Dendrodendritic Synapses and Functional Compartmentalization in the Olfactory Bulb

Odorant receptor maps in the glomerular layer of the mammalian olfactory bulb are organized into zones and domains. This organization is functionally related to specific odor-induced behavioral responses. Mitral and tufted cells associated with a glomerulus (an odorant receptor channel) extend long lateral dendrites that form dendrodendritic synapses with granule cells associated with other channels. The knowledge of spatial distribution of these long dendrites with regard to the zonal and domain organization will help us to understand the logic of integration of signals from distinct odorant receptor channels in the olfactory bulb.