Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

Olfactory bulb volume in smokers

  • Research Article
  • Published:
Experimental Brain Research Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

The study aimed to investigate the volume of the olfactory bulb in smokers. Specifically, we wanted to see whether environmental influences may exert a negative influence on OB structure. Twenty-one smokers and 59 non-smokers, matched for age and sex, underwent olfactory testing by means of the Sniffin’ Sticks testing device (measurement of odor threshold and identification abilities). In addition, they underwent an MR scan with 2-mm-thick T2-weighted fast spin-echo images without interslice gap in the coronal plane covering the anterior and middle segments of the base of the skull. Olfactory function was not different between the 2 groups; however, olfactory bulb volumes were smaller in smokers than in non-smokers (p = 0.006). The deficit seen at the level of the OB did not correlate with the duration of smoking. The current data indicate that smoking may have a negative effect on the olfactory system before this becomes obvious in terms of a decreased olfactory function.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Fig. 1

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  • Ahlstrom R, Berglund B, Berglund U, Engen T, Lindvall T (1987) A comparison of odor perception in smokers, nonsmokers, and passive smokers. Am J Otolaryngol 8:1–6

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Brodoehl S, Klingner C, Volk GF, Bitter T, Witte OW, Redecker C (2012) Decreased olfactory bulb volume in idiopathic Parkinson’s disease detected by 3.0-Tesla magnetic resonance imaging. Mov Disord 27:1019–1025

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Bruijnzeel AW, Bauzo RM, Munikoti V et al (2011) Tobacco smoke diminishes neurogenesis and promotes gliogenesis in the dentate gyrus of adolescent rats. Brain Res 1413:32–42. doi:10.1016/j.brainres.2011.07.041

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Buschhuter D, Smitka M, Puschmann S, Gerber JC, Witt M, Abolmaali ND, Hummel T (2008) Correlation between olfactory bulb volume and olfactory function. Neuroimage 42:498–502

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Caggiano AO, Brunjes PC (1993) Microglia and the developing olfactory bulb. Neuroscience 52:717–724

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Chen WJ, Parnell SE, West JR (1999) Effects of alcohol and nicotine on developing olfactory bulb: loss of mitral cells and alterations in neurotransmitter levels. Alcohol Clin Exp Res 23:18–25

    PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Cummings DM, Henning HE, Brunjes PC (1997) Olfactory bulb recovery after early sensory deprivation. J Neurosci 17:7433–7440

    PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Curtis MA, Kam M, Nannmark U et al (2007) Human neuroblasts migrate to the olfactory bulb via a lateral ventricular extension. Science 315:1243–1249

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Frye RE, Schwartz BS, Doty RL (1990) Dose-related effects of cigarette smoking on olfactory function. JAMA 263:1233–1236

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Goektas O, Schmidt F, Bohner G et al (2011) Olfactory bulb volume and olfactory function in patients with multiple sclerosis. Rhinology 49:221–226

    PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Gudziol V, Buschhuter D, Abolmaali N, Gerber J, Rombaux P, Hummel T (2009) Increasing olfactory bulb volume due to treatment of chronic rhinosinusitis—a longitudinal study. Brain 132:3096–3101

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Haehner A, Rodewald A, Gerber JC, Hummel T (2008) Correlation of olfactory function with changes in the volume of the human olfactory bulb. Arch Otolaryngol Head Neck Surg 134:621–624

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Hummel T, Sekinger B, Wolf SR, Pauli E, Kobal G (1997) ‘Sniffin’ sticks’: olfactory performance assessed by the combined testing of odor identification, odor discrimination and olfactory threshold. Chem Senses 22:39–52

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Hummel T, Smitka M, Puschmann S, Gerber JC, Schaal B, Buschhuter D (2011) Correlation between olfactory bulb volume and olfactory function in children and adolescents. Exp Brain Res 214:285–291

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Ishimaru T, Fujii M (2007) Effects of smoking on odour identification in Japanese subjects. Rhinology 45:224–228

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Jiang RS, Chai JW, Chen WH, Fuh WB, Chiang CM, Chen CC (2009) Olfactory bulb volume in taiwanese patients with posttraumatic anosmia. Am J Rhinol Allergy 23:582–584

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Katotomichelakis M, Balatsouras D, Tripsianis G, Davris S, Maroudias N, Danielides V, Simopoulos C (2007) The effect of smoking on the olfactory function. Rhinology 45:273–280

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Kobal G, Klimek L, Wolfensberger M et al (2000) Multicenter investigation of 1,036 subjects using a standardized method for the assessment of olfactory function combining tests of odor identification, odor discrimination, and olfactory thresholds. Eur arch otorhinolaryngol 257:205–211

