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The Journal of Neuroscience, April 1, 2001, 21(7):2481-2487
Olfactory Fingerprints for Major Histocompatibility
Complex-Determined Body Odors
Michele L.
Schaefer1, 2, 3,
David A.
Young4, and
Diego
Restrepo1, 2, 3
1 Neuroscience Program, 2 Rocky Mountain
Taste and Smell Center, 3 Department of Cellular and
Structural Biology, and 4 Department of Preventive Medicine
and Biometrics, Biometrics Section, University of Colorado Health
Sciences Center, Denver, Colorado 80262
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ABSTRACT |
Recognition of individual body odors is analogous to human face
recognition in that it provides information about identity. Individual
body odors determined by differences at the major histocompatibility complex (MHC or H-2) have been shown to influence mate choice, pregnancy block, and maternal behavior in mice. Unfortunately, the
mechanism and extent of the main olfactory bulb (MOB) and accessory
olfactory bulb (AOB) involvement in the discrimination of animals
according to H-2-type has remained ambiguous. Here we study the
neuronal activation patterns evoked in the MOB in different individuals
on exposure to these complex, biologically meaningful sensory stimuli.
We demonstrate that body odors from H-2 disparate mice evoke
overlapping but distinct maps of neuronal activation in the MOB. The
spatial patterns of odor-evoked activity are sufficient to be used like
fingerprints to predict H-2 identity using a novel computer algorithm.
These results provide functional evidence for discrimination of
H-2-determined body odors in the MOB, but do not preclude a role for
the AOB. These data further our understanding of the neural strategies
used to decode socially relevant odors.
Key words:
major histocompatibility complex; congenic mice; olfactory; urine; coding; recognition; c-fos; complex odors; mapping
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INTRODUCTION |
Individual body odors are of
particular importance and provide information about gender, individual
identity, reproductive status, and health (Brown, 1995 ). Of particular
interest are the genetic differences at the major histocompatibility
complex (MHC) locus known to impart unique body scents on
individuals within a given species, including in humans (Yamaguchi et
al., 1981 ; Boyse et al., 1982 ; Yamazaki et al., 1983a , 1986 , 1988 ,
1990 , 1994 , 1999 , 2000 ; Beauchamp et al., 1985 ; Boyse et al., 1987 ; Porter, 2000 ). These odors play a key role in mating preference, pregnancy block, maternal recognition, and kin recognition
(Yamazaki et al., 1983b , 1988 , 2000 ). In addition, it has been
hypothesized that MHC functions to minimize genome-wide inbreeding
(Potts et al., 1991 ; Apanius et al., 1997 ; Penn and Potts, 1998 ). The
sensory system or systems and neural strategies used to accomplish
these important biological tasks remain unclear. Identification of
different spatiotemporal representations for MHC-determined body odors
within a sensory system [e.g., the main olfactory bulb (MOB) and/or
accessory olfactory bulb (AOB)] would support a role for the system in
encoding these odors. We have focused on detailing the response of the MOB in mice exposed to odors from mice differing only at the MHC locus.
