Meeting Abstract

19.2  Sunday, Jan. 4  The Effects of Naris Occlusion on Cilia Development and Protein Expression FRANSSEN, RA*; COPPOLA, DM; Randolph-Macon College; Randolph-Macon College adamfranssen@rmc.edu

In the olfactory system, much of what is known about the role of neural activity in development comes from studies using unilateral naris occlusion (UNO) as a method of sensory deprivation. Although deprivation by this technique is not absolute, UNO produces a variety of effects in the ipsilateral olfactory bulb, including a reduction in bulb volume and number of interneurons. However, recent work in Mus musculus suggests that in addition to these apparent losses of function, there is actually an increase in the production of proteins involved in olfactory transduction on the occluded side relative to controls. Further, electrophysiological responses to odors appear to be greater on the occluded side of the nasal cavity. These surprising differences have been interpreted as being a compensatory response by olfactory sensory neurons to the new odor environment. Conversely, the differences between occluded and non-occluded sides may be a result of increased wear on non-occluded cilia versus the relative protection of cilia on the occluded side. To test our hypotheses, we created an antibody specific to one of the over 1,000 olfactory receptor proteins found in olfactory cilia. We studied the effects of UNO on cilia development and protein expression for occluded, non-occluded, and normal nares using immunocytochemistry; results will be discussed.