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Lledo PM, Gheusi G (2003) Olfactory processing in a changing brain. Neuroreport 14:1655–1663

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • McLean D, Feron F, Mackay-Sim A, McCurdy R, Hirning M, Chant D, McGrath J (2004) Paradoxical association between smoking and olfactory identification in psychosis versus controls. Aust N Z J psychiatry 38:81–83

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Ming GL, Song H (2011) Adult neurogenesis in the mammalian brain: significant answers and significant questions. Neuron 70:687–702

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Orhan KS, Karabulut B, Keles N, Deger K (2011) Evaluation of factors concerning the olfaction using the sniffin’ sticks test. Otolaryngol Head Neck Surg. doi:10.1177/0194599811425019

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Paskin TR, Iqbal TR, Byrd-Jacobs CA (2011) Olfactory bulb recovery following reversible deafferentation with repeated detergent application in the adult zebrafish. Neuroscience 196:276–284

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Podlesek D, Leimert M, Schuster B, Gerber J, Schackert G, Kirsch M, Hummel T (2012) Olfactory bulb volume in patients with idiopathic normal pressure hydrocephalus. Neuroradiology doi. doi:10.1007/s00234-012-1050-8

    Google Scholar 

  • Rombaux P, Grandin C, Duprez T (2009) How to measure olfactory bulb volume and olfactory sulcus depth? B-ENT 5(Suppl 13):53–60

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Rosenblatt MR, Olmstead RE, Iwamoto-Schaap PN, Jarvik ME (1998) Olfactory thresholds for nicotine and menthol in smokers (abstinent and nonabstinent) and nonsmokers. Physiol Behav 65:575–579

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Thomann PA, Dos Santos V, Toro P, Schonknecht P, Essig M, Schroder J (2009) Reduced olfactory bulb and tract volume in early Alzheimer’s disease—a MRI study. Neurobiol Aging 30:838–841

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Turetsky BI, Moberg PJ, Yousem DM, Doty RL, Arnold SE, Gur RE (2000) Reduced olfactory bulb volume in patients with schizophrenia. Am J Psychiatry 157:828–830

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Vennemann MM, Hummel T, Berger K (2008) The association between smoking and smell and taste impairment in the general population. J Neurol 255:1121–1126

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Venstrom D, Amoore J (1968) Olfactory threshold in relation to age, sex or smoking. J Food Sci 33:264–265

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Vent J, Robinson AM, Gentry-Nielsen MJ, Conley DB, Hallworth R, Leopold DA, Kern RC (2004) Pathology of the olfactory epithelium: smoking and ethanol exposure. Laryngoscope 114:1383–1388

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Whitman MC, Greer CA (2009) Adult neurogenesis and the olfactory system. Prog Neurobiol 89:162–175

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Winterer G (2010) Why do patients with schizophrenia smoke? Curr Opin Psychiatry 23:112–119

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Yee KK, Pribitkin EA, Cowart BJ et al (2009) Smoking-associated squamous metaplasia in olfactory mucosa of patients with chronic rhinosinusitis. Toxicol Pathol 37:594–598

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Yousem DM, Geckle RJ, Doty RL, Bilker WB (1997) Reproducibility and reliability of volumetric measurements of olfactory eloquent structures. Acad Radiol 4:264–269

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

Download references

Acknowledgments

We are thankful to Dorothee Buschhüter as she provided data from healthy subject; we also would like to thank José R.B. Galván, Vasyl Bogdanov, and Marta Leal Bento for their help in data analysis. This research was supported by the Roland-Ernst-Stiftung.

Conflict of interest

None of the authors has any conflict of interest to disclose.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Smell and Taste Clinic, Department of Otorhinolaryngology, University of Dresden Medical School, Fetscherstrasse 74, 01307, Dresden, Germany

    Valentin A. Schriever, Nicole Reither, Emilia Iannilli & Thomas Hummel

  2. Department of Neuroradiology, University of Dresden Medical School, Dresden, Germany

    Johannes Gerber

Authors
  1. Valentin A. Schriever
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Nicole Reither
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. Johannes Gerber
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  4. Emilia Iannilli
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  5. Thomas Hummel
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Thomas Hummel.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Cite this article

Schriever, V.A., Reither, N., Gerber, J. et al. Olfactory bulb volume in smokers. Exp Brain Res 225, 153–157 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00221-012-3356-5

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00221-012-3356-5

Keywords

Search

Navigation