Jeremy McIntyre, Ph.D., Postdoctoral Research Fellow (Martens laboratory), Department of Pharmacology, University of Michigan Medical School

Olfactory neurons are found in the nose and are necessary for the sense of smell.  The cilia that extend from each neuron are important for detecting odors in the environment.  This image captures the top of live olfactory sensory neurons; many cilia are projecting from each neuron. Recent research has shown that individuals with defects in cilia are unable to smell.  Understanding how olfactory cilia function will help with the development of treatments for restoring this sense.