Investigation on how odorants are encoded in the mammalian MOB the
first central processing center has indicated that different odors activate distinct spatial activity patterns or "odor maps" (Sharp et al., 1975 ; Guthrie and Gall, 1995a ; Johnson et al., 1998 ;
Rubin and Katz, 1999 ; Uchida et al., 2000 ; Xu et al., 2000 ). Thus, a
hypothesis has developed that odor maps are part of the neural basis
for perceptual discrimination of odor quality and intensity (Xu et al.,
2000 ). However, this hypothesis was primarily developed from work
involving monomolecular odors. Little is known about odors produced by
mixtures of dissimilar chemical components. If a simple odor can
activate up to 5% of all glomeruli in the MOB, what percentage of
glomeruli is activated by a complex mixture such as urine (Teicher et
al., 1980 ; Astic and Saucier, 1982 ; Astic and Cattarelli, 1982 ; Johnson
et al., 1999 )? More than eighty compounds have been identified in mouse
urine vapor (Miyashita and Robinson, 1980 ; Singer et al., 1997 ). These
compounds are representative of nearly all of the common chemical
classes such as aldehydes, alcohols, ketones, esters, ethers,
aromatics, and acids. It is also unclear whether odor maps will differ
when two distinct but similar complex odors (odor mixtures composed
largely of the same components but that differ by a small fraction) are compared. For example, do urine odors from congenic mice that differ
only with the MHC-haplotype of the individual (Singh et al., 1987 ;
Singer et al., 1997 ) evoke distinct activity patterns? Alternatively,
are the odor maps of these complex odors significantly redundant so
that they cannot be resolved through spatial patterns alone and require
temporal cues to distinguish them (Fleming et al., 1979 ; Di Prisco and
Freeman, 1985 ; Wilson and Leon, 1988 ; Kashiwadani et al., 1999 ;
Keverne, 1999 ; Laurent, 1999 ). Because a detailed understanding of the
neural representation of complex odors is lacking, we addressed this
more directly here. Specifically, our goal was to characterize the
spatial activity patterns evoked by different H-2 body odors.
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MATERIALS AND METHODS |
Odor exposure. Donor male urine was collected while
applying gentle abdominal pressure and stored at 20°C until needed.
Female odor recipients ranged in age from 12 to 20 weeks, a period of time during which the olfactory bulb changes little, if at all (Pomeroy
et al., 1990 ). Vaginal swabs were used to determine state of estrous.
Nonestrous female mice BALB/C (H-2d) were
placed in a 5 l glass jar and exposed to humidified fresh air for
40 min at 3 l/min. The fresh air controls were exposed for an
additional 30 min. Experimental animals then were exposed to
age-matched male urine odor from either of two different H-2 haplotypes
(B6.AKR:H-2k or
C57BL6:H-2b). Several dilutions of urine
were used. The bulk of the exposures were performed using a 20% v/v of
urine (1:5 dilution). This dilution was chosen on the basis of a
paradigm used in a behavioral discrimination assay (Yamazaki et al.,
1999 ). Odors were delivered for 3 min at 5 min intervals over a 30 min
period. All procedures were done in compliance with standards of the
University of Colorado Health Sciences Center Animal Care and Use Committee.
Measurement of odor-evoked activity. Mice were immediately
killed after odor exposure, perfused with 4% paraformaldehyde, and the
olfactory bulbs were harvested. Transverse sections (18 µm) of the OB
were cut on a cryostat and collected onto glass slides. In
situ hybridization analysis of c-fos mRNA expression was performed on every fourth section for a total of 36 sections, representative of nearly the entire length of the bulb. Sections were
processed for colorimetric in situ hybridization
localization of c-fos mRNA using a digoxigenin (DIG)-labeled
riboprobe and alkaline phosphatase (Roche Molecular Biochemicals,
Indianapolis, IN) as described elsewhere (Guthrie and Gall, 1995a ). The
antisense c-fos cRNA was transcribed from a mouse
recombinant cDNA clone to generate a 535 base transcript corresponding
to positions 1842-1944 and 2061-2493 of the mouse c-fos
gene (MUSFOS). Increases in c-fos mRNA were measured in the
juxtaglomerular cells (periglomerular and external tufted cells)
surrounding glomeruli (Guthrie et al., 1993 , 1995a , 1995b ). Glomeruli
were scored as positive when an arc of labeled juxtaglomerular cells
spanning either 180° in any orientation or two 90° arcs spanning
any region not abutting the external plexiform layer were identified.
Mapping the patterns of odor-evoked activity. The
coordinates for each positive glomerulus are given in rostrocaudal
distance and radial angle around a section. Anatomical landmarks
determine the origins for the radial measurements. The first section is defined by the point at which complete mitral cell and external plexiform layers can be identified (Johnson and Leon, 1996 ; Johnson et
al., 1998 , 1999 ). The rostrocaudal distance in our maps is offset by
432 µm posterior to the first section. The 0-180° axis was
drawn parallel to the more ventral aspect of the subependymal layer.
