-described model of chemocommunication since the discovery of the rabbit mammary pheromone and their vomeronasal organ (VNO) transcriptome was recently characterised, a first step to further study plasticity-mediated transcriptional changes.

Comparative Neuroanatomical Study of the Main Olfactory Bulb in Domestic and Wild Canids: Dog, Wolf and Red Fox.

The sense of smell plays a fundamental role in mammalian survival. There is a considerable amount of information available on the vomeronasal system of both domestic and wild canids. However, much less information is available on the canid main olfactory system, particularly at the level of the main olfactory bulb.

Assessment of Biostimulation Methods Based on Chemical Communication in Female Doe Reproduction.

Biostimulation is an animal management practice that helps improve reproductive parameters by modulating animal sensory systems. Chemical signals, mostly known as pheromones, have a great potential in this regard. This study was conducted to determine the influence of short-term female rabbit exposure to different conditions, mainly pheromone-mediated, on reproductive parameters of inseminated does.

Neuroanatomical and Immunohistological Study of the Main and Accessory Olfactory Bulbs of the Meerkat ().

We approached the study of the main (MOB) and accessory olfactory bulbs (AOB) of the meerkat () aiming to fill important gaps in knowledge regarding the neuroanatomical basis of olfactory and pheromonal signal processing in this iconic species. Microdissection techniques were used to extract the olfactory bulbs. The samples were subjected to hematoxylin-eosin and Nissl stains, histochemical ( agglutinin, agglutinin) and immunohistochemical labelling (Gαo, Gαi2, calretinin, calbindin, olfactory marker protein, glial fibrillary acidic protein, microtubule-associated protein 2, SMI-32, growth-associated protein 43).

Can domestication shape Canidae brain morphology? The accessory olfactory bulb of the red fox as a case in point.

Background: The accessory olfactory bulb (AOB) is the first integrative center of the vomeronasal system (VNS), and the general macroscopic, microscopic, and neurochemical organizational patterns of the AOB differ fundamentally among species. Therefore, the low degree of differentiation observed for the dog AOB is surprising. As the artificial selection pressure exerted on domestic dogs has been suggested to play a key role in the involution of the dog VNS, a wild canid, such as the fox, represents a useful model for studying the hypothetical effects of domestication on the AOB morphology.

Does a third intermediate model for the vomeronasal processing of information exist? Insights from the macropodid neuroanatomy.

The study of the α-subunit of Gi2 and Go proteins in the accessory olfactory bulb (AOB) was crucial for the identification of the two main families of vomeronasal receptors, V1R and V2R. Both families are expressed in the rodent and lagomorph AOBs, according to a segregated model characterized by topographical anteroposterior zonation. Many mammal species have suffered from the deterioration of the Gαo pathway and are categorized as belonging to the uniform model.

A comprehensive structural, lectin and immunohistochemical characterization of the zebrafish olfactory system.

Fish chemosensory olfactory receptors allow them to detect a wide range of water-soluble chemicals, that mediate fundamental behaviours. Zebrafish possess a well-developed sense of smell which governs reproduction, appetite, and fear responses. The spatial organization of functional properties within the olfactory epithelium and bulb are comparable to those of mammals, making this species suitable for studies of olfactory differentiation and regeneration and neuronal representation of olfactory information.

The vomeronasal system of the newborn capybara: a morphological and immunohistochemical study.

The vomeronasal system (VNS) is responsible for the perception mainly of pheromones and kairomones. Primarily studied in laboratory rodents, it plays a crucial role in their socio-sexual behaviour. As a wild rodent, the capybara offers a more objective and representative perspective to understand the significance of the system in the Rodentia, avoiding the risk of extrapolating from laboratory rodent strains, exposed to high levels of artificial selection pressure.

The vomeronasal organ of wild canids: the fox (Vulpes vulpes) as a model.

The vomeronasal system (VNS) has been extensively studied within specific animal families, such as Rodentia. However, the study of the VNS in other families, such as Canidae, has long been neglected. Among canids, the vomeronasal organ (VNO) has only been studied in detail in the dog, and no studies have examined the morphofunctional or immunohistochemical characteristics of the VNS in wild canids, which is surprising, given the well-known importance of chemical senses for the dog and fox and the likelihood that the VNS plays roles in the socio-reproductive physiology and behaviours of these species.

Structural, morphometric and immunohistochemical study of the rabbit accessory olfactory bulb.

The accessory olfactory bulb (AOB) is the first neural integrative centre of the vomeronasal system (VNS), which is associated primarily with the detection of semiochemicals. Although the rabbit is used as a model for the study of chemocommunication, these studies are hampered by the lack of knowledge regarding the topography, lamination, and neurochemical properties of the rabbit AOB. To fill this gap, we have employed histological stainings: lectin labelling with Ulex europaeus (UEA-I), Bandeiraea simplicifolia (BSI-B4), and Lycopersicon esculentum (LEA) agglutinins, and a range of immunohistochemical markers.

Anatomy of the olfactory mucosa.

The classic notion that humans are microsmatic animals was born from comparative anatomy studies showing the reduction in the size of both the olfactory bulbs and the limbic brain relative to the whole brain. However, the human olfactory system contains a number of neurons comparable to that of most other mammals, and humans have exquisite olfactory abilities. Major advances in molecular and genetic research have resulted in the identification of extremely large gene families that express receptors for sensing odors.