Abstract
The vertebrate olfactory system is responsible for detecting, deciphering, and discriminating among a wide variety of odors and coordinating appropriate behavioral responses to those odors. This is accomplished, in part, by the function of the olfactory cortical regions. This article examines the structural organization of the cortical olfactory areas in vertebrates, starting with the intrinsic organization and connectivity of the anterior olfactory nucleus and the piriform cortex in the rodent, the most-studied experimental model, then exploring the olfactory forebrain regions in other mammalian and nonmammalian animals.