For the rostral sections, the origin was taken as 1/3 the distance
from the dorsal to the ventral mitral cell layer. At the level of the
AOB, the origin is defined as the point just ventral to the AOB.
Past the AOB the origin is placed at the granular cusp of the MOB.
To estimate the accuracy of our mapping procedure, we mapped P2
glomeruli in P2-IRES tau lacZ mice (Mombaerts et al., 1996 ). Our
analysis indicates that biological and mapping variability in angle and
rostrocaudal distance are of the order of
±6o and ±153 µm and
±4o and ±98 µm for the lateral and
medial glomeruli, respectively (M. L. Schaefer and D. Restrepo,
unpublished observations). It should be mentioned that the natural
biological variability in glomerular position contributes to our
estimate significantly. Some animals have double P2 glomeruli that can
be separated by up to five glomerular widths (~425 µm) (Royal and
Key, 1999 ; Strotmann et al., 2000 ). Thus, our data are within the range
of what would be expected for biological variability alone.
Binning and smoothing glomerular activation maps. The number
of positive glomeruli is presented as uncorrected "raw" values. By
processing every fourth section, we are sampling every 72 µm. Because
the mean diameter of a glomerulus is 85 µm, this would mean that we
undersample the smallest glomeruli (miss scoring some) and oversample
the largest glomeruli (score some more than once) (Royet et al., 1988 ).
Also, a small number of glomeruli lying anterior and posterior to our
first and last sections would not be sampled. All of the positive
events (glomeruli) for each section are arrayed into bins of 10° and
72 µm. These data are then summated using a kernel of three.
Summating with a kernel of three results in averaging over areas
comprising approximately three SDs for mapping a single glomerulus.
Summation was used to decrease error because of biological and mapping
variability (Schaefer and Restrepo, unpublished observations)
(Strotmann et al., 2000 ). The kernelled data are then visualized as a
color contour plot constructed in Microcal Origin 6.0. A
self-extractable compressed file containing the program, ToMatrix, to
transform and analyze glomerular activation data can be downloaded from the Restrepo Lab homepage at
http://www.uchsc.edu/ ctrsinst/rmtsc/restrepo/ by clicking on the
biomedical information and tools tab.
Statistical analysis. As described above, all datasets
consisted of rectangular arrays of bins each containing the number of
positive glomeruli within a 10° and 72 µm interval. To estimate central tendency and fractional variability, the average and normalized SD were calculated binwise. Normalized SD was computed as SD divided by
average value. To determine the statistical significance of differences
among spatial patterns, we used a binwise Mann-Whitney U
test (Siegel, 1956 ; Johnson and Leon, 1996 ). For each bin the Mann-Whitney p value was calculated by sorting and
estimation of U for all values within nine adjacent bins. To
determine which average pattern best fit an unknown pattern, we
performed a least squares fit by minimizing the function:
where n is the total number of bins,
gi is the number of glomeruli in the
ith bin in the unknown pattern,
Gi is the number of glomeruli in the
ith bin in the average pattern, and is an arbitrary
scaling variable adjusted to obtain the minimum SSQ. This was performed
independently for H-2k and
H-2b representations. The smallest sum of
squares was used as the criterion to classify the unknown as
H-2k or H-2b.
Many of the methods used in calculations were taken from Numerical Recipes in C (indicated within the ToMatrix program) (Press et al.,
1992 ).
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RESULTS |
Mapping c-fos glomerular activation patterns
The MOBs in mice consist of ~1800 glomeruli in each bulb (Royet
et al., 1988 ). Glomeruli are spherical modules of neuropil, within
which several thousand olfactory receptor neurons converge onto the
output neurons of the MOB ( 5000:1), and thus are thought to be
functional units of processing, similar to cortical barrels and columns
(Xu et al., 2000 ). Odor-induced neural activity in the MOB can be
measured by mapping increases in c-fos mRNA in the
glomerular layer. An example of a representative serial section from a
BALB/C (H-2d haplotype) female mouse
exposed to urine odor from a B6.AKR male (H-2k haplotype) is shown in Figure
1. Increases in c-fos mRNA
were measured in the juxtaglomerular cells surrounding glomeruli
(Guthrie and Gall, 1995b ) (Fig. 1B,C). Three
c-fos cRNA-positive glomeruli are shown in Figure
1B, and two of these are shown at higher
magnification in Figure 1C. The coordinates for each
positive glomerulus are given in degrees as measured by radial angle
around a section and rostrocaudal distance. c-fos cRNA
hybridization in the glomerular layer was mapped throughout the bulb in
this manner on exposure to urine odor. The number of positive glomeruli
per unit area then was determined, and the resulting arrays were
smoothed and plotted as color contour charts of glomerular activation
(Materials and Methods, Figs.
