IMPLICATION FOR CODING

three kinds of cone in our eyes

 blue

 green

 red

five kinds of taste receptors in our tongue

 sweet

 salty

 sour

 bitter

 umami

 Humans are containing of a lot of olfactory receptors (OR) when

detecting an odor. (It is more than 400 receptors)

 olfactory receptors are also known as smell receptors

WHY DID EVOLUTION GO TO THE BOTHER OF DESIGNING SO MANY

OLFACTORY RECEPTORS? AFTER ALL COLOR VISION GETS BY WITH JUST
THREE TYPES OF CONES

 Light energy can be arranged alongside a single dimension wavelength

while olfaction processes airborne chemicals that do not range along a
single continuum
 MESSAGES TO THE BRAIN

 When an olfactory receptor is stimulated, its axon carries an impulse

to the olfactory bulb

 Their axons find their way to the same target cells in the olfactory
bulb, such that chemicals of similar smell excite neighboring areas,
and chemical of different smell excite more separated areas.

 Olfactory receptors are vulnerable to damage because they are

exposed to the air.

 It’s axon then has to find its way to the correct target in the
olfactory bulb. Each olfactory neuron axon contains copies of its
olfactory receptor protein,

 However, if our entire olfactory surface is damaged at once by a

toxic chemical our system in our body replaces all the olfactory
receptors and many of them fail to make to the correct connections.
Consequences our olfactory receptor experience does not fully
recover.

COMMON CAUSES OF ANOSMIA

  Aging

 Allergy Rhinitis

 And viral infection especially covid

INDIVIDUAL DIFFERENCES

 People vary in their sense of smell more than you might guess. Most of
the gene controlling olfactory receptors have variant forms, and on
average, two people chosen at random probably differ in about 30
percent of their olfactory receptor genes

 Compared to anyone else you know, you probably experience some

smells as stronger, some as weaker, some as more pleasant, and
some as less pleasant.

 Odor sensitivity declines with age. The decline varies among odors
remains constant as people age, sensitivity to onion odor declines
 moderately, and sensitivity to rose odor declines greatly

 A sharp decline in odor sensitivity is often an early symptom of

Alzheimer’s disease or Parkinson’s disease

REFERENCES:

Rebholz, H., Braun, R. J., Ladage, D., Knoll, W., Kleber, C., & Hassel, A. W.
(2001, January 1). Loss Of Olfactory Function—Early Indicator for Covid-19,
Other Viral Infections And Neurodegenerative Disorders. Frontiers.
https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fneur.2020.569333/full.

Olfactory Dysfunction In Alzheimer’s Disease. (2016, January 1). PubMed

Central (PMC). https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4841431/.

Huynh, P. P., Ishii, L. E., & Ishii, M. (2020, January 28). Patient Information:
What Is Anosmia?. What Is Anosmia? | Olfaction and Taste | JAMA | JAMA
Network. https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jama/fullarticle/2767634.

Learning About the Functions Of the Olfactory System From People Without
a Sense Of Smell. (2012, January 1). PubMed Central (PMC).
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3310072/.