In the mouse a repertoire of ~1,100 odorant receptor genes has evolved to detect a very wide variety of chemical structures in the external environment. We are pursuing a genetic approach to understand the mechanisms of odorant receptor gene expression and axonal wiring in the olfactory system. We have discovered a novel and atypical type of chemosensory neuron that does not express odorant receptor genes and appears to have a specialized chemosensory function.