2-4).

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Figure 1.
Mapping c-fos glomerular activation
patterns in the MOB on exposure to urine odor. A,
Diagram illustrating the sagittal aspect of the MOB.
1st, The rostral limit is defined as
the section 432 µm posterior to the first section that contains
complete mitral cell and external plexiform layers. The label
B depicts the location of the section shown in part
B at 864 µm posterior to the rostral limit.
36th, The caudal limit is defined as the
location just posterior to the AOB at 2592 µm posterior to the
rostral limit. B, Representative section demonstrating
c-fos DIG-cRNA labeling in an H-2d
female mouse exposed to H-2k male urine odor. Radial
measurements are shown marking "positive" glomeruli surrounded by
c-fos DIG-cRNA labeling of juxtaglomerular cells.
C, High-power magnification of boxed
portion in B. G,
Glomerulus; Epl, external plexiform layer;
PG, periglomerular cell; D, dorsal;
L, lateral. Dashed line is marking the
0° to 180° axis parallel to the subependymal layer.
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Figure 2.
c-fos glomerular activation
patterns for H-2k male urine odor in the main
olfactory bulbs of H-2d female mice. A-D,
F-G, Color contour maps of evoked glomerular activity.
A-D, Individual H-2k urine odor
maps. F, Average H-2k urine odor map
constructed from A-D. E, Diagram
illustrating regions of activity in the main olfactory bulb as shown in
F. L, Lateral; V, ventral;
CM, caudomedial; DM, dorsomedial.
G, Control showing average map for mice exposed to fresh
air (n = 3). H, Normalized SD
(SD/average) map for A-D. Color bar on the
top of A shows the density of active
glomeruli (number of positive glomeruli per bin) for
A-D and F-G. Color bar on the
top of H shows the range of the
variability (two is most variable) in H.
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Figure 3.
Concentration dependence of c-fos
glomerular activity for H-2k male urine odor in the
main olfactory bulbs of H-2d female mice.
A-F, Color contour maps of the average evoked
glomerular activity at different urine concentrations.
A, 0.8% v/v (% volume of urine/volume of 20 mM HEPES, pH 7) (n = 2).
B, 2% v/v (n = 4).
C, 4% v/v (n = 4).
D, 10% v/v (n = 4).
E, 20% v/v (n = 4).
F, 40% v/v (n = 3). Color bar shows
the color code for the density of active glomeruli. G,
H, Analysis of the mean number of positive glomeruli at each
urine concentration. G, Total number of positive
glomeruli per olfactory bulb. *p < 0.05 versus
fresh air. H, Quadrant analysis of the number of
positive glomeruli. RD, Rostrodorsal (375-1125 µm,
45 to 45°); RL, rostrolateral (375-1125 µm,
45-135°); RV, rostroventral (375-1125 µm,
135-225°); RM, rostromedial (375-1125 µm,
225-315°); CD, caudodorsal (1125-1875 µm, 45 to
45°); CL, caudolateral (1125-1875 µm, 45-135°);
CV, caudoventral (1125-1875 µm, 135-225°);
CM, caudomedial (1125-1875 µm, 225-315°). Error
bars plotted in one direction to avoid overlap represent SEM.
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Figure 4.
Comparison of c-fos
glomerular activity elicited by H-2b and
H-2k male urine in the main olfactory bulbs of
H-2d female mice. A, B, Color contour
maps of the average evoked glomerular activity by either
H-2b (A) or
H-2k (B) urine.
