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Olfactomotor activity during imagery mimics that during perception.

Moustafa Bensafi·Jessica Porter·Sandra Pouliot·Joel Mainland·Bradley Johnson·Christina Zelano·Natasha Young·Elizabeth Bremner·Danny Aframian·Rehan Khan·Noam Sobel
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Abstract

Neural representations created in the absence of external sensory stimuli are referred to as imagery, and such representations may be augmented by reenactment of sensorimotor processes. We measured nasal airflow in human subjects while they imagined sights, sounds and smells, and only during olfactory imagery did subjects spontaneously enact the motor component of olfaction--that is, they sniffed. Moreover, as in perception, imagery of pleasant odors involved larger sniffs than imagery of unpleasant odors, suggesting that the act of sniffing has a functional role in creating of olfactory percepts.

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Auditory PerceptionHumansImagery, PsychotherapyMental ProcessesOdorantsOlfactory PathwaysPhysical StimulationReaction TimeSensory ThresholdsSmellVisual PerceptionComparative StudyJournal ArticleResearch Support, Non-U.S. Gov'tResearch Support, U.S. Gov't, P.H.S.

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Moustafa Bensafi, Jessica Porter, Sandra Pouliot, Joel Mainland, Bradley Johnson, Christina Zelano, Natasha Young, Elizabeth Bremner, Danny Aframian, Rehan Khan, Noam Sobel. 2003-10-19. Olfactomotor activity during imagery mimics that during perception.. https://doi.org/10.1038/nn1145

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