Direct Measurement of Extracellular Electrical Signals from Mammalian Olfactory Sensory Neurons in Planar Triode Devices

An artificial nose was developed to mimic aspects of sensory transduction of the peripheral mammalian olfactory system. We directly cultured and differentiated rat olfactory sensory neurons (OSNs) on indium-tin oxide electrodes of planar triode substrates without a coupling agent. Direct voltage (~50 μV) and current (~250 nA) signals were measured simultaneously when OSNs on the planar triode substrates were exposed to odorant mixtures. The response signals were sensitive to the concentration of the odorant mixture, with a typical lifetime, shape, and adaptation profile as seen in responses upon repeated stimulation in vivo. We found that the rising time to the peak current was ~161 ms, while the signal back to baseline was in 1.8 s, which are in agreement with the natural intracellular electrophysiological responses. These results provide the first evidence that mature OSNs grown in a planar triode device are able to detect direct electrophysiological responses to odorants.