C, Map of the difference between H-2b
and H-2k urine odor representations.
p values for Mann-Whitney U tests are
shown at each bin within the map. Color bar on the top of
A shows the density of active glomeruli. Color bar on
the top of C shows p values.
The black border was drawn to indicate the limits of the
Bonferoni Correction (p < 6 × 10 5) in C and
used to overlay maps in A and B.
D, Prediction of H-2 haplotype using
H-2b and H-2k average odor maps
in A and B, respectively, as templates.
All individual maps used to construct averages in Figures 2 and 3 were
tested. The graph shows the mean SSQ ratio at each urine odor
concentration. A value <1 means the H-2 haplotype was correctly
predicted from the individual map. Error bars plotted in one direction
to avoid overlap represent SEM.
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Urine odors evoke simple and stereotypic glomerular
activation patterns
Studies in mammals (rat, rabbit, and tree shrew) have demonstrated
that patterns of glomerular activation are stereotyped between animals
of a particular species (Skeen, 1977 ; Astic and Saucier, 1982 ; Guthrie
et al., 1993 ; Johnson and Leon, 2000b ). To determine whether urine
elicits consistent spatial patterns between mice, we compared the
activity maps of four individual female mice
(H-2d) exposed to novel male urine
(H-2k) (Fig. 2A-D). We
averaged the four arrays from different individuals to better
illustrate central tendencies (Fig. 2F). Exposure to urine odor from H-2k males resulted in
consistent activation in the ventral, lateral, caudomedial, and to some
extent dorsomedial regions of the bulb (Fig.
2A-F). Thus, the odor representation of
excreted male urine is similar between animals, but no two
representations are exactly alike.
A small number of functional studies in rats have indicated that the
total number of glomeruli activated by complex odors is of the same
order of magnitude as the number stimulated by simple (monomolecular)
odorants (Teicher et al., 1980 ; Astic and Cattarelli, 1982 ; Astic and
Saucier, 1982 ). In contrast, with the advent of more sophisticated
mapping procedures, it has recently been suggested that odors produced
by mixtures of dissimilar chemical odorants may elicit more complex
spatial representations as well as activate much of the olfactory bulb
surface (Johnson et al., 1999 ). Here, we investigated the extent of
glomerular activation elicited by H-2k
urine odor. Only ~10% (190 ± 30) of the estimated 1800 glomeruli were activated in mice exposed to 20% v/v of urine (1:5
dilution) (Fig. 2A-D, F). In control mice
exposed to fresh air, significantly fewer glomeruli were activated
(30 ± 12 2% of total bulb glomeruli) (Fig.
2G). Thus, urine odor activates only a small portion of the
glomerular surface.
A quantitative analysis of the variability between the urine-exposed
animals shows that, in general, the regions showing activity above that
of the fresh air control (>16% of maximal glomerular activation for
any bin) have the least fractional variability and are therefore the
most meaningful (Fig. 2H, blue areas). In all mice,
exposed to urine, the ventral region of the bulb displays the greatest
density of active glomeruli and also corresponds to the largest region
of low variability, perhaps reflecting its importance in the overall
representation of urine odor (Fig. 2A-D, F,
H).
The spatial representation of urine odor is maintained over a wide
range of concentrations
To assess concentration dependence of the odor representation for
H-2k male urine in the MOBs of
H-2d female mice, we compared the
glomerular activation maps of mice exposed to six different urine
dilutions. Comparison of the average patterns yields the qualitative
impression that the spatial pattern is maintained from 0.8 to 20% v/v
of urine (Fig. 3A-E). The
activated regions: ventral, lateral, caudomedial, and to some extent
dorsomedial remain similar with respect to overall position, but an
increase in the density of active glomeruli is apparent (Fig.
3A-E). The total number of positive glomeruli per bulb
increases with urine concentration (Fig. 3G). The result of
the 40% v/v urine exposure was the exception. The regions of
activation appear more diffuse, and the total number of positive
glomeruli is not significantly different from the 20% v/v urine
exposure (Fig. 3E-G). Specifically, the ventral region that
dominated the pattern at lower concentrations is now more diffuse and
contributes less to the overall pattern.
