Olfactory mucosa

Olfactory mucosa
Latin	pars olfactoria tunicae mucosae nasi

The olfactory mucosa is located in the upper region of the nasal cavity and is made up of the olfactory epithelium and the underlying lamina propria, connective tissue containing fibroblasts, blood vessels, Bowman's glands and bundles of fine axons from the olfactory neurons.^[1]

The mucus protects the olfactory epithelium and allows odors to dissolve so that they can be detected by olfactory receptor neurons. Electron microscopy studies show that Bowman's glands contain cells with large secretory vesicles.^[2] The exact composition of the secretions from Bowman's glands is unclear, but there is evidence that Bowman's glands do not produce odorant binding protein.^[3]

In vertebrates, the olfactory epithelium consists of a three basic cell types: bipolar olfactory receptor neurons; sustentacular cells, a type of supporting cell; and basal cells, the stem cells that continuously give rise to new olfactory receptor neurons and sustentacular cells.^[4]

Cells in the olfactory mucosa have been shown to have a degree of plasticity, and hold potential for therapeutic applications.^[4]

Such cells have been used in clinical trials for adult stem cell therapeutic treatments, and successfully harvested for future applications.^[5]

References

1. ^ Moran, David T.; Rowley Jc, 3rd; Jafek, BW; Lovell, MA (1982), "The fine structure of the olfactory mucosa in man", Journal of Neurocytology 11 (5): 721–746, doi:10.1007/BF01153516, PMID 7143026 
2. ^ Frisch, Donald (1967), "Ultrastructure of mouse olfactory mucosa.", The American Journal of Anatomy 121 (1): 87–120., doi:10.1002/aja.1001210107, PMID 6052394 
3. ^ Tegoni, Mariella; Pelosi, P; Vincent, F; Spinelli, S; Campanacci, V; Grolli, S; Ramoni, R; Cambillau, C (2000), "Mammalian odorant binding proteins", Biochimica et Biophysica Acta 1482 (1-2): 229–240., 1967, doi:10.1016/S0167-4838(00)00167-9, PMID 11058764 
4. ^ ^{a b} Schwob, James E. (2002), "Neural Regeneration and the Peripheral Olfactory System", The Anatomical Record 269 (1): 33–49, doi:10.1002/ar.10047, PMID 11891623 
5. ^ Eskitis Institute for Cell and Molecular Therapies

Paranasal sinuses

Maxillary sinus · Sphenoidal sinuses · Frontal sinus · Ethmoid sinus

Naso-pharynx

Pharyngeal opening of auditory tube (Salpingopharyngeal fold, Salpingopalatine fold, Torus tubarius) · Pharyngeal tonsil · Pharyngeal recess

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