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Different Brain Activation in Response to Repeated Odors of Pleasantness and Unpleasantness

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Chemosensory Perception

Abstract

Introduction

Brain activation in response to olfactory stimuli has been studied using functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI), but there is little knowledge about processing repeated olfactory information which is usual in daily life.

Methods

This fMRI study was designed to investigate brain response to repeated odorant stimulation with positive and negative valences in 12 healthy right-handed volunteers. There was a 25-min rest interval between two fMRI runs with identical stimulation paradigms with two odors, as phenylethyl alcohol (PEA) and isovaleric acid (IVA), and the two odors were released alternately.

Results

There was a similar activation pattern in regions of primary and secondary olfactory cortex induced by odors of both valences, especially by negative odor. Weakened activation of the brain is responsive to repeated both pleasant and unpleasant smell. Nevertheless, the repeated unpleasant odor has a more intimate relationship with the piriform cortex, amygdala, and hippocampus.

Conclusion

We conclude that asymmetric brain activation in response to repeated odorant stimulation depended on valences and that the unpleasant odor can evoke more negative emotion and profound memory.

Implications

We explore the central processing about repeated olfactory information applied fMRI for the first time, revealing asymmetric brain activation in response to repeated odors of pleasantness and unpleasantness.

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Acknowledgments

This work was supported by the National Key Research and Development Program of China (2016YFC0800700) and Beijing Key Laboratory of upper airway dysfunction related cardiovascular diseases (BZ0377).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Otolaryngology Head & Neck surgery, Beijing Anzhen Hospital, Capital Medical University, 2th Anzhen Road, Chaoyang District, Beijing, 100029, China

    Wei Xiao, Qianwen Lv, Xing Gao, Zhifu Sun, Xiaoguang Yan & Yongxiang Wei

  2. Department of Otolaryngology Head & Neck surgery, Zhongnan Hospital of Wuhan University, Wuhan, China

    Wei Xiao

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  1. Wei Xiao
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  2. Qianwen Lv
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  3. Xing Gao
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  4. Zhifu Sun
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Correspondence to Yongxiang Wei.

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The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest.

Ethical Approval

The study has been approved by the local ethics committee and was conducted according to the Declaration of Helsinki on Biomedical Research Involving Human Subjects.

Informed Consent

Subjects were given detailed information about all testing procedures during enrollment. Written informed consent was obtained from all subjects before their participation.

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Xiao, W., Lv, Q., Gao, X. et al. Different Brain Activation in Response to Repeated Odors of Pleasantness and Unpleasantness. Chem. Percept. 13, 84–91 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12078-019-09270-y

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12078-019-09270-y

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