Because changes in spatial activity patterns could underlie
altered odor perception across odorant concentrations (Johnson and
Leon, 2000b ), we sought to gain a better understanding of how domains
of activation change with respect to each other across different urine
concentrations. Therefore, we compared the density of active glomeruli
in individual quadrants (Fig. 3H). The quadrant analysis is consistent with the relative invariance of the pattern in
the middle concentration range. That is, the number of positive glomeruli in each quadrant increases from 0.8 to 20% v/v, albeit with
different concentration dependencies. This presumably reflects the
recruitment of neighboring glomeruli of related specificity (Yokoi et
al., 1995 ; Johnson et al., 1999 ). The ventral quadrants reach
half-maximal activity at a urine concentration of 10% v/v, whereas
other quadrants, for example the rostrolateral, medial, and dorsal, do
not appear to have reached maximal activity even at the highest
concentration of urine tested. Also, some quadrants (e.g., rostromedial
and dorsal) become activated only at higher concentrations. This
difference in the rate of glomerular recruitment within each quadrant
is expected from the fact that olfactory neurons, expressing receptors
with different affinities, project their axons to one or a few
glomeruli in a particular quadrant or quadrants. In addition, some
quadrants (e.g., rostroventral) appear saturated at 40% v/v, under the
given stimulus duration. Thus, the differences in the rate of
glomerular recruitment and saturation (and possibly adaptation and
fatigue) give rise to changes in the overall spatial pattern, but are
relatively invariant within the range of 0.8-20% v/v.
The spatial representations of congenic urine odors differ
To determine whether spatial maps of neuronal activity within the
MOB contain sufficient information to allow discrimination of H-2
determined body odors, we tested whether urine odors from congenic mice
(H-2k and
H-2b haplotypes) evoke distinct maps of
neural activation. The rationale was such that if two perceptually
different urine odors elicit distinct odor maps then recognition of
individuals by their unique body scent may be mediated at least in part
by spatially encoded information in the MOB. Maps showing the average
glomerular activity from four mice exposed to either
H-2k or H-2b
urine were constructed (Fig.
4A,B). The mean number
of activated glomeruli in mice exposed to 20% v/v of urine was
190 ± 30 for H-2k and 160 ± 75 for H-2b (~10% of total bulb
glomeruli). Both urine odors activated similar regions of the
bulb ventral, lateral, and medial aspects. The ventral band of
activation is conspicuous in both urine maps and spans nearly the
entire length of the bulb rostrocaudally. Within this region,
H-2k urine odor activated glomeruli
located in a more lateral and rostral aspect with peak activation at
175° and 1200 µm. H-2b urine odor
activation, however, is located more medial and caudal with peak
activation at 225° and 1750 µm.
To test whether the differences in glomerular activation patterns
between these congenic odors were statistically significant we
performed a Mann-Whitney U Test (Johnson and Leon, 1996 )
(Fig. 4C). The largest region showing a statistical
difference (p = 0.001 to
10 6) is
located in the ventral to ventrolateral aspect of the MOB and spans
1330 µm rostrocaudally. This region was still significant after
applying the Bonferoni Correction (p < 6 × 10 5), an
ultraconservative correction for multiple comparisons (Miller, 1981 )
(Fig. 4C, black border). Two smaller regions located
dorsomedially and caudoventrally span 310 and 260 µm, respectively.
These areas are dominated by H-2k. An
additional small region located caudomedially spans ~330 µm. This
area is dominated by H-2b. Thus, even
using a measurement technique limited in temporal resolution
(c-fos is essentially a leaky integrator of neuronal activation), we find that these two maps are significantly different over a large area that is dominated by the
H-2k urine.
The spatial representations of congenic urine odors are sufficient
for H-2 discrimination
We next developed a method to test whether the average patterns
were consistent enough to predict the H-2 haplotype of urine donors
blindly. First, we performed a least squares fit of the data in an
unknown urine sample to each of the H-2k
and H-2b average datasets measured at 20%
v/v multiplied by a scaling variable. The smallest sum of squares (SSQ)
was used as the criterion to classify the unknown as
H-2k or H-2b.
Both initial unknown donors were correctly identified as
H-2k. To illustrate how predictive these
values and their respective donors were, we calculated a sum of squares
ratio (SSQ for known correct answer/SSQ for known incorrect answer) for
the maps of all the urines used in this publication (23 H-2k and 4 H-2b) (Fig. 4D). We were
able to correctly predict (SSQ ratio <1.0) the H-2 haplotype of all
the urine donors within the range of 2-20% v/v (18 H-2k and 4 H-2b). The maps lost predictability at the
lowest and highest concentrations, 0.8 and 40% v/v, respectively (Fig.
4D; see also Fig. 3A,F). These results show that over a wide range of concentrations the spatial pattern of urine odor is maintained and sufficient to identify the H-2
haplotype of urine donors.
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DISCUSSION |
A quarter century ago Lewis Thomas hypothesized that the ability
of the immune system to recognize self from nonself as exemplified by
antigens encoded by the MHC evolved from the necessity of primitive organisms to detect differences between self and nonself via
exteroceptive chemoreception (Boyse et al., 1987 ). He further
postulated that such an evolutionary origin for MHC might still be
reflected in chemical sensory signaling of individuality among members
of advanced taxa such as mammals. Coincidentally, a technician at Sloan
Kettering noticed that male mice appeared to consort with female mice
of MHC dissimilar type to the relative exclusion of females with MHC
type identical to the males. These observations were followed by a
multitude of behavioral studies that appear to show that mice detect
individuality by smell and that MHC-determined body odors have profound
effects on social interactions (Boyse et al., 1987 ).
The role for MHC in mammalian social interactions through smell has
tantalized immunologists and neurobiologists alike for the last quarter
century. However, the lack of an understanding of the mechanisms that
mediate the biological effects of MHC-determined body odors has
hampered further progress in this area. Efforts to approach the problem
in an analytical manner by trying to determine which volatile compounds
in urine mediate the effect have not yet lead to identification of
relevant compounds because of the complexity of the stimulus (urine)
and the difficulty of the behavioral bioassays (Singh et al., 1987 ;
Eggert et al., 1996 ; Singer et al., 1997 ). Our manuscript represents a
paradigm shift in the study of MHC-determined body odors. Rather than
taking the analytical approach, we asked what patterns of neural
activity the MHC-determined odors elicit. Our results are surprising:
urine, a complex stimulus, elicits relatively simple spatial patterns
of activation in the mouse olfactory bulb, and urine from MHC
dissimilar types of mouse elicit distinct patterns of activity.
We examined urine odor-evoked spatial activity patterns in the MOB by
mapping odor-induced c-fos mRNA expression. c-fos
is an ideal reporter for the study of biologically meaningful stimuli as it is known to be influenced by primary olfactory receptor neurons
and centrifugal afferents (e.g., noradrenergic afferents from locus
ceruleus) (Guthrie and Gall, 1995a ). Furthermore, c-fos mRNA
expression levels are differentially influenced by learning and
experience in a nonhomogenous and odor-specific manner in the MOB
(Johnson et al., 1995 ). Because early odor learning and experience are
known to significantly alter behavior and perhaps perception, we felt
this was a critical component to our analysis. For example, male mice
typically prefer to mate with females of a different, nonself H-2
haplotype (Beauchamp et al., 1985 ; Yamazaki et al., 1988 ). However,
when a mother differing at the H-2 locus fosters them, they reverse
their mating preference to favor the same H-2 type. Thus, exposure
history altered behavior.
To understand how mice recognize one another by their unique body
scents we chose to functionally map urine (a potent source for H-2 body
odors)-evoked response in the MOB, an organ known to be modified
postnatally during the critical period of familial imprinting. First,
we systematically analyzed evoked response of a novel urine odor
(H-2k) in naive
H-2d female mice. Next, we compared
H-2k urine odor with a perceptually
different urine odor (H-2b) to determine
if their identity could be spatially represented in the MOB. We found
distinct spatial patterns of glomerular activation within the MOBs of
awake and behaving untrained mice exposed to urine odor. These complex,
biologically meaningful odors (urine) activated only a small portion of
the glomerular surface, much as was the case for nest and fox odor in
rats (Astic and Saucier, 1982 ). Thus, complex odors (those with many
components) seem to resolve as relatively simple bulb activation
patterns, much as they seem to resolve perceptually as a single
gestalt. Analysis of the spatial patterns showed they were consistent
between individuals and over a wide range of concentrations, similar to
what has been shown for monomolecular odors in rats (Skeen, 1977 ;
Guthrie et al., 1993 ; Guthrie and Gall, 1995a ; Rubin and Katz, 1999 ;
Johnson and Leon, 2000b ). We identified two types of
concentration-dependent changes. As we increased urine concentration
from 0.8 to 20% v/v, we saw an increase in the number of positive
glomeruli. This presumably reflects the recruitment of neighboring
glomeruli of related specificity (Yokoi et al., 1995 ; Johnson et al.,
1999 ) In contrast, at the highest concentration tested, 40% v/v, we
saw no significant total increase but rather a shift in the active
regions dominating the pattern. These data suggest that the change in
spatial pattern that arises between the 20 and 40% v/v urine may
result in altered odor perception (Johnson and Leon, 2000a ).
H-2k urine odor representation was
distinctly different from a perceptually different urine odor
(H-2b). The odor maps were overlapping but
distinct. Comparison of neural patterns at different urine
concentrations with the neural patterns evoked by the two urines at
20% v/v was sufficient to identify the urine donor within a wide range
of concentrations. These results are consistent with the hypothesis
that complex, biologically relevant odors are represented by spatial
activity maps (Astic and Cattarelli, 1982 ; Astic and Saucier, 1982 ;
Vickers et al., 1998 ; Galizia et al., 1999 ), but do not rule out a role for temporal cues (Laurent, 1999 ). Nonparametric analysis showed the
ventrolateral aspect of the MOB was significantly different between the
two urines. The H-2k urine dominates this
pattern. This result cannot be explained as a simple difference in
urine concentration because the pattern is maintained over a wide range
of concentrations. The unique regions of activity could be explained by
differences in the composition of congenic urine odors. These results
support gas chromatographic evidence that the difference between these
two individual body scents may be the result of a significant
difference in either the ratio of some volatile component or components
(Singer et al., 1997 ) or in a unique volatile component or components
(Eggert et al., 1996 ).
In conclusion, these results show that over a wide range of
concentrations the spatial pattern of urine odor is maintained and
consistent enough to predict the H-2 haplotype of urine donors. In
fact, we show these spatial patterns can be used much like an
"olfactory fingerprint" to predict the H-2 haplotype of the donor.
These data demonstrate distinct physiological responses within the MOB
on exposure to two genetically different urine odors that influence
social interactions such as mother-offspring relationships and mate
choice. These experiments represent a radical shift in the approach to
the study of MHC-dissimilar body odors because we can now bring to bear
powerful molecular and biophysical methods to study MHC-determined body
odors. Based on this work, we are now identifying the olfactory
receptors responsible for generating these unique H-2-specific neural
activity patterns in the MOB.
 |
FOOTNOTES |
Received Oct. 26, 2000; revised Jan. 10, 2001; accepted Jan. 22, 2001.
This work was supported by National Institute of Mental Health Grant
MH12438 (M.L.S.) and National Institute of Deafness and Communication
Disorders Grant DC00566 (D.R.). We thank G. Beauchamp, K. Yamazaki, and
B. Johnson for discussion, T. Finger for advice on mapping, and L. Muglia, R. Michaels, B. Schaefer, and T. Finger for comments on this manuscript.
Correspondence should be addressed to Dr. Diego Restrepo, Department of
Cellular and Structural Biology, University of Colorado Health Sciences
Center, 4200 East Ninth Avenue, Room 4505 SOM, Denver, CO 80262. E-mail: diego.restrepo{at}uchsc.edu.